Portfolio
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Women and Microcredit in Morocco
Women & Microcredit / Morocco
Microcredit is the most visible innovation in anti-poverty policy in the last half-century, and in three decades it has grown dramatically. Now with almost 130 million borrowers, microcredit has undoubtedly been successful in bringing formal financial services to the poor. Many believe it has done much more, and that by putting money i
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Microcredit and women empowerment in Guatemala.
They are the hope, the hope of salvation of a society in permanent crisis. Against all odds these women build prosperity in an environment of inequality.
Poverty is worse in indigenous areas of Guatemala (Mayan ethnic groups), where the word “future” is equivalent to constant improvement. Up to 78 percent of the population does not earn a month
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At the heart of the Andes there are women who have made out of their survival a positive fight. Betty, Cecilia Manizales, Melanie, Eufenia, Elba. These are the names of personal goals, a daily effort to challenge a destination: poverty. Thanks to microcredit, their dream of progress is already a reality. The Colca Valley is part of the department of Arequipa (Peru) and is located in the northeast corner of thi
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After being sacked from Hawkwind in 1975, supposedly for “doing the wrong drugs,” Lemmy Kilmister decided to form a new band, originally to be called Bastard. Realizing that this would preclude them from commercial acceptance, he eventually settled on Motörhead, after a song he had written for Hawkwind. His stated aim was for the outfit to be “the dirtiest rock n’ roll b
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10.30
2011
Into the shadows, Urban survivors, Zimbabwe, South Africa
Into the shadows – Urban survivors in South Africa
Each day, thousands of Zimbabweans attempt to flee Zimbabwe across the border to South Africa. However, persecution awaits them: they are met with hatred by South Africans, shunned by the police, many have been stripped of their rights, and the abuses they have suffered are most often unseen as the government turns a blind eye to their existence.
Thousands of Zimbabweans face the threat of deportation back
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In the late 90′s, Portugal had the highest rate of drug-related deaths in the European Union. Important measures were taken in 2000 to stop the epidemic, amongst them the decriminilization of drug users.
Commonly known as harm reduction, Portugal’s drug policy is still unique in the European Union.
In this reportage, Pep Bonet followed the social workers of Crescer Na Maior in Lisbon, an Asso
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On Tuesday 12 January, a catastrophique magnitude 7.0 M earthquake hit the island of Haiti. The earthquake killed more than 230.000 people, injured 300.000 and left 1 million homeless. Haiti is now facing sanitation and housing problems, has the rainy season is starting. The reconstruction of the country is the major concern of the government and the international community.Pep Bonet went t
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In June 2010, six months after the devastating earthquake hit the island of Haiti, Pep Bonet reported from Port-au-Prince, the capital to document the daily life of the inhabitants: from tent cities to mental hospital, the situation was not improving, even with the presence of around 11 000 United Nations peacekeepers.
© Pep Bonet
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In Petit-Goave, one of the suburbs of Port-au-Prince in Haiti, a hospice is hosting old and mentally challenged people. Following the earthquake, more people took refuge there. There are now 71 inmates while they were only 40 before the quake. The number is growing.
The hospice was flooded during the earthquake and received no assistance.
In the series “Hospice” Pep Bonet portrayed the daily
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Every year in summer thousands of pilgrims from all over Haiti make a religious journey to the village of Ville Bonheur and the sacred Waters of Saut d’Eau waterfall, a main pilgrimage site in Haiti since 1847. It is believed that 150 years ago the spirit of Virgin Mary has appeared on a palm tree close to the waterfall. Haitians wearing only underwear perform a bathing and cleaning ritual under the water
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The reflection of sunlight off the white houses is what gives Cité Soleil its name. But the daily reality of people living in this slum area in Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital, is one of deprivation and violence.
Since the ousted of the former president Aristide in February 2004, the poorest country of the Western hemisphere has been living a time of violence and insecurity. Although elections which too
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17 MilagrosoSan Lazaro (‘el viejo’), also called Babalu Aye, is the most venerated saint in Cuba, an amalgam of a Christian saint and a Yoruba god worshiped for centuries by Afrocubans. Every year on San Lazaro’s Day (17 December), thousands of devotees from all over Cuba make a pilgrimage to the Santuario del Rincon, in Santiago de la Vega. A number of them are sick people and beggars,
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Poland is the second largest coal producer and consumer in all of Europe and consequently one of the most polluted and polluting countries. From all fossil fuels brown coal is the one that has the biggest impact on climate change, producing 1/3 of the worlds CO2 emissions.Pep Bonet visited the region of Upper Silesia – one of the most heavily industrialized and polluted areas in the contin
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Iceland, August 2010.Due to the unique geological location of Iceland, the high concentration of volcanoes in the area is often an advantage for generating geothermal energy, heating and electricity. 100% of Iceland’s electricity comes from clean sources and the government plans within 30 years to become the first country to abandon the use of fossil fuels.Geothermal activity in the Hen
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12.19
2010
War Child in Lebanon
The Lebanon conflict can be seen at different levels. A bloody internal conflict between different ethnic and religious groups has led to a protracted civil war. In addition, the population is divided into a pro-American and pro-Syrian camp. Finally, the conflict between neighboring Israel and the Palestinians creates much tension.
Groups and refugees
In Lebanon live 17 different ethnic and religious
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For 16 years following the collapse of the Siad Barré regime in 1991, Somalia remained the only country in the world without an effective central government. Six months of relative stability under the rule of the Union of Islamic Courts was brought to a rapid close in the final days of 2006, as Ethiopian militia allied to the forces of a transitional government (which was formed in Kenya in 20
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The civil war in Sierra Leone (1991-2001) was labeled “the cruelest in Africa’s recent history”. It was characterized by destruction – of property, but more so of human lives and values. Tens of thousands of civilians died, hundreds of thousands were raped, burnt, tortured, enslaved, mutilated. Many patients in Kissy Mental Hospital are psychotic because of severe drugs and alcoho
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Even before its devastating civil war, Sierra Leone was the poorest country on earth (UNDP figures). It still is, and now it’s in shambles too. In the years since the peace agreement, people have tried to create new chances for themselves in a land where opportunities are rare. Their struggle, their determination to bounce back, sheds light on a side of Sierra Leone (and of Africa) that we don
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One Goal – amputees soccer team
Sierra Leone’s amputees are a grim legacy of its 1991-2001 civil war. One of the most brutal aspects of the conflict was the use of amputation as a weapon of fear, by both factions. Many of the victims were innocent young men, who were targeted in order to stop them fighting for an opposing side.At the Murray Town Camp for Amputees in Freetown, at one time h
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The civil war in Sierra Leone (1991-2001) was labeled “the cruelest in Africa’s recent history”. It was characterized by destruction – of property, but more so of human lives and values. Tens of thousands of civilians died, hundreds of thousands were raped, burnt, tortured, enslaved, mutilated. Many patients in Kissy Mental Hospital are psychotic because of severe drugs and alcoho
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The Jesus Is Lord Ministry is the most popular Born Again Church in Freetown, Sierra Leone.
Church services can last for up to eight hours and on an average Sunday 2500 people attend. They come for support of the Lord Jesus in coping with hardships or when they suspect to be possessed by a demon or evil spirit. Sister Dora Dumbuya helps people to come under the power of God through prayers and singing and in deep tra
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(1991-2001) dates from 1995, when a special UN envoy was appointed, accompanied by a number of military observers, to try and negotiate a settlement and restore civil order. But as the situation worsened and atrocities became more widespread, it was clear that a more concerted effort was required. In October 1999, to help implement a tentative peace agreement of a few months earlier, the UN substantially i
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August 11, 2007, was a historical day for Sierra Leone as it successfully held its first post-war presidential and parliamentary elections, fully organized, supported and conducted by the country’s National Electoral Commission (NEC). Shortly thereafter, on September 8, 2007, the NEC held a presidential run-off election in which Mr. Ernest Bai Koroma, the candidate of the All People’s Congress (
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Sierra Leone has suffered from conspicuously constrained economic growth. In spite of this negative development, the mining sector is believed to be the only sector that can easily contribute significantly to the country’s economic recovery and development process.
The mining sector in Sierra Leone of which diamonds play a central role, was no doubt, the economic nerve center for the growth and devel
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An ongoing humanitarian crisis in the Darfur region of Sudan has claimed between 200,000 and 400,000 lives, and caused the displacement of an estimated 2.5 million people. The conflict dates back to 2003, when two rebel movements, the SLA (Sudan Liberation Army) and the JEM (Justice and Equality Movement), began attacking government targets. In response to this, the government is said to hav
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Nigeria is a country of paradoxes. It has abundant resources but is one of the poorest countries in the world. It plays a leading role in African affairs, and yet it has one of the highest maternal and neonatal mortality rates in the world, with a shocking 700 babies dying each day and 136 mothers dying in, or as a result of, childbirth each day.
These overall mortality rates mask the vast disparity between rich an
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10.30
2010
Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, October 2010.
Microcredit in Central America
In many developing countries, self-employed represents more than 50 percent of the labor force. Access to small amounts of credit at reasonable interest rates allows poor people to move from initial, perhaps tiny, income-generating activities to small micro-enterprises. In most cases, microcredit programs offer a combination of services and resources to their clients including savings facilities
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South Africa is often associated with its Apartheid history, with its crime, its increasing poverty and high level of HIV infections. However there is a very different story to be told of the country – one of hope, resilience and positive change.
Together, Line Hadsbjerg and Pep Bonet set out to capture these stories of hope, interviewing individuals across the country who have made an inspiring
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Liberia is one of the poorest countries in the world. At US$190, its annual per capita GNP is roughly the equivalent of a dinner for four at a posh restaurant in a major capital city.
Nearly half the population lives in extreme poverty. Only a small minority of families has clean water or sanitation. The country is in ruins after years of civil war and child mortality is frighteningly high – every hour, two chil
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Lesotho is a mountainous country located entirely within the borders of South Africa. It is home to more than 2 million people and has one of the highest HIV burdens in the world. The co-infection with the multi-drug resistant Tuberculosis is the leading cause of death among people with HIV infection.
The importance of TB cannot be underestimated. Because it is transmitted through the air, unlike most other
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Swaziland, Mbangazuwe, NCP (Neighborhood Care Point)
The HIV/AIDS pandemic has affected almost every family in the Kingdom of Swaziland. The Country has the highest percentage of HIV-positive people in the world, with nearly 36% of those between the ages of 15 and 49 living with HIV. More than 70,000 children have been orphaned by AIDS. According to UNADIS, the number of orphans will continue to grow a
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At the outermost bounds of a booming India, drug routes cut across the poor Northeastern states touching Myanmar. Produced in the Golden Triangle, pure heroine easily enters Mizoram, Manipur and Nagaland to fuel one of the fiercest Hiv-Aids epidemics India has to face. In the 1990s, massively injected with shared needles, heroine became the perfect vector for Hiv. In Manipur 40 to 60% of drug u
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Honduras has a generalized HIV epidemic, mainly due to sexual transmission. HIV prevalence is highest in specific groups, such men who have sex with men, sex workers, Garifuna and prisoners.
Sadly, HIV/AIDS related diseases are the second most common cause of death in Honduras. This leads to countless orphans who are living with grandmothers or other extended family members with a limited ability to prov
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Honduras, April 2008The HIV/Aids epidemic is generally concentrated in high-risk populations such as men who have sex with men, commercial sex workers, prisoners, the Garifuna (an Afro-Caribbean population group) in the case of Honduras, street children and the security forces.Honduran homosexuals and transsexuals are common victims of family, church, political and even police haras
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The devastation of AIDS is creating a generation of orphans that face life alone in Swaziland.
The HIV/AIDS pandemic has affected almost every family in the Kingdom of Swaziland. The Country has the highest percentage of HIV-positive people in the world, with nearly 36% of those between the ages of 15 and 49 living with HIV.
Aids has contributed to reducing the average life expectancy in Swaziland from 58 to 3
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Every day, 12,000 people worldwide are infected by the HIV virus. Some 39.5 million people on the planet are now infected, and in 2006 alone, 2.9 million people died of AIDS-related illnesses. Some hope lies in drug treatment with ARVs (antiretrovirals) which have become more available to low-income, developing countries since the introduction of cheaper generic drugs, and deals negotiated with the maj
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I traveled to Africa with a feeling that I had given myself an impossible mission: to write about AIDS. But how could I write about the AIDS catastrophe in sub-Saharan Africa without people simply turning to the next page? How could Pep’s images and my text capture the attention of readers who would rather be spared? Readers who are tired of all the skeletal, dying people, all the overflowing graveyards, all
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10.30
2006
democratic republic of congo, Bukavu, 2004- 2006, HIV&aids
Democratic Republic of Congo – HIV&AIDS
More than a decade of war has had a lasting impact on Bukavu, a city in the eastern part of Congo. Poverty is rife, the local government barely functions, and there is an almost complete lack of social services. For many, healthcare is unaffordable – a situation made especially urgent because of the high incidence of HIV/AIDS. The spread of the infection is closely associated with the war, due to the movement
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Every day, 12,000 people worldwide are infected by the HIV virus. Some 39.5 million people on the planet are now infected, and in 2006 alone, 2.9 million people died of AIDS-related illnesses. Some hope lies in drug treatment with ARVs (antiretrovirals) which have become more available to low-income, developing countries since the introduction of cheaper generic drugs, and deals negotiated with the maj
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In 2003, Pep Bonet visited Nchelenge in northern Zambia, and found that one person in four was HIV positive. The atmosphere was tight and suspicious. No one wanted to admit to their HIV status and women who were HIV positive were often beaten or abandoned.
When Bonet returned in June 2005, he discovered a community largely transformed. People had rediscovered hope. This was partly due to the extraordinary st
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Honduras has a generalized HIV epidemic, mainly due to sexual transmission. HIV prevalence is highest in specific groups, such men who have sex with men, sex workers, Garifuna and prisoners.
Sadly, HIV/AIDS related diseases are the second most common cause of death in Honduras. This leads to countless orphans who are living with grandmothers or other extended family members with a limited ability to prov
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South Africa has one of the highest incidences of HIV infection in the world, involving nearly six million people. In November 2003, the government approved a new national HIV/AIDS plan that added ARV therapy to the existing protocol and set a goal of treating 600,000 people with ARVs by 2008.
