Our Mission, Vision and Values
Mission: Our mission is to improve the quality of life for underserved communities by building self-reliance.
Vision: Increased self-reliance and sustainable community development in the communities we serve.
We define quality of life here as the well-being and prosperity of the population; the state of feeling safe; the availability of healthcare, education, needs satisfaction, and economic opportunity. We believe that if people live in an environment where they feel safe; have access to integrated health care and quality education, and participate in rigorous community development initiatives, they would be able to attain self-reliance and improve their quality of life. Thus, we accomplish our mission by enabling individuals, families, and communities to achieve their full potential. By doing so, we empower these poor and remote communities to regain control of their lives through the power of their enterprise. Issues about quality of life have increasingly been an area of concern to many communities in less developed countries. We, therefore, continue to apply community-based strategies to improve quality of life.
Core Values
Integrity
ASCOA’s staff and volunteers maintain the highest standard of professional and ethical behavior: the association respects the individuality, diversity, and professional responsibility of partnering entities and stakeholders in serving the intended community. We value transparency and honesty in our communications, relationships, and actions.
Accountability
ASCOA is strongly accountable to our communities and to the donors. We pride ourselves on strong leadership, teamwork, and accountability as we strive to achieve our vision and mission.
Empowerment
ASCOA aims to empower the people in our communities and to enhance the importance of identifying where people's priorities are and what motivates them. To achieve that we establish direct contacts with community leaders to seek strategies to build people’s capacity, leadership, and confidence to take self-reliant actions to improve their lives.
Engagement
We improve awareness and access to information, seeking major ways in involving people of the community in projects to solve their problems. ASCOA involves people of all ages in contributing ideas, making decisions, and taking responsibility while respecting ethical practices, ethnicity, legal requirements, and safety standards.