Soroptimist International is an international organization for business and professional women who work to improve the lives of women and girls, in local communities and throughout the world. Our name means ‘best for women'; we are women at our best, working to help other women to be their best.The club was first formed in Oakland, California in 1921; today the organisation has close to 100,000 members in more than 125 countries and territories around the world.We have in place a variety of programs, worldwide, aimed at helping women and girls better themselves. We draw upon the expertise of our members to ensure the success of these programs. Soroptimist Mauritius started 25 years ago and today there are 2 clubs – SI Ipsae and SI Port Louis with a total of 50 members. The clubs have undertaken a tremendous amount of work in the past 35 years, lobbying for women's rights, gender equality and child protection. We are one of the founder partners of Women in Networking (WIN). The clubs have initiated and raised funds for many projects including 2 crèches in Black River and Baie du Cap, a child protection centre in Floreal, a day care centre for the elderly in Camp Levieux, and more recently the kindergarten at the Flamboyant Centre d'Eveil des Tout-Petits in Richelieu.The Club of Port Louis in Mauritius manages a lot of project around advocay and focus on the management of the Flamboyant Education Centre in Cite Richelieu. Flamboyant Education Centre is a child care unit and pre-primary school in Mauritius that provides a learning environment for children aged 2 to 5 years old. These are all children who come from deprived backgrounds. The Centre may sometimes be the most stable element in these children's lives.