Relief for a poverty stricken village in Zambia
Relief food for Zambia
In the North West province of Zambia, in the community of Kamiba, approximately 1000 people (surrounding area) are living on about $8.00 per month – 25 cents a day! That is extreme, if not critical poverty!
From January through March things become increasingly difficult and the little food many of them have runs out. They are forced to leave their own gardens to find work some other place. This means there is no one to plant the crops needed to sustain them for the balance of the year. Relief food is needed during the months of scarcity so these villagers will not have to leave their own gardens. They will be able to focus on planting and raising enough from their own garden so that soon they’ll be able to provide for themselves.
How you can help
$37.50 will provide relief food (Maize) for 250 people for one day.
2007 CAMPAIGN RESULTS
An amazing 1776 people received relief food of rice and two different grades of maize (roller and breakfast)! It is the equivalent to providing food for 472 people for an entire month! Plus, 21 families received fertilizers, seeds and tools to grow their own food . The seed can potentially yield enough maize to feed these families for one year (4 bushels a month) leaving an excess of over 28 bushels to sell and enough seed for the next years planting!
The Field partners who oversaw the food distribution reports: Now concerning the distributions, it was a mixed feeling occasion – what I mean is that we discover that our experiences during the distributions were like a mixed bag of emotions because the needs of the people were overwhelming and the help given to them was greatly appreciated. Thank you for helping us help them.
Thank you to all who supported this project and the Rice Raiser Campaign 2007.
Make cheques payable to Hungry for Life International and send to: The Rice Raiser, PO Box 2514, Abbotsford, BC V2T 6R3
Rice Raiser 2006
2006 Campaign Results
Thank you to everyone who contributed to the 2006 Rice Raiser campaign. We saw some tremendous results partnering with Hungry For Life International on the Maize for Zambia project.
Indonesia: Hunger resulting from HIV/AIDS
Jayapura Support Group
Jayapura, Papua Province, Indonesia
The sparsely populated province of Papua, with about 2.5 million people, has the highest prevalence of HIV in the archipelago of Indonesia – some 30 times the national average.
Awareness about HIV/AIDS among the people in the city of Jayapura is growing, but there are still many stigmas attached to caring for persons living with AIDS. Those suffering from AIDS are often marginalized and left to die by themselves.
The Jayapura Support Group is a loosely organized volunteer organization begun in 2001 for the purpose of caring for those living with HIV/AIDS in the Jayapura area. It is made up of 10 volunteers, mostly health care workers, who visit and provide care for those living with AIDS. All volunteers have day jobs and visit patients outside of their work hours. Currently JSG serves 73 people in their home care program. In addition to the home care program, JSG runs a shelter for persons living with AIDS whose families will not or cannot care for them. The shelter houses 1 to 6 people at any given time.
The goal of the program is to increase the quality of life- physically, socially, and emotionally- for persons living with AIDS and their families in the greater Jayapura area.
The following services are offered to the 73 people living with AIDS and their families:
- 10 volunteers visit patients every 3 days to every 2-3 weeks, depending on the stage of the patient’s disease.
- Nurse volunteers provide ARV medications, basic medications, and health supplies and help with use of medications.
- JSG volunteers distribute nutritional supplements to patients and their families.
The Rice Raiser portion will be to provide rice and eggs for this program.
How you can help
- $38.00 will provide rice for one person for six months.
- $22.00 will provide eggs for one person for six months.
Make cheques payable to Mennonite Central Committee and mail to The Rice Raiser, PO Box 2514, Abbotsford, B.C. V2T 6R3
p(caption). The Jayapura Support Group
2007 CAMPAIGN RESULTS
52 people will receive both rice and eggs for one full year!
Thank you for supporting this project and the 2007 Rice Raiser Campaign
Other photos:
Mendelina and Yosua
Sri Ibu, Warsini and Dewi
Augustina cooking rice
Honduras: Food Sustainablity for Women and Youth
Promoting Sustainable Livelihoods Through Agricultural Enhancement
Iriona, Honduras, Central America
Honduras is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere. One of the most isolated regions of this country is the municipality of Iriona in northeast Honduras, home to the Garifuna people. These people are descendents of former African slaves. They have suffered enormous oppression and poverty over the years. Iriona is on the path of some of the most severe hurricanes the world has ever seen.
As men often look for work outside of the community, such as on fishing and tourist ships, women are the primary farmers in Garifuna villages. They struggle to provide enough food for their families, rising at 3 am and working in the fields until the tropical sun becomes too overwhelming at mid-morning. They prepare food for their children and process the harvest for future consumption and some sales. The Garifuna Agricultural Enhancement program will teach greater agricultural diversity and sustainability through education and micro-credit programs for women and youth. The goal is to ensure food security and higher family incomes in the future. Participants in the project include 81 women (from nine communities) and 300 junior high school students. Training and education will be provided on bio-intensive sustainable crop management and composting techniques. This project will also include educational radio programs, bio-intensive farming plots for training purposes and construction of a regional training and cultural centre which also serves as a hurricane shelter.
How you can help
This is a CIDA supported program. The Government of Canada will match your donation by $2.00 for every $1.00 given.
Make cheques payable to CAUSE Canada and send to: The Rice Raiser, PO Box 2514, Abbotsford, BC V2T 6R3
2007 CAMPAIGN RESULTS
- 80 women are being trained in biointensive composting and small farming techniques to increase agricultural production, ensuring food security and a possible source of additional income.*
- 4 junior high schools receive a boost to their Agricultural curriculums with the introduction of training sessions and peer education.
- 8 women’s groups and four schools were selected for indepth training and technical support
- A main demonstration nursery was established in Ciriboya, Iriona to plant experimental crops, test new, organic agricultural techniques, implement best practices and provide seedlings and training for community groups.
Thank you for supporting this project and the 2007 Rice Raiser Campaign.
Appreciation for Your Help.
Message of Appreciation to Rice Raisers
May 2007
CAUSE Canada, on behalf of our partners and beneficiaries in Honduras, would like to express our deep gratitude for the generous support of Rice Raisers and its contributors. This partnership is valuable for assisting the Garifuna population of Iriona in the northeast region of Honduras overcome severe difficulties and constraints to their well-being. In particular, the work of CAUSE Canada and your important contributions have promoted access to healthy food for many women, children and men. The training, supplies and seeds provided to these special people allow them to develop long term, sustainable sources of food supply for their families. This improved quantity and quality of food allows balanced diets and proper nutrition, contributing substantially to the health of the local population. A healthy population is the basis for a healthy, prosperous community.
Thank you for making a BIG difference in this world through Rice Raisers and CAUSE Canada!
Astrid Castillo’s Story
Promoting Sustainable Livelihoods through Agricultural Enhancement
A Participant’s Perspective
At the tender age of twenty, Astrid Castillo of Punta Piedra, Honduras, already has ten years of agricultural experience. While many people ten years into a career find themselves stuck in their ways, Astrid is eager and willing to better her craft. Much of this enthusiasm stems from the fact that Astrid clearly understands the importance of agricultural enhancement for the development of her land, family and Garifuna community.
The Garifuna peoples of the northern coast of Honduras (an Afro-Caribbean ethnic group) have a 200 year history of agricultural production in the region. The traditional and most important crop continues to be yucca, a root vegetable used by the Garifuna population for the production of casabe bread. Casabe bread is a common snack, tasty side dish and, most importantly, it can withstand the tropical conditions for an extended period of time.
Astrid dedicates the majority of her time in the fields to the yucca harvest. To tend to the yucca Astrid, along with female friends, aunts and her 80 year old grandmother, leave for the fields at 3:30am, arriving at their plots just after 4:00am in order to take advantage of the cooler morning air. This process keeps Astrid busy Monday through Thursday. On the weekend she travels approximately five hours by bus to attend classes in the city. She is currently taking college level science and communication courses.
Astrid’s dedication to both agriculture and learning made her an ideal participant for an agricultural enhancement course offered by one of CAUSE Honduras’ local partner organizations, Sub Sede Pastoral Social. This young lady eagerly recounts the skills she obtained. The combination of levelling, tilling and the application of organic and locally available fertilizers has resulted in notably stronger and healthier yucca harvests, reports Astrid.
Despite the program’s successes, plenty of opportunities for improvement still exist. The accessibility, frequency and sophistication of agricultural workshops can, and will be increased. As part of the organic agricultural program, CAUSE Honduras is also dedicated to promoting composting throughout the region. Although Astrid learned how to use bocaci, an accelerated composting process, she admits that she probably could use another workshop to feel confident enough to use this technology in her own fields. Furthermore, CAUSE Honduras is keenly working to promote crop diversification for the economic, environmental and nutritional wellbeing of the Garifuna communities. Educational initiatives and locally managed organic nurseries will help CAUSE and community members reach this objective together. Finally, we must consider Astrid’s primary concern: Young agricultural producers are becoming less common every year. Garifuna traditions, notably the production of yucca and casabe bread, could be potentially lost in the coming generations. Astrid believes one of the most important things that CAUSE Honduras can do to help her community is to work with enthusiasm and expertise to ensure that her fellow youth and future generations are encouraged and inspired to continue working the land.
Relief Food for Haiti
Haiti is the least developed country in the Western Hemisphere and one of the poorest countries in the world with an estimated 80% of the population living in abject poverty.
Four hours north of the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince is the city of Laraque with a population of 9000 – the majority of its inhabitants being children. Food shortages due to drought or flooding has left the community in chronic hunger and malnutrition making it difficult for many families to eat more than once per day and in harsher times, only once every two days. A feeding program will be set up to target 60 of the poorest families in the community to provide them with enough rice to combat malnutrition.
How you can help
$22.50 will provide rice for 30 people for one day.
Make cheques payable to Hungry for Life International and mail to The Rice Raiser, PO Box 2514, Abbotsford, B.C. V2T 6R3
2007 CAMPAIGN RESULTS
The community of Laraque
This was the area where the pre-campaign distribution in November took place:
- relief food consisting of rice and beans was provided to about 80 families
The community of Dumay
- 304 families received relief food of about 3.3 kg. of rice.
Plus
- enough food (rice and beans) was purchased to provide 300 school children with a meal a day at their school for one month.
Thank you for supporting this project and the 2007 Rice Raiser Campaign.
A journal entry by Ashley – Thurs. Aug. 23, 2007
“This afternoon we observed a food distribution at the school in Dumay. Willem didn’t want us to be involved because of the shear chaos that can erupt. Near the beginning there was a small line of older people, but in just minutes we could see many people coming down from the mountains and the village. It was very overwhelming.They were so eager to receive this food that they held on so tight to each other so that there would be no cutting in line. It totaled around 304 families that were fed. This may not be the best way in teaching the village how to equip themselves, but they will have some food for the next week.
It just brings me the question ‘why’? Why them and not me? There were kids my age and younger standing in that line. So just because they were born in a different area, they start at a disadvantage? There were probably people, if given an education, that would be much smarter than me and just overall better people. So that is just a bit of what’s on my mind right now.”
Pre-Campaign Food Distribution
At the end of November 2006, the Rice Raiser staff accompanied Hungry for Life Partner, Tim Visser, to the Laraque project to participate in a pre-campaign food distribution. Pastor Ric Strangway was along with us and helped in the food distribution.
Pastor Ric, Frank, Tim and some young helpers at Laraque food distribution
Bagging the rice and beans into family sized portions.
We purchased bags of rice and beans from Haiti’s capital city, Port-Au-Prince and drove to the neighbouring village of Laraque where we planned to divide up the bulk bags into family size portions and spend the night. It was evening and dark by the time we arrived at our destination so we bagged the rice and beans by the light of a single bulb and generator. When the gas for the generator ran out, we used the headlights of the truck. We packaged up about 80 family portions.
In the morning, we drove to Laraque and distributed the rice and beans to the people. The amount each family received should last them for a week or possibly almost two weeks if they stretch it out and have other things to add to it.
We were informed that a month prior to our trip to this village, a medical team had been visited and had taken a boy who was very sick with malnutrition to the hospital. While we were giving out the food, the father of that little boy came up and thanked us for bringing the much needed rice and beans as he knew he didn’t have enough food for his family and he was afraid his little boy who was now out of the hospital would get sick again.
We were also told that it was “No small thing that we were doing because most of these parents find feeding their family a daily challenge. Everyday is a struggle and providing this food was like giving these parents a once in a life time week long holiday from worrying about how their family was going to eat.” Our host told us that this was a wonderful gift for these families.
The people kept coming and we learned that we could have taken much, much more, but it still would not have been enough as the needs are so huge. You see, just down the road was another village with as great of, if not greater needs.
This trip helped us to understand that there are many villages all over the world where people live without enough food. The majority are not heard of or seen by the world. They live in their day to day survival state without much hope of change. What a privilege to know that we can help and we can give hope.
We discovered that we can give food and we can help children receive an education at the same time. For a lot of families, they cannot afford to have their children go to school because they need their child’s help to provide food or to watch over the youngest children while the parents work in the fields. In many villages children are provided with a meal at their school. This eases the concern of parents for one meal and it also allows the children an education, something most of these parents never had. Therein lies hope for the children of this generation and for the future, through the promise of food, they can get an education.
Learning about villages like Laraque is crucial for us to be able to help. As we understand the tremendous need and as we respond through our joint efforts in giving, we do have the power to change lives. We really can make a huge difference all over the world.
A tremendous thanks to our partners, Hungry For Life International, for arranging this trip and for advancing the Rice Raiser Campaign the funds to purchase the rice and beans to do this pre-campaign food distribution. You can now see the process that goes into distributing the food that your donations help to purchase and you can see some of the people you have already helped by viewing the Haiti Food Distribution Video here on our website.
It doesn’t take a lot from any single person, but just a little from a lot of people. We are very hopeful for a great response during the Rice Raiser Campaign so we can help many more people who struggle with hunger here in Haiti and in our other project countries as well.
More photos from the distribution:
Women waiting for their family portion of rice and beans
Woman guarding her rice and beans
Woman receives her rice and beans
Giving rice out the back door
Giving rice out of the truck
Lots of people need food
Haitian boy carrying rice on his head
Other photos of the children in Laraque
