Livestock for 300 Orphan Families in Zimbabwe

The Sandra Jones Centre horizon in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe is now dominated with a beautiful white greenhouse dome and we are so excited about the potential and prospects of this project. You see, young ladies will learn how to become farmers and business owners here. This is so exciting for them and for us, as we walk beside this adventure with them.

It all started with the dream of helping young girls already affected by AIDS and who were later victims of abuse.  They live in the Sandra Jones Centre and start a new life there, full of hope and a vision towards the future.  They receive counseling and so much love, helping them come to grips with their past while learning that they are precious and cherished.  They also learn a skill set so that when they leave the Centre, they are able to hold down jobs for which they were trained and which they like.

The beds in the greenhouse have all been dug by the girls - a huge task -  and they are waiting expectantly for the seedlings to be planted in the next few weeks.  They decided to grow their own seedlings from scratch rather than buying them already prepared.  It is all part of training – if the girls learn this skill, they will be able to propagate their own seeds when they return to the rural areas and this will be a cost-saving measure for them. 

They are planting red and yellow peppers, as research has shown that there seems to be a lack of fresh, healthy ones on the market at the moment.  They also bring in an excellent return and are full of nutrients!  They are very expensive in the shops and we have already begun to get a market for them through some of the private school parents.   We are also planning on planting various types of tomatoes and, in the future, we hope to venture into strawberries. The benefit of strawberries is that what they don’t sell, the girls will make into strawberry jam. This will not only benefit the Centre financially, but has the secondary effect of teaching the girls skills they can use later.

So we are all excited about this embryonic project and what benefits we can see for the whole Centre.

Thank you SO much for being part this! Without YOU, it sure wouldn’t be happening.

For an HIV+ child, taking medications is essential to successful treatment and these medicines should not be taken without food. At AFCA, we see food as part of treatment and we call it Nutrition by Prescription.  We want to make sure that all the children who need it, receive the food they need to take their medicine, to thrive, and to grow.

Due to the exceptional quality of eggs produced, the need/demand for good protein, and the above average outcomes, AFCA will build a second coop that can hold 1000 hens.  AFCA's chicken coops are large, with concrete flooring and tin roof, multi-level tables with steps which allow the animals to walk around freely and not be caged up. A storage unit is part of the coop, holding feed, water, a generator, egg trays, and anything the chickens might need in a country where electricity and water are not always available.  A room for a guard is also included in the building of the coop, with the guard keeping potential vandals away at night. The total cost for such a project is $25,000, with 1000 laying chickens costing an additional $10,000.  

The eggs from this coop will be given to school children identified as needing additional nutrition. Most of the children will be HIV+, but no child will be identified as either HIV positive or negative.  ALL needy children will receive the benefit of eggs.  It's a neat way to include an entire group of children without having to single anyone out!

AFCA believes in transparency and in financial accountability.  With this in mind, we keep a close eye on our projects, receiving monthly reports (including financial reports and outcomes), photos, videos, and updates to ensure that the project is moving forward as it should and that the beneficiaries are getting what we promised them. Children are monitored to make sure that they are, indeed, receiving the eggs and are benefiting from the gift.  Since we are creating a sustainable solution to hunger, we make sure that half the profits from sales are injected back into the orphanage hosting the chicken project, while the other half is saved for the purchase of new birds, when needed.

A minimum of one visit a year from AFCA's Executive Director allows us to see first-hand how the children and chickens are doing, while giving us a chance to audit finances in person and reconciling all aspects of the project to make sure it is functioning well and as planned.  Constant communication via skype, email and whatsapp also takes place, keeping us all up to date on how the children are and how finances are being managed. All receipts are kept in our head office, where they have been reconciled by AFCA's finance director.

AFCA has extensive experience in this type of project, having run other livelihoods projects in Zimbabwe, Kenya, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. We firmly believe that everyone can do something to help themselves, but we all need a little hand up.  This project is just that.  With good food in their bellies, HIV positive and negative children will have the chance to get an education. We know that less school is missed when children eat well and they are better able to concentrate on their work. Their improved health also means that the families and orphanages avoid expenses of additional medicine and doctor fees.