Seeds for Life in Zambia

While people in many countries are tackling obseity, other countries are suffering from hunger. The Seeds for Life project provides schools with an opportunity to create sustainable feeding programs. The project is helping children in a number of rural areas of Zambia to have a nutritional meal, while attending school.

Due to the recent drought The Butterfly Tree is sourcing alternative crops to that of maize, which is rain dependent. Sorghum is being introduced as an alternative. It provides a rich source of energy, is drought tolerant and environmentally friendly. In addition beans are grown to provide a rich source of protein.

Whereas we in the west throw away some vegetable leaves and stalks, in rural areas of Zambia, every part of the vegetable is eaten. For example pumpkin leaves, which we never see when buying a pumpkin, are high in clacium and also  a good source of vitamins, as well as iron.

Local people have depended on these types of food supplies for decades, but sadly poverty and the added burden of drought, leaves families unable to suffice the appetites of growing children. This is where your donation has really helped. By donating just a small amount to our Seeds for Life project, school pupils can benefit from a meal, which helps to improve their concentration and performance.

Due to the lack of rain some school had failed crops, but the ones that left the planting until later in the season have produced healthy crops. The school bore holes provides a regular source of irrigation, unless there is a nearby stream.

As always working in Zambia is challenging, but seeing children eating heartily is both a humbling and rewarding experience. We have bought extra bags of maize for families, such as Wingrey Mulonzya's family, who had no food when I last visited Zambia. They were living off local fruits. Wingrey has lost both his parents. His older brother, who is married and has two young children, has to provide for everyone. To further help this family we are now sponsoring Wingrey's education. 

We aim to provide additional schools with seeds in time for the the next planting.