Resilience over Vulnerability in BANGLADESH.
By Kohima Daring
Asia
Debdas lives in a remote village in Bangladesh. His village's location on the Bay of Bengal makes it susceptible to natural disasters, like cyclones and floods. Despite the challenges of extreme weather, when one visits the village and gets to know the locals, one does not see their vulnerability but instead the village's resilience in the face of adversity. Debdas is the epitome of the determination that overflows in this village. He has a physical disability but does not let
that prevent him from generating income to support his family.
In 2018, through World Renew, Debdas joined a Village Savings and Loans (VSL) group that members named ‘Bonoful’.
He was excited to join the group and participate in learning opportunities facilitated by World Renew’s local partner, Faith in Action. Debdas plays a vital role as the group’s secretary and has become
a confident and well-respected leader. Debdas also leads group meetings and is instrumental in the planning and execution of group events. Through his membership in the group, Debdas learned how to become an exemplary leader and an effective entrepreneur. He also learned how to set aside savings for the future and was able to access low-interest loans. He took out a loan so he could set up a fish farm. After he paid back that loan, he took out another to expand into crab cultivation, which helped him increase his income. Debdas is thankful to have the assistance of this group. He says, “It not only helped me develop economically, but also brought me social acceptance and respect.”
In the last year, 101 families in Laos have implemented improved crop-growing techniques, thanks to generous-hearted people like you.
Prayers for Asia
by Ruairidh Waddell
• Bangladesh is preparing for an election in January and rallies between the two parties have already started, please pray for peace during this process.
• Pray for an end to the conflict in India’s north-eastern state of Manipur and praise God that through our local partner, World Renew could send relief to people displaced by the violence.
• As World Renew Asia staff travel, often along very treacherous roads, pray for their safety.
Building a New Future in HONDURAS.
By Rolando Pinzon
Latin America
Amet Orella, 25, lives in the community of Flores del Oeste in Honduras. The married father of two children supported his family working as a banana farmer on a seasonal basis for the Estándar Fruit Company. But the income he generated was not enough to provide for his family’s basic needs. Amet longed to be able to do more to support his family.
Because of their financial struggles and the difficulty they had accessing water, Amet‘s family was one of several families selected by World Renew’s local partner, Alfalit, to have a pila (a concrete water storage container) constructed on their property.
Motivated by his desire to help his family flourish and his lack of stable employment, Amet approached Alfalit and asked about
becoming a bricklayer’s assistant on the pila project. Eager to support young people like Amet in learning and expanding their income-generating abilities, Alfalit instructed the foreman in charge of the pila project to train Amet and help him learn this trade.
Today, with his newfound knowledge and skills in masonry, Amet is better equipped to increase his income and improve his family's living conditions. World Renew and our partners celebrate God’s grace and the generous support that make it possible for us to walk alongside families like Amet’s and provide the training and tools they need to journey away from poverty.
Prayers for Latin America
by Corstiaan Van Aalsburg
• Drought has affected agricultural production in Honduras leaving 3 million people in a food crisis; pray for the people of Honduras.
• Pray for peace in Haiti, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua as economic instability and increasing violence plague the region.
• Pray for safety for World Renew staff in the region and for God’s wisdom and guidance for Jodel Pierre, the newly-appointed Country Director in Haiti.
Thanks to support like yours, 1,043 people in Guatemala received training in farming-related practices in the last year.
Conservation Agriculture Makes a Difference in TANZANIA.
By Joel Mwamponda
East Africa
More than 65 percent of Tanzanians are employed in the agriculture sector with an estimated eight million households, mostly rural, involved in agricultural activities. But due to changing weather patterns across East Africa, traditional farming methods are no longer working to produce the crop yields that farming families need to survive.
Smallholder farmer Rajabu Kishosha, 43, a father of five children, struggled to harvest
enough to provide for his family’s basic needs.
In 2018, Rajabu joined a conservation agriculture training program implemented by World Renew. The program focuses on connecting local farmers who have received training in conservation agriculture practices, implemented what they learned and seen increases in their yields, with farmers still practicing
traditional methods. The farmers sharing about their success with conservation agriculture methods are called Champion Farmers.
Rajab visited with Champion Farmer, Lucas Duba, who had managed to harvest 15 bags of maize, 100 kilograms each, from a one-acre farm. Rajab could only harvest 14 bags of maize from 13 acres of land. After learning about Lucas’ success, Rajab was motivated to implement conservation agriculture methods.
In 2020, he dedicated a quarter of an acre of land to growing maize practicing conservation agriculture methods, including using improved seeds, manure, cover crop, and proper spacing. He harvested four bags of maize. He also observed, by applying cover crops the soil retained more moisture, ensuring the growth of microorganism and preventing soil erosion.
In 2021, Rajab expanded the area of land on which he practices conservation agriculture methods to three acres and continued to see a significant increase in his crop yields. He plans to implement conservation agriculture methods to even more of his land in the future and says he appreciates the support from World Renew Tanzania.
Prayers for East Africa
by Barbara Kayanja
• Pray for peace and stability in Kenya and for wisdom for leaders as they navigate the challenges of rising food prices.
• As the ever increasing cost of living impacts our programs, pray for God’s provision.
• Pray for the health and safety of all World Renew East Africa staff and partners as they continue to work to share Christ’s hope with vulnerable communities.
In Uganda, gifts like yours made it possible for 3,040 farmers to receive training in conservation agriculture between July 2022 and June 2023.
Peace of Mind in Challenging Times.
By World Renew West Africa*
West Africa
In some communities in West Africa* where World Renew staff could once freely visit, due to growing security concerns access has become limited. But World Renew continues to work alongside our local partners to provide the training and support communities need, so that they can continue striving for their own development even if at some point our staff cannot visit anymore.
By helping communities establish Village
Saving and Loans Associations (VSLAs), community members learn the discipline of meeting regularly to pool their savings and save for the future. The VSLA meetings also provide opportunities to train members in business management, conservation agriculture, and more. Training sessions are often facilitated by Group Advisors–community members trained by World Renew and our partner, SEL, in one of the following areas: agriculture, revenue, health, family responsibilities, and in some Christian communities, prayer.
In one region, the Group Advisors trained in family responsibility have been stressing the importance of having identification documents when police became more vigilant in enforcing the requirement for proper identification.
“Every time I brought my wife for medical treatment or to the market, I had to pay a 2000f fine ($4.47 CND) for not having our paperwork, and the day we wanted to go to the city and we didn't have the 2000f, we had to get off the paved road to continue in the bush, which is very risky,” shares Ibrahim*, one VSLA member. “The director of the school threatened my son to bring a copy of his father's nationality paper…or he would risk being kicked out of school, and I did not have the documents.”
Ibrahim says, “Thanks to the advice from the [Group] Advisor, I completed ID cards, family books, birth certificates, and nationality documents for my wife and myself. Now we are at peace when we travel, and our children are no longer threatened to be kicked out of school.”
World Renew West Africa thanks God for his protection that allows us to share his hope even in the midst of challenging times.
*Due to security risks, names and places have been changed or omitted to protect identities.
Prayers for West Africa
by Harouna Issaka
• Please pray for political and social stability across West Africa; pray for peace to prevail.
• Praise God that despite major security challenges linked to armed and jihadist groups, World Renew West Africa is able to continue sharing God’s hope in the region.
• There have already been violent protests as Senegal prepares for presidential elections on February 25th, 2024; pray for a peaceful and fair election process.
During the first phase of a project focused on improving water access in Nigeria, 52 families had piped water service installed, thanks to gifts like yours.
Building Confidence to Overcome Challenges in ZAMBIA.
By Lesley Wakelin
Southern Africa
Urthuan’s parents separated when he was young, leaving him in the care of his grandfather, a carpenter. His mother died shortly after. Urthuan has an intellectual disability and did not start attending a school for children with learning difficulties until the age of ten. He struggled to fit in with his much younger classmates. By the time he was in Grade 5, at the age of 18, he was unable to continue in formal education.
With extremely limited options, his grandfather did not know how to help Urthuan. Then teachers at the school suggested the BEN Therapy program which was being offered at a nearby church. The program, facilitated by World Renew’s local partner, the United Church of Zambia, focuses on addressing the needs of people living with disabilities.
Working with the program therapists who offered encouragement, rather than ridicule, Urthuan became more confident and experienced drastic improvements in his ability to communicate and his behaviour.
After two years in the program, Urthuan was selected to attend the Chipembe Farm College. As he gained new skills, Urthuan began to teach his grandfather how to grow crops on his land. His grandfather says, "The college has helped Urthuan to open his mind, and to learn so many things he didn’t know."
Urthuan is proud of the contribution he is now making to his family. “I am happy,” he says, “because I know a lot and I am able to assist my grandfather.”
This year, generosity like yours helped 34 communities in Malawi establish a disaster risk reduction plan.
Prayers for Southern Africa
by Steve Sywulka
• Pray that the supply of seeds, fertilizer, and other inputs are available for farmers in Zambia so they have what they need for the start of planting season.
• As World Renew Mozambique begins to work with new partners, pray that they will feel God's presence and strength.
• Pray for God’s guidance for World Renew Malawi and partners as they continue to support people impacted by Cyclone Freddy in the midst of recurring fuel shortages.
Healthy Families Build Strong Communities
A child in poor health is less likely to succeed at school.
Malnutrition can make an adult too weak to work to support their family.
Poverty compounds health challenges, but access to a nutritious diet, clean water, proper hygiene, and sanitation fosters healthy, self-reliant, and growing communities.
World Renew offers vital aid and training to boost the health of vulnerable global communities. Join us.
