Thriving Kids Archives - Page 4 of 5

Bringing Life-Giving Water to Zambia

December 17, 2019 by Cross International

It’s the middle of the night. Your child wakes you up to tell you she’s thirsty. What do you do? Most likely you stumble to the kitchen, turn on the tap, and fill up a cup. Too often, we take our ability to easily meet our basic needs for granted.

Eunice, a mother in eastern Zambia, doesn’t.

She still remembers getting up at 2 a.m. every morning to line up in the dark at her local open well. If she overslept, there wouldn’t be water left to bring home to her children. The worst part about this arduous chore? The water she and her neighbors competed for wasn’t even clean. It made her children sick. It made their friends sick. But it was the only water they had.

Eunice is not alone in her daily quest to find clean water for her family. Only 44 percent of rural Zambians have access to basic safe drinking water services. Only 19 percent have basic sanitation (toilet) facilities. And only 5 percent have easy access to soap and water to wash their hands.

This lack of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) resources is the leading cause of death for young children in sub-Saharan Africa, because it causes diseases like cholera and diarrhea. Poor sanitation is also partly to blame for Zambia’s high child stunting (impeded growth and development) rates. And the lack of WASH facilities in schools keeps students, especially girls, from attending, leading to more teen pregnancies, earlier marriages and limited access to quality jobs.

Health, education, employment—clean water affects every area of life.

That’s why Cross International supports partner organizations like the Kachere Development Program, a church-based ministry that installs community water systems, trains female entrepreneurs, and distributes Bibles in local languages.

Thanks to Cross International donors’ generosity, Eunice’s village now has a working well with clean, drinkable water.

She no longer has to get up in the middle of the night to fetch water. She doesn’t have to give her children dirty water to keep them alive today that would only make them sick tomorrow.

In light of this gift, Eunice gave back, too. She joined her local V-WASH (Village Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) Committee to help maintain the well and teach her community healthy WASH practices. They also gather to study the Bible and give thanks to God, the Source of both clean water and “living water.”

Because of the generous gifts of believers like you, Eunice’s children—and the children of her entire village— are growing up healthy, hopeful, learning and loved. Can you help us share God’s love with more children like Eunice’s? We’re raising $515,000 to reach 15,000 children and their family members this holiday season.

Help bring clean water—and “living water”—to other villages by donating to Thriving Kids Africa campaign.

Sources: “Water, Sanitation and Hygiene,” Unicef. Accessed 12 November 2019.

Ministering to African Women Through Microenterprise

December 10, 2019 by Cross International

As we continue to raise support for Thriving Kids Africa, we want to highlight one way these effective programs are changing the lives of 15,000 children and their family members: Microenterprise.

What is a microenterprise? It’s a small business run by one person with a limited number of employees. These small ventures make up a large percentage of businesses in Africa, and they are potential paths out of poverty for many families. But African women who want to start their own microenterprises face significant challenges.

In many African countries, women have limited rights to own property and open bank accounts on their own. Cultural expectations can be a hindrance, especially in rural areas, where women are often expected to rely on their husband or extended family for support instead of going into business for themselves. If a woman does succeed in launching a start-up, lack of information, mentorship and/or training can limit her ability to choose more profitable business models or expand their ventures.

Even though there are currently more female entrepreneurs in Africa than their male counterparts, studies show that female business owners have access to just ⅙ of the capital male business owners do. And those woman-owned enterprises’ profits are 38 percent lower than those owned by men!

Helping female entrepreneurs access business training, finance programs, technology and social support systems can help them overcome these barriers—and lift their families out of poverty.

Thriving Kids Africa is funding two microenterprise projects that offer essential economic and spiritual support.

In Malawi, our partner Ambuya Development Center is ministering to women in the village of Thanganyika. They estimate 60 percent of women there are the sole providers for their families because of their husband’s neglect. Cross International donors help those women learn entrepreneurial skills and join an empowering network of female business owners. The program gives these women access to a two-year cycle of microloans that give them the capital they need to start a new microenterprise. This support helps women in rural Malawi, feed their families, send their children to school, leave abusive marriages and ultimately escape poverty.

Read Esther’s entrepreneurial success story.

In Zambia, our partner Kachere Development Program brings together female heads of households into self-help groups where women can brainstorm solutions to their community’s social and economic issues. They also gain the profitability training they need to grow their small businesses along with access to three rounds of low-interest microloans, which the group self-manages. The generosity of Cross International givers makes it possible for these women to care for their families and better their communities. Nutrition, education, safe housing, medical care: All of this becomes possible with microenterprise support.

Help empower female entrepreneurs in Malawi and Zambia by giving to Thriving Kids Africa.

How meeting basic needs help vulnerable kids thrive in Malawi

December 5, 2019 by Cross International

Roderick was born in the southern Malawi village of Thanhanyika with his future ahead of him. When he was three, that quickly changed. His parents died, leaving him in the care of elderly grandparents that could not afford to feed him. Roderick did not attend school because he was either too sick or working for food. In March 2019, his village encountered cyclone Idai, the worst tropical cyclone on record. Roderick’s family lost their home … twice.

A promising future was hard for Roderick to see.

In 2013, Roderick joined Ambuya Development Centre (ADC), a local Thriving Kids Africa partner. Rooted in Christianity, ADC’s mission is to empower vulnerable women and children of rural Malawi through formal education, workshops and training.

Today, Roderick is 10, and because of the love and support of generous Cross International givers like you, he is in grade four, receives food six days a week, lives in a safe, warm home, and has a thriving future ahead of him.

A village of opportunity.

Thanganyika Village is home to more than 5,300 people, many of them women and children. 85% of villagers are living on less than $1 a day. As a result of this severe poverty, the village struggles with drug and alcohol abuse, an HIV/AIDS pandemic, overcrowded homes due to the influx of orphaned children, drought and lack of access to education, food, clean water and safe homes.

When basic needs are met, children can thrive.

Together with ADC, we have built a holistic, integrated, multisectoral approach to helping the children of Malawi thrive. Our approach brings together clean water, education, a feeding program, safe housing and community centers and microloans.

Since its inception, ADC has been able to provide Thanganyika with life-changing resources like a solar-powered water system, organic vegetable gardens and the sharing of Christ’s love. Your continued support provides ongoing nourishment for the children in Roderick’s village, which supports overall health, improved school attendance and learning.

Our goals are big. Our God is bigger.

Today, our vision is to continue feeding 300 children six days a week, rebuild 335 homes and build a fellowship hall that includes a cafeteria, community event space and evacuation center. And because there are more female-led households in Africa today than ever before, we hope to offer microloans to 200 women so more mothers can feed, take care of, and send their children to school.

Through the power of Jesus, we know it’s possible!

As we look to the future in Thanganyika, southern Malawi and for all Thriving Kids Africa, we are prayerful that we can continuously grow programming year over year. Please consider monthly support to give families like Roderick’s hope for a future of possibility.

Sharing the Gospel Through Entrepreneurship

November 26, 2019 by Cross International

In rural Malawi, where Esther Fabiano lives, only 10 percent of rural Malawi students complete secondary school. But Esther has big dreams for her son. She wants him to graduate, so he can go on to attend college. Esther knows education is a powerful tool for fighting poverty. But in order to get her son the schooling he needs, Esther needed to earn money for his tuition. She had to go on her own learning journey as well.

Eighty percent of Malawi’s population relies on agriculture for its income and survival. Storms, droughts and accidents can destroy a family’s security in seconds. Esther was trying to earn extra money—and stability—for her family by selling cakes and grilled meat, but she didn’t have the resources she needed to make her business profitable.

Women in Malawi struggle to gain access to capital and markets. Tools that American entrepreneurs might take for granted (access to electricity, credit cards, business loans and the Internet) aren’t readily available in Malawi’s villages. Other barriers—including gender-based violence and a lack of representation in governmental leadership roles—make it even harder for Malawi’s female entrepreneurs to get ahead.

Thanks to donations to Cross International, Esther was able to take advantage of an empowering program run by one of our partner organizations, the Ambuya Development Center. The program teaches local women how to run a profitable small business at an average cost of just $39 per participant. Esther was welcomed into a supportive network of female entrepreneurs and given access to a two-year cycle of microloans to help her increase her earning potential.

Esther began by borrowing $13 to buy a pig. Through a system called kuvuula, she loans the pig to her neighbors to breed and receives half the piglets. She sells those piglets for cash to pay for her son’s school tuition. Following business best practices, Esther then diversified. She began purchasing and reselling food and took out a second microloan to buy two cows. She used some of her profits to buy and install solar-powered security lights to keep her growing business safe.

Because of your generosity to Cross International, Esther can afford to educate her son. That education will have a life-long impact on their family and their community. When you give to the Thriving Kids Africa campaign, you are giving to proven church-based programs that help families like Esther’s escape poverty—and know God’s love.

Help support other female small business owners and their children by giving to the Thriving Kids Africa campaign.

Sources: “Women’s Economic Empowerment and Equality: Malawi.” USAID. Accessed 12 November, 2019.

“The World Bank in Malawi,” The World Bank. Accessed 12 November, 2019.

“School Completion Rates,” Unicef. November 2019.

Empowering Girls in Uganda: the Project Princess Initiative

November 22, 2019 by Cross International

In Uganda, a special group of girls gather to pray, greeting each other with a friendly smile before bowing their heads to thank the Lord for what He has done for them. This “Big Sister Circle” prays for God to continue working in their lives, and they also encourage younger girls to look to God for hope in the future. These ‘big sisters’ have been changed through the work of the Project Princess Initiative, a Cross International ministry partner committed to supporting, educating, and empowering girls to become responsible leaders of the next generation in Uganda.

Girls in Uganda are desperately in need of the kind of support the Project Princess Initiative provides. According to the United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative, 4 in 5 girls in Uganda do not attend high school, around half of girls between ages 15-24 are illiterate, and more than 700,000 girls between the ages of 6-12 have never attended school. Poverty is a leading contributor to this problem, as the expense of school uniforms and supplies are often prioritized for boys. Early marriage prevents many girls from continuing in school, with around 35% of girls dropping out of school due to marriage and 23% due to pregnancy. For those who try to stay, inadequate infrastructure for girls’ hygiene at school results in prolonged gaps in their education, as girls stay home during their monthly cycles.

The Project Princess Initiative is determined to change this reality, one girl at a time. The initiative was started in 2009 by Fiona Miremba Kiggundu, a Christian Ugandan woman concerned about the abused girls who sought help at her preschool. From the beginning, the focus has been keeping vulnerable girls in school, providing an education which will empower them to thrive economically and build stable families, which, in turn, builds stable communities.

To do this, the Project Princess Initiative uses multiple approaches. Through school partnerships, “Talk Sessions” are offered after hours so girls can learn more about topics such as career choices, self-esteem, decision making, hygiene management, and body changes. Sessions are designed to challenge, inspire, and equip vulnerable young women to stay in school. Girls also receive counseling, tutoring, and health services at the Project Princess Initiative’s own center, a safe place to make friends in group sessions that include Bible study and psychological support. For girls outside of school—either raising siblings or as a result of teen pregnancy—the program offers vocational training and start-up equipment to help girls generate ongoing income and make a decent living in trades like bead making, tailoring, hair dressing, cooking, candle- or soap-making. This year, Cross International is partnering with the Project Princess Initiative to reach as many as 1,000 at-risk girls with scholarships, supplies, life and work skills to provide them with hope for the future.

In all this, the most important element is the spiritual emphasis, where girls are taught from scripture about the love of God and the hope He brings. As they read the Bible and attend church regularly, girls learn to place their trust in God. The strength of this hope and trust is deeply empowering for the girls of Uganda, enabling them to take initiative in their growth and development. This is how the “Big Sister Circle” prayer group was formed, as older girls sought to connect in prayer and encourage younger girls to continue in the program. It’s the kind of momentum the Project Princess Initiative and Cross International plan to build upon in the years to come.

Clean water helps communities thrive

November 20, 2019 by Cross International

“In the developing world, water is either a source of life—or a source of extreme illness and death,” Cross International President and CEO Kelly Miller explains. “The ability to access clean water is transforming for villages and individuals.”

That’s why Cross International supports Christian partners who bring clean water sources and training to their local communities. It’s one of the key impact areas for the Thriving Kids Africa campaign, which is aiming to raise $515,000 to reach 15,000 at-risk children and their family members.

“We’re firm believers in holistic, integrated development,” Kelly says. “There’s no one panacea. Water doesn’t change everything, but it does trigger a lot of other things to get changed, as does education, medical services, microenterprise, and economic development. Those are all integrated services needed for a community to thrive, and water is one of the core components.”

Cross International doesn’t have a one-size-fits-all approach to development. Instead, they listen and respond to what those in need are asking for.

“It’s not us coming in and defining their needs; it’s the village or community who defines what their greatest needs are and how to tackle those needs in a planned way.” Kelly says. “Water is oftentimes at or near the top.”

In many of the communities Cross International serves, women and young girls bear the brunt of collecting water. Water sources are often up to an hour away from their homes, so women and girls can spend two to six hours a day transporting water. They lug up to 50 pounds of water at a time from open wells, shared with domesticated and wild animals. Snakebites are a common occurrence for these water-gatherers, and water-borne diseases and parasites plague their communities.

Beyond the health risks caused by limited access to clean water, the social costs are astronomical. Carrying water for hours on end keeps women from paid work and keeps girls out of school. That lack of education leads to early marriages, limited employment opportunities, and a continued cycle of poverty.

“When a culture wants to break that cycle—and most do—and you provide opportunity through one simple intervention like clean water, it has a springboard effect to other things,” Kelly says.

For example, after Cross International’s partner Kachere Water for Life installs hand-pump wells in a community, they help the women in that community form a Self Help Group. Twenty to 25 women band together to form a small savings and loan program. They each pitch in small amounts as they can, and Kachere and Cross International add funds, too. Their revolving loan bank helps them start small businesses that meet their community’s basic needs, build their local economy and provide for their families. In just five months, one self-help group managed to double the average number of daily meals per household for the majority of their members (from 1 to 2).

“All of these things work together in terms of integrated development,” Kelly says. “And the Gospel plays a big role in that in the hope and inspiration it gives them.”

In addition to their Microenterprise efforts, these Self Help Groups also talk through their community’s social issues and bring men into the conversation to improve their villages.

“The men are so supportive,” Kelly says. “The reality is women and girls have less opportunity, so when you create more for them, it helps the entire family and the whole community.”

That integrated, community approach underpins the Thriving Kids Africa campaign. Every project addresses one of those key community needs that leads to children who can grow up healthy, hopeful, learning and loved.

“When you have a stable family, a stable community, and a stable faith, children can thrive,” Kelly says.

The Sights and Sounds of Uganda’s culture

November 8, 2019 by Cross International

Uganda offers a rich sensory experience, full of sounds, sights, aromas and flavors of a culture that draws from dozens of ethnic groups. The diverse population means you’ll hear the sounds of more than 32 languages spoken throughout the country. Two official languages, English and Swahili, bring some unity to the varied peoples, as does religion. Uganda’s population is 85 percent Christian and 12 percent Muslim.

To complement these sounds, Uganda offers vivid images—rainforests, swamps with dense tree cover, volcanic mountain ranges, fertile coffee plantations, and the blue waters of Lake Victoria. But no picture of Uganda is complete without images of its people. Children in all areas enjoy playing soccer, a very popular sport. Men are often seen wearing the kanzu, the traditional national dress. The ankle-length tunic of white or cream color is typically made of silk, cotton, poplin, or linen, and often worn with a suit jacket, blazer, or sport coat. Many women wear the gomesi, originally a form of traditional dress for the Buganda, but now adopted by many ethnicities. The floor-length dress is brightly colored with short, puffed sleeves and a square neckline accented by two buttons. A sash is tied below the waist, over the hip area. Made from silk, cotton, or linen, gomesi are worn for special occasions in cities and urban areas but considered daily attire in rural areas.

Flavors and aromas of Uganda’s cuisine add a delicious cultural dimension. With English, Arab, and Asian influences, Ugandan food typically has a starch base with sauces of beans or meat. Matoke, a starchy variety of banana, is used especially in the south, boiled or steamed and mashed before being served with sauce. Groundnuts, or peanuts, are considered a staple and form the basis of several common sauces. Fish, pork, beef, chicken, goat, and mutton are all used for protein, but most rural Ugandans do not eat meat every day. Slaughtering an animal is saved for special celebrations. Yams, cassava, and African sweet potato are regularly eaten with a variety of vegetables, like corn, tomatoes, and peas. Fruits are usually served for dessert and include oranges, pineapples, papayas, and lemons. Sim-sim, or sesame seeds, are widely enjoyed as a paste mixed into stews of beans or greens, or a candy made by roasting seeds with sugar or honey. Meals are prepared by women and girls, usually over an open wood fire in a kitchen separate from the main house.

Cross International is proud to partner with the Project Princess Initiative to support girls in Uganda, helping them stay in school to gain a complete education and valuable training. Through working with these girls and their communities, our goal is to invest in a bright future for this nation, which offers a fascinating cultural experience to fill the senses with tastes, sights, and sounds not soon forgotten.

How a girl who learns can become a powerful leader

November 5, 2019 by Cross International

Four out of five Ugandan girls do not attend high school and more than 700,000 girls in Uganda between the ages of six to twelve have never attended school at all. 40 percent of girls in Uganda are married before they turn 18.

Through its Thriving Kids Initiative, Cross International is fighting to restore hope for Uganda’s at-risk girls by supporting a local Christian outreach called the Project Princess Initiative.

A light in the darkness

Project Princess makes learning possible, and is a light in an otherwise dark future for vulnerable girls in Uganda, like Brenda, Desire and Natukunda.

Brenda was heartbroken that her mother, a domestic worker, could not afford to pay the fees to send her to Kindergarten.

Desire’s mother works as a vegetable vendor, cleaner, and at the market to support Desire’s education. Yet it’s not enough. Desire was going to have to drop out.

Natukunda dropped out of school to raise her siblings and sell dried fish because her mother could not afford to pay tuition and feed eight children.

What these three girls have in common is that this is their before Project Princess story. What comes after are stories of hope, courage and victory through the power of God’s love.

Hope in the after

Today, Project Princess sends counselors into schools throughout the Kampala area to reach at-risk girls with a positive message of faith, wise life choices and the importance of education. The project meets with teachers and adults to educate them on issues impacting at-risk girls.

At the enrichment center, girls can meet with tutors and counselors, receive vocational training, learn about reproductive and menstrual health and be tested and treated for HIV/AIDS and other medical issues.

Brenda is now 10 and shows leadership and responsibility as one of the best students in her school.

Desire’s confidence and grades are soaring! She has met many close, like-minded friends and she hopes to become a nurse to help the sick in her community.

Natukunda is back in high school, happy and safe with many new friends. She attends counseling and dreams of becoming a journalist.

Educated women are more likely to invest back into their families

By supporting Project Princess, you are empowering young women to empower the nation of Uganda. With your help, almost 1000 girls will have access to a safe space to get the tools, resources and encouragement they need to pursue a path to a bright future.

Project Princess is built on the principle that true, lasting moral and behavioral change cannot happen without the Gospel. We invite you to join us in this partnership.