WILLS POINT, TX — Can a chicken really change someone’s life? It’s happening all around the globe, according to mission agency GFA World (www.gfa.org).
The Texas-based organization has launched its annual Christmas “Chickens & Goats” campaign on WAY-FM Radio — an opportunity for people to buy life-changing gifts, such as chickens and goats, for families living in extreme poverty in Africa and Asia this festive season.
The campaign includes a “Chicken Challenge” to donate a pair of chickens every month for a year, for the cost of two lattes per month. Chickens multiply quickly and produce fresh eggs almost every day, a life-changer for families battling hunger, the mission agency says.
HATCHING HOPE: ‘CHRISTMAS CRITTER’ CAMPAIGN BACKED BY TOP CHRISTIAN BAND: Hit-making Christian band We Are Messengers is supporting mission agency GFA World’s annual “Chickens & Goats” Christmas campaign — an opportunity for people to buy life-changing gifts, including chickens and goats, for families in Africa and Asia living in extreme poverty. (Photo Courtesy of We Are Messengers)
The Christmas campaign is being supported by top Christian band We Are Messengers and its lead singer Darren Mulligan. The award-winning band has had 11 Top-10 radio hits, including the multi-week/multi-chart #1 radio single “Come What May” and the Gold-Certified “Maybe It’s OK.” You can find out more info and tour dates from the band at www.wearemessengersmusic.com.
Hatching Hope
“We see time and time again how the simple gift of a pair of chickens completely transforms the life of someone living in deepest poverty and gives them hope,” said GFA World founder K.P. Yohannan (Metropolitan Yohan).
Mayra, a widow who received two chickens that helped her out of hunger, told the organization’s workers, “I’m so happy because of your love and concern for me.”
“Our aim is not only to help people like Mayra and their communities escape hunger and poverty, but also to show them the love of Christ — the one who’s able to give them hope for eternity,” Yohannan said.
Other livestock gifts include pigs and water buffalo. Alternative gifts include mosquito nets that prevent malaria and other diseases, income-generating sewing machines, clean water, blankets, and Bibles.
Challenge to Impact Eternity
GFA World national missionaries share with people who’ve never heard about Jesus that they’re “created in the image of God.” They often trek many miles on foot or bicycle to some of the remotest places on earth to provide practical help and “show God’s love to the forgotten and abandoned,” such as outcast widows and those living with leprosy.
“This is the challenge to us all — where will we be in 100 years’ time?” Yohannan said. “The only thing that will matter is what we did to impact eternity.”
About GFA World (formerly Gospel for Asia)
GFA World is a leading faith-based global mission agency, helping national missionaries bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions across the world, especially in Africa and Asia, and sharing the love of God. In a typical year, this includes thousands of community development projects that benefit downtrodden families and their children, free medical camps conducted in hundreds of villages and remote communities, over 40,000 clean water wells drilled since 2007, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 150,000 needy families, and teaching to provide hope and encouragement in 110 languages in 14 nations through broadcast ministry. GFA World has launched programs in Africa, starting with compassion projects in Rwanda. For all the latest news, visit the Press Room at https://gfanews.org/news.
WILLS POINT, TX — A new three-month campaign aims to help some of the poorest families in Africa and Asia “sew their way out of poverty” — one stitch at a time.
‘SEW’ AMAZING: Texas-based mission GFA World’s “Sewing Their Way Out of Poverty” campaign aims to provide 500 new sewing machines and vocational training for 500 desperately poor families in Africa and Asia struggling to survive day-to-day. For more information, go to www.gfa.org/press/sew.
Texas-based mission GFA World’s “Sewing Their Way Out of Poverty” campaign aims to provide 500 new sewing machines and vocational training for 500 desperately poor families struggling to survive day-to-day.
“Countless people trapped in grinding poverty literally live from hand to mouth,” said GFA World founder K.P. Yohannan, also known as Metropolitan Yohan. “It breaks my heart each time I see an ocean of slum dwellings in major cities, or when I watch children digging in garbage heaps for food scraps.”
A Stitch In Time Changes Everything
A sewing machine costing $100 — way beyond the reach of most families living in Africa and Asia — can change everything, giving parents the chance to earn a consistent income sewing and mending clothes.
Subia, a young mom in Asia, was increasingly anxious about how she’d manage to feed and clothe her young daughter. She and her husband — both casual day laborers like millions of others across Africa and Asia — often went days without finding any work.
“No work means nothing to eat,” Yohannan said.
Subia tearfully shared her struggles with her local pastor. “The pastor encouraged her and told her that God has a solution for every problem we face,” Yohannan said.
Sewing A Strong Community Fabric
When the local church took part in a program distributing income-generating gifts in her community, Subia couldn’t contain her excitement when she received a sewing machine — a real, practical answer to her prayers.
“The sewing machine has changed this family’s life,” Yohannan said. “Subia no longer has to go out in search of a day-labor job. She can stay home with her daughter while she sews clothes for the people in her neighborhood.”
Each year, GFA World supporters provide life-changing, income-generating gifts — including livestock, tools, and sewing machines — for thousands of families like Subia’s. GFA World workers run tailoring classes in local communities to teach men and women sewing skills they can turn into income.
“The need is great, but so is the opportunity to rescue one family at a time from poverty through showing them the love of God and giving them the gift of a sewing machine,” said Yohannan.
GFA World (Gospel for Asia) is a leading faith-based global mission agency, helping national missionaries bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions across the world, especially in Africa and Asia, and sharing the love of God. In a typical year, this includes thousands of community development projects that benefit downtrodden families and their children, free medical camps conducted in more than 880 villages and remote communities, over 4,800 clean water wells drilled, over 12,000 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 163,000 needy families, and teaching that provides hope and encouragement in 110 languages in 14 nations through broadcast ministry. GFA World has launched programs in Africa, starting with compassion projects in Rwanda. For all the latest news, visit the Press Room at https://gfanews.org/news/.
Help families sew their way out of poverty! — Let’s join together to show people the compassion of Christ by providing them with a simple tool to escape poverty and exploitation: a sewing machine.
Last updated on: October 12, 2023 at 10:32 am By GFA Staff Writer
WILLS POINT, TX – GFA World (Gospel for Asia) founded by K.P. Yohannan, has been the model for numerous charities like GFA World Canada, to help the poor and deprived worldwide, issued this first part of a Special Report on Child Sponsorship — Does it Lift the Young Out of Poverty?
In existence for many years, child sponsorship has been adapted by Christian ministries and NGOs alike as it provides education, sustenance and other benefits impoverished children might otherwise never have. But does it work? Does sponsoring children really help kids escape a life of poverty? This article is intended to get to the bottom of those questions, and more.
About two years ago, Compassion International joined the billion-dollar charity club. That put it alongside such noted names as United Way, Salvation Army, the Red Cross and the YMCA. Its 2020 fiscal year income topped that mark by $1.2 million, growing 4 percent over the previous year despite its major spring fundraising initiative getting canceled because of COVID-191.
In Rajasthan this pastor and another pastor have taken it upon themselves to help tutor the children in the community each evening between 4:00-5:00 as the children have been having trouble learning in the local classroom.
According to the World Bank, 53 percent of children living in low- and middle-income nation are classified as “in-school non-learners,” meaning they are enrolled in school but do not retain the things they learn.5 The agency found that children in this group cannot read or comprehend a short, age-appropriate story by the time they finish grade school. In poorer countries, the agency says the number can range as high as 80 percent.6 What’s worse, those who fail to finish school can easily join the ranks of the world’s 160 million child laborers.7
This was the kind of bleak situation facing a boy in South Asia named Neale not too long ago. The eight-year-old lives in a rural mountain village with his parents, who are employed in the area’s fertile tea fields. Their meager earnings aren’t enough to cover necessities, meaning Neale sometimes doesn’t have bus fare to make it to school. Because of sporadic attendance, his grades were dropping. This was devastating for the boy as a good education would be instrumental for him to be able to one day get a good job and be able to fulfil his dream of helping his mother.8
Like these children, Neale (not pictured) sat with his peers, receiving guidance and encouragement from Gospel for Asia (GFA World) child sponsorship staff.
“Neale also received a nutritious meal, tips on proper hygiene and school supplies—greatly relieving his mother of additional financial expenses,” Gospel for Asia (GFA World) reported. “The staff saw to his every need, wanting to help Neale achieve his dream. They offered all sorts of guidance, instilling within him the discipline he needed to advance his education and grow as an individual. Little by little, as Neale’s grades rose, so did his hope. That good job he wanted didn’t seem so distant now; helping his mother didn’t seem so impossible now.”9
The letters from their sponsors tell children they are loved, they are remembered, and they are important. These letters are often some of the most treasured possessions these children have. Photo by WorldVision.org
Approaches Vary When it Comes to Sponsoring a Child
Through Unbound, not only did Hannah receive sponsorship, but after their home was destroyed by a fire, the organization provided funds for Hannah and her mother, Estrella’s house to be rebuilt. Photo by Unbound, Coping in the Pandemic
Originally the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging, the organization says most sponsored children have representation through small parent/guardian groups that direct how the funds are allocated. They commonly go toward food, education and skills training, health care, improved living conditions, and seed capital for a farm or small business.13
One 25-year-old woman, who is now a nurse in South Asia, said without sponsorship, it would have been impossible to achieve her goals. President and CEO Scott Wasserman said the number of lives Unbound has helped in its history is “humbling,” with the $2 billion marking a milestone in providing sponsorees with dignity and a path out of poverty.14
“The World Bank estimates 120 million more people will fall below the poverty line because of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Wasserman said. “[That] just strengthens our resolve to continue helping marginalized people around the world emerge from poverty as happier, healthier, contributing members of their communities.”15
Unbound’s approach shows the difficulty of trying to place sponsorship in a neat box. This is further illustrated by one of the larger sponsorship organizations, World Vision. The Seattle ministry, which takes in more than $1 billion annually, tweaked its sponsorship model in 2019. World Vision’s “Chosen” program allows children to select their donors instead of donors choosing them.16
“The World Bank estimates 120 million more people will fall below the poverty line because of the COVID-19 pandemic. [That] just strengthens our resolve to continue helping marginalized people around the world emerge from poverty as happier, healthier, contributing members of their communities.”
Initially done through a pilot project with seven churches across the U.S., the following year World Vision expanded the system to 22 countries, potentially affecting 180,000 children. The move came partially in reaction to criticism that allowing sponsors to choose children gave them a sense of power while diminishing that of poor children.
Still, whether the child picks the sponsor or vice versa, Hillary Kaell—an associate professor at Montreal-based McGill University and the author of a book about child sponsorship in the U.S.—said that the ministry sees God at work in either direction.
In a unique twist on the normal sponsorship process, World Vision began their Chosen program which allows the child to pick their own sponsor. Photo by World Vision, Chosen
“In promotional videos for its Chosen program, World Vision makes it clear that God is still the guiding force…” wrote Kaell. “Sponsors say, ‘There are so many things that are bigger than us. … Through God we’re intertwined.’ Or they marvel at how a child across the world is serving as God’s ‘mouthpiece’ by choosing them. [Sponsor] Nichole feels it, too. After watching a video of [child] Junayet choosing her, she told me, ‘I could see God in the moment. Junayet came up with all of the joy in the world. He literally ran to my photo. God’s hand is in all those moments.’”17
Not all child sponsors, or sponsorship programs, come from a religious perspective. One example is Children International, a secular nonprofit formed in 1936 to provide food baskets for women and children in two Israeli cities. Over the next two decades, it expanded to an orphanage, a medical clinic and an orthopedic hospital.18
In the 1970s the organization experienced expansion and growth, with the Kansas City-based charity making a gradual shift to a sponsorship model that helped children in Asia and Latin America. Today it maintains 67 community centers in 10 nations (including the U.S.) on five continents. According to the organization’s website, “As a secular organization, we respect and honor the religions, cultures and languages of all our children and families. Sponsored children and our staff work together to achieve our goal of ending poverty for good through programs that focus on health, education, empowerment and employment.”19
You can be part of the solution that is setting children free from a life of poverty. Simply visit the GFA World website: https://www.gfa.org/sponsorachild/. You can sponsor a child living in South Asia or Africa. You can also find a child who shares your birthday or pick a child to sponsor who has a specific age or gender. Your decision to sponsor can make a substantial difference in the life of an impoverished or underprivileged child.
About GFA World
Gospel for Asia (GFA World) is a leading faith-based global mission agency, helping national workers bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions across the world, especially in Asia and Africa, and sharing the love of God. In a typical year, this includes thousands of community development projects that benefit downtrodden families and their children, free medical camps conducted in more than 880 villages and remote communities, over 4,800 clean water wells drilled, over 12,000 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 163,000 needy families, and teaching to provide hope and encouragement in 110 languages in 14 nations through broadcast ministry. GFA World has launched programs in Africa, starting with compassion projects in Rwanda. For all the latest news, visit the Press Room at https://gfanews.org/news.
Read the rest of this GFA World Special Report: Child Sponsorship — Does it Lift the Young Out of Poverty?—Part 2, Part 3
WILLS POINT, TX – GFA World (Gospel for Asia) founded by K.P. Yohannan, whose heart to love and help the poor has inspired numerous charities like GFA World Canada, to serve the deprived and downcast worldwide, issued this second part of a Special Report on a surprising antidote and solution to world poverty: farm animals.
Farm animals, like the goats shown above, can help a poor family in a variety of beneficial ways: 1. They provide milk for nourishment; 2. They typically breed and multiply providing young that can be sold off for income or used to increase the size of the herd.
Breaking the Cycle of Poverty with a Cow
Taden worked hard from the time he was a young boy and dreamed that one day he would no longer be hungry and be able to give his children a life outside of poverty. “I couldn’t afford a very nice life for my family, and I used to feel very angry at myself at times, very sad with myself because of the situation I was in.”
A local pastor saw Taden’s plight and arranged for him to receive a cow, funded by Gospel for Asia (GFA World).
“We were really overjoyed,” Taden recalls, “because we did not have anything in our house to call our own. But we felt that if we got the cow, we could really improve our lives.”
Soon, the cow gave birth and began producing milk. Taden and his family began milking the cow twice daily and selling the milk. That enabled them to meet their basic needs and do something that would have been unimaginable before: send their children to school. The cycle of poverty, which seemed so unbreakable for so long, was finally ending.
Now, with two cows in his possession, Taden began to think entrepreneurially.
“I had observed others who were raising goats,” he says, “and I came to know that the goats bear kids once every five months.”
Seeing a potential second source of income, Taden sold one of the cows and bought a pair of goats. They soon gave birth to two kids, which Lavish sold, earning as much as he would have made in six months of working. Now, he could afford new clothes and schoolbooks for his kids. Life was looking up at last. Taden was overcome with gratitude.
“I would like to thank those who have helped me get the cow as a gift,” he says. “My life has definitely been blessed 100 percent.”
World Vision, another NGO, has refined the practice of providing microloans—funds that help aspiring farmers and entrepreneurs get started in their chosen enterprises. The amount needed to begin a thriving business in a developing country can be astonishingly small compared to Western standards. And for many, it all starts with the acquisition of a single animal.
The gift of even just one animal can be a complete game changer for a family trapped in debilitating poverty. They get a source of income along with hope for a better future for them and their family and the knowledge that they are seen and loved.
Like World Vision, Heifer International leverages support from governments and private organizations along with individual donations to create opportunities for aspiring farmers. The organization recognizes that “ending poverty begins with agriculture” and works to build “inclusive, resilient economies” in the areas it serves.[7]
For over 40 years, Gospel for Asia (GFA World) has been serving people’s physical and spiritual needs. Now active in 18 Asian countries, Gospel for Asia (GFA World) has also recently begun ministering in Africa. Along with providing animals for families, Gospel for Asia (GFA World) missionaries serve the community through providing things like educational opportunities for children, vocational training and resources for life. In water-starved regions of Asia, Gospel for Asia (GFA World) installs wells using local labor, and trains the local pastor and congregation on how to maintain them for the long term.
Like other similar organizations, Gospel for Asia (GFA World) offers donors a range of suggested gift amounts, which can provide chickens for a needy family or improve an entire village. It describes the cows, goats, pigs, lambs and chickens as “income-producing animals,” which affirms their real purpose of providing ongoing, sustainable food or financial resources for the family. Donors can feel confident they’re providing more than a few meals for the families they help. Their gifts can actually spark a permanent change for people who just need a helping hand to get a fresh start.
Faith-based organizations help their recipients create prosperous family enterprises, often starting with a single cow or goat. The goal is not a quick fix, but a long-term program that can lift families out of poverty for good.
Relief agencies that work in the developing world recognize that providing live, useful farm animals to people in need is more effective than simply giving money. With that well-established principle in mind, they can approach potential donors with a simple, attractive proposition. “Donate a goat” is a straightforward message with immediate appeal to those who want to help the less fortunate. For a gift as small as $140, a donor can provide a family with two goats that will help lift them out of destitution. Those who give can feel confident their contributions are providing real, lasting benefits to real people.
Bishop Danny Punnose Vice President, GFA World
For these nonprofits, helping people defeat poverty is a tangible expression of their faith. “God’s love must be demonstrated in more ways than just through words,” says Bishop Danny Punnose of GFA World. “It must be seen, felt and experienced! Providing these life changing gifts to these precious people who are in great need is an opportunity for us to love them practically and see their lives lifted out of their hopeless state.”
If obtaining an animal seems like an unlikely way to achieve success, it’s important to remember what the alternatives are for the poorest of the poor. They often work as day laborers, barely making a subsistence wage—when they can find work at all. Some will resort to picking through garbage for food and usable items. And for others, the sex trade is a cruel option of last resort. But with even a few animals, those same people can enjoy a wide range of new opportunities.
The first benefit is having enough food to eat—which is always an urgent priority for the desperately poor. Besides the meat they provide, cows and goats supply nutrient-rich milk that can sustain an entire family and more. And when animals begin to reproduce, things change dramatically. Families can sell their animals or the meat. Then, with a surplus of funds, they can begin to consider things that would have been out of reach before, such as health care and medicine. Family members who were incapacitated by disease can become productive again. The children can go to school instead of being condemned to a lifetime of manual labor. Families can improve their dwellings and acquire amenities that make life tolerable—even enjoyable—instead of miserable. In other words, they can begin to experience the enhanced quality of life that people in the developed world routinely expect. With their basic needs met, they can start to focus time and attention on more rewarding pursuits. Instead of a cycle of poverty, they can enter a cycle of prosperity. And, perhaps for the first time, life can seem worthwhile.
A family’s choice of animals to raise depends on several factors: resources, land area, topography, market conditions and climate, to name a few. For farmers with access to large areas of land, cows provide a viable source of meat, milk and income. The farmers can breed the cows, use some of them for food, and sell others in the marketplace. Raising cattle has been a profitable enterprise for people the world over, and with good reason. A lactating cow can produce up to six or seven gallons of milk per day.[8] And a single 1,200-lb. steer can yield an astonishing 490 pounds of edible meat.[9] Clearly, owning even one cow can change life drastically for a struggling family.
For those with limited land or capital, goats can be an ideal option. They require a smaller area than cattle and can forage virtually anywhere—on anything. Farmers who can’t afford a cow may be able to purchase a goat with limited funds and begin their journey to prosperity. Nanny goats can bear several kids in a year, allowing for a quick expansion of the herd. In India, an adult goat can sell for an amount equal to an entire month’s income for many people.[10] Although goat meat is not yet popular in the United States, it is actually a good source of clean, nutritious protein, being lower in saturated fat and cholesterol than chicken, beef or pork.[11] And goats are relatively easy to raise, requiring little in the way of maintenance. For many families, their escape from poverty begins with a humble goat.
If you want to help impoverished families with a gift that can provide them life-saving income for many years to come, consider a one-time donation to give farm animals – a surprising antidote to overcoming persistent poverty.
Gospel for Asia (GFA World) is a leading faith-based global mission agency, helping national workers bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions across the world, especially in Asia and Africa, and sharing the love of God. In GFA World’s latest yearly report, this included thousands of community development projects that benefit downtrodden families and their children, free medical camps conducted in more than 1,200 villages and remote communities, over 4,800 clean water wells drilled, over 12,000 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 260,000 needy families, and teaching providing hope and encouragement available in 110 languages in 14 nations through radio ministry. GFA World has launched programs in Africa, starting with compassion projects in Rwanda. For all the latest news, visit our Press Room at https://gfanews.org/news.
Learn more about how the simple gift of an income-generating animal can be the turning point for an impoverished family—one their family has likely been desiring for generations.
Last updated on: September 29, 2023 at 5:07 am By GFA Staff Writer
WILLS POINT, TX – GFA World (Gospel for Asia) founded by K.P. Yohannan, which has been the model for numerous charities like GFA World Canada, to help the poor and deprived worldwide, issued this first part of a 3-part Special Report on a surprising antidote and solution to world poverty: farm animals.
Knowing nothing besides poverty, this poor family in harsh conditions in Asia represents the over 700 million who attempt to scratch out a living on less than $2 a day in earnings.
From 2015 to 2019, the number of people living in extreme poverty worldwide was projected to drop from 744 million to 655 million.[2] The downward trend was on track to continue, but then the COVID-19 pandemic hit. In 2020, the projected number of people in extreme poverty shot back up to 732 million. For 2021, the projected number was marginally better at 711 million.
That means a population twice that of the United States still lacks even the most basic necessities of life. They can’t afford the simple improvements that would make life easier. They can’t access decent medical care. They can’t send their children to school. These are people who live on $1.90 or less per day, which is just enough to keep them alive until the next day. By contrast, many Americans spend nearly twice that much for their daily cup of coffee without giving it a second thought.
The countries of South Asia, with their huge populations, are only somewhat better off. One-third of the world’s poor live in this region, most of them in undeveloped rural areas.[4] In recent years, industrial development and rising living standards in these countries inspired high hopes. But the COVID-19 epidemic hit Asian nations especially hard. The region was already afflicted with high poverty rates and inadequate infrastructure. Most people in Asia have only limited access to clean water, sanitation facilities or medical care. And the dense population has made it all but impossible for people to maintain the social distancing required to stem the effects of the pandemic. Predictably, these conditions led to a severe COVID-19 outbreak in India and other South Asian countries, necessitating lockdowns, which exacerbated the already-severe economic problems.[5] As a result, the high hopes of many people were cruelly dashed.
Poverty is present in all parts of the world, and this poor family from Himachal Pradesh is no exception. But there is a path out of persistent poverty, which includes the provision of farm animals which can multiply, to help families like these escape an endless cycle of generational impoverishment.
Cows seem to be everywhere in India but many poor families don’t own one. Once acquired though, they can perform a variety of useful functions to benefit a family. In this photo, a woman in Uttar Pradesh is blessed to be able to use these two cows to thresh out the hay.
But there is a path to dynamic prosperity that relies on the inherent growth potential in nature. It is accessible to people even in the poorest, most remote regions. And it has been a reliable engine of wealth creation throughout human history. Instead of investing in stocks or real estate, people of any background in any locale can invest in animals.
That’s a strange notion to those of us whose only connection to the animal world is the pets on which we lavish our attention. We buy our meat, eggs and dairy products at a market, neatly dressed and packaged. We know someone somewhere is raising the cows and chickens that feed us, but we don’t give it much thought. And the fact that these people are able to earn a living from these farm animals also escapes our attention. Yet, the same growth principles that have sustained food producers in America can also lift poor families out of poverty in Asia or Africa.
This family in Uttar Pradesh looks so happy! They received one goat three years ago in an animal distribution from Gospel for Asia (GFA World), and they now have eighteen goats! With a herd of goats this size, they’re able to sell goats as needed to stabilize their family’s finances. Plus, the goats provide milk for drinking and selling which enables them to secure many essentials for themselves that they could only dream about before.
Animals as a Sign of Blessing
Goats are hardy animals and flourish in the Asian climate. A single female goat can produce seven to nine goats in just two years and generates plenty of milk to drink and sell. The gift of a goat, given with the love of Jesus, is a great way to bring joy into a poor family’s world.
In the Bible, the increase of one’s livestock was recognized as a blessing from God. That belief is shared by the many faith-based groups that now provide animals for people living in poverty. Gospel for Asia (GFA World), World Vision, Compassion International, Lutheran World Relief, Samaritan’s Purse, and SIM are among the agencies that provide people in poor rural areas with goats, cows, chickens, pigs and other productive animals to help impoverished people succeed. They also offer guidance to help the recipients properly care for their animals. The farming innovations that have enhanced yields in the developed countries can be applied with great success in poorer ones. Most importantly, faith-based organizations help their recipients create prosperous family enterprises, often starting with a single cow or goat. The goal is not a quick fix, but a long-term program that can lift families out of poverty for good.
If you want to help impoverished families with a gift that can provide them life-saving income for many years to come, consider a one-time donation to give farm animals – a surprising antidote to overcoming persistent poverty.
Gospel for Asia (GFA World) is a leading faith-based global mission agency, helping national workers bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions across the world, especially in Asia and Africa, and sharing the love of God. In GFA World’s latest yearly report, this included thousands of community development projects that benefit downtrodden families and their children, free medical camps conducted in more than 1,200 villages and remote communities, over 4,800 clean water wells drilled, over 12,000 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 260,000 needy families, and teaching providing hope and encouragement available in 110 languages in 14 nations through radio ministry. GFA World has launched programs in Africa, starting with compassion projects in Rwanda. For all the latest news, visit our Press Room at https://gfanews.org/news.
Learn more about how the simple gift of an income-generating animal can be the turning point for an impoverished family—one their family has likely been desiring for generations.
Last updated on: September 29, 2023 at 5:19 am By GFA Staff Writer
WILLS POINT, TX – Gospel for Asia (GFA World and affiliates like Gospel for Asia Canada) founded by KP Yohannan, issued this Special Report on the massive challenge of reducing extreme poverty worldwide, mainly through providing education, transmitting values.
Chain Reaction
One individual whose values have enabled him to rise from poverty and whose children are benefiting from his foundation can make an impact that expands his society.
Integrity is one of the qualities employers look for most. Billionaire Warren Buffett explains,
“Somebody once said that in looking for people to hire, you look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence, and energy. And if you don’t have the first, the other two will kill you. You think about it; it’s true. If you hire somebody without [integrity], you really want them to be dumb and lazy.”
The workplace quickly turns dark when negative ideologies are present. But on the flipside, business benefits mankind in beautiful ways when positive values define the scene.
A business owner’s upright values will dictate the way he treats his employees. He will not stop exploiting any of the world’s 24.9 million forced laborers
or 152 million child laborers.
On the other hand, an employee with positive values will not take advantage of his boss. His honesty will strengthen the company, which in turn will strengthen their local economy.
Values also determine whether a person will be marked by crime. Education alone helps people to respect justice, and their values will only solidify that position.
A report examining the correlation of education rates and crime reduction in the U.S. revealed that increasing the male high school graduation rate by just five percent would:
“By selling the piglets, we have bought a goat and chickens, which will be another source of income for our family. We do not have any problems now paying the school fees for our children. We also purchased roofing sheets to construct our house. I thank God for all the blessings this pig has brought.” —Kanal from Arunachal Pradesh
Kanal, a father in Asia, experienced this very thing.
After years of desperately struggling with poverty, he received a piglet at a Gospel for Asia (GFA)gift distribution organized by the local church. Later, the pig had a litter of eight piglets. He sold seven of them for a sizable profit and finally had the financial breakthrough he needed to start rising out of poverty.
Over the following months, Kanal’s pig bore another 10 piglets. Each one propelled the family farther out of poverty.
Kanal’s children saw how one person’s generosity changed their family—and then they saw their father do the same thing. Even though his family had many needs, Kanal’s gratitude for his amazing gift led him to donate one piglet back to the church so another family could receive a life-changing gift. Then Kanal approached one of his neighbors who also struggled with poverty and gave them a piglet as well. His neighbor would raise the piglet, and when it was ready to go to market, they would share the profits. Kanal is on his way out of poverty, and he plans to bring others out with him, too.
Ashima, a young girl in Asia, received help much as Kanal did. Her help, however, came in the form of tutoring, moral lessons, food and school supplies through GFA World’s Bridge of Hope Program.
Bridge of Hope teachers, like this gentleman in West Bengal, typically serve children from impoverished situations, including those kids whose parents are affected by leprosy. They provide their students with a quality education, a daily nutritious meal, loving care and practical supplies like soap, schoolbags, and school uniforms.
“Before coming to the Bridge of Hope,” Ashima said, “I was not able to study seriously because of the problem and inconvenience at home, and the financial problem that we are going through.”
But then through Bridge of Hope, Ashima received the guidance she needed to develop positive character traits and values, which enabled her to excel in her studies—and in life. Less than a year later, Ashima’s story was quite different.
A person looking for ways to fight extreme poverty will find countless organizations to partner with through donations. That is the easy part.
But each person must, in addition, consider the following: What values are they promoting? What are their children and co-workers learning from them? Do their daily activities uplift others? Or are they reinforcing negative values, even if those values are a few steps removed?
In recent years, more people have become aware of the human rights issues present throughout many supply chains. And because people are choosing to live in accordance with positive values, they are supporting the companies that reflect those same values, such as treating employees well and paying them an honest wage. Taking steps as simple as supporting companies with ethical supply chain practices can diminish the world’s poverty.
Zaid Adil Sultan, a manager at a refugee camp in Iraq, relates a sobering example. When a militant group gained control of the region, its leaders inserted new teachers and programs into schools. The ideologies held by the group infiltrated curriculums, teaching children as young as 6 or 7 to use weapons.
“They gave them ‘courses’ that encouraged violence,” Sultan said. “In math, instead of teaching them that one plus one equals two, they taught them that one bullet plus one bullet equals two bullets.”
Education transmits values. As individuals and nations, we bear the responsibility to teach the next generation the ideas and values that will promote upward movement, not deeper poverty. This Bride of Hope teacher in Karnataka is assisting this student to improve in his studies and in building his character.
He went on to explain how children have been severely scared by indoctrination. Specialized workshops have opened to help children recover, but removing the damaging ideologies from young minds has proved difficult.
“The hardest age to treat is boys from 14 years old to 17,” Sultan said. “People have told me that before their sons went to those schools, they were okay, but after they went, they were coming home hitting their siblings and threatening to kill them.”
Education transmits values. As individuals and nations, we bear the responsibility to teach the next generation the ideas and values that will promote upward movement, not deeper poverty. Amazing teachers and professors around the world are helping children learn the skills and values necessary to thrive in life—and we thank them for their dedication. Yet many children live in places where negative values dominate ways of thinking, even among educational staff, and where poverty abounds.
Every culture is susceptible to damaging ideologies and to the poverty those ideas can generate. But great change is possible as individuals examine what values they are reinforcing and partner with educators who promote the positive values every child, family and community needs to rise out of extreme poverty.
“Education which stops with efficiency may prove the greatest menace to society. The most dangerous criminal may be the man gifted with reason, but with no morals…
The complete education gives one not only power of concentration, but worthy objectives upon which to concentrate.”
Provide a Values-centric Education to Children at Risk in Asia
Gospel for Asia (GFA World) is a leading faith-based mission agency, helping national workers bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions across Asia, especially to those who have yet to hear about the love of God. In GFA’s latest yearly report, this included more than 70,000 sponsored children, free medical camps conducted in more than 1,200 villages and remote communities, over 4,800 clean water wells drilled, over 12,000 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 260,000 needy families, and spiritual teaching available in 110 languages in 14 nations through radio ministry. For all the latest news, visit our Press Room at https://press.gfa.org/news.
Read the rest of Gospel for Asia’s Special Report: Fighting Global Poverty with Ideas — Uprooting poverty requires education that transmits values —Part 1
Last updated on: November 3, 2022 at 9:21 pm By GFA Staff Writer
WILLS POINT, TX – Gospel for Asia (GFA World) founded by K.P. Yohannan, which inspired numerous charities like Gospel for Asia Canada – Discussing the desperate poverty that still afflicts millions upon millions worldwide and the hope that lies beyond through gifts of hope.
Tavish’s father died when he was just a small boy. His death not only created a hole in their family unit, but it plunged them into a state of financial crisis.
Tavish worked alongside his widowed mother. Like this woman in Sri Lanka, Tavish’s mother labored in fields to keep her family alive.
Much of Tavish’s childhood consisted of trying to make ends meet, but he came up dry. Sometimes crops didn’t produce enough, and this caused one financial tragedy after another.
When Tavish grew older, he married, and he and his wife were blessed with two children. Tavish continued to labor in fields around his village with barely anything to show for his backbreaking work. It was as if all his efforts were one single drop in the midst of a vast ocean of needs and wants.
Tavish and his family, like many in his region, traveled to a neighboring country to live and work for six months out of the year, in sugarcane fields.[2]The conditions were primitive—no toilet facilities, no home, no privacy and no school. The future for his children looked as bleak as his own childhood. The toil of poverty slowly stole away Tavish and his family’s peace and joy.
Tavish (not pictured) worked from the time he was a young boy. Because of his family’s poverty, he missed out on school. He worked hard to provide for his family, but all his efforts seemed like a drop in the ocean.
Hope in the Midst of Crisis
It was during the off months of the sugarcane fields that Tavish encountered a glimmer of hope through a message of peace. Gospel for Asia (GFA) pastor Naimish visited Tavish and his family one day to ask if they needed prayer and to offer encouraging words. Tavish shared his life story, marked by desperate poverty and hardship, with the man of God.
Pastor Naimish could see the family was burdened by the weight of survival. He shared with them about the One who gives hope and new life to weary souls. Tavish and his family felt truth penetrate their hearts.
Faith in Jesus began to anchor the family, while a hopeful future stretched before them. A peace that poverty had stolen swooshed in as new life began to change Tavish and his family. The God who clothes lilies and keeps His eyes on the sparrow was taking care of this family, and they started trusting Him to provide in their lack.
As the cow grew, the family’s joy grew along with it. It was providing more than four liters of milk a day, and they were able to make and sell ghee, a type of butter, each month. The profit they made from this liberated them from needing to face the harsh conditions of desperate poverty.
Because of this, Tavish’s children were able to get a consistent education. Their future not only blossomed full of new life, but their new source of income also paved the way to escape poverty through education.
After Tavish received a cow through GFA’s Christmas Gift Catalog, his family’s financial status improved greatly! They become doubly blessed when their cow gave birth to a new calf, providing more hope for their future stability.
The family’s joy doubled as their cow gave birth to a calf, and the income from these two cows relieved burdens the family carried for many years.
“We came to know the true love of Jesus in our lives,” Tavish said. “He has removed all our burdens and sorrows.”
Last updated on: September 22, 2022 at 9:04 pm By GFA Staff Writer
WILLS POINT, TX – Gospel for Asia (GFA World) founded by K.P. Yohannan, issues the second part of an extensive Special Report on extreme poverty worldwide, and how poverty elimination and poverty alleviation is possible, but not inevitable.
This water buffalo provides this woman and her family with about 10 liters of milk a day. They are able to sell this milk, providing them with additional income for their family, and a means for poverty elimination.
Small Steps, Big Change to Poverty Elimination
In the face of such overwhelmingly large numbers, the price of a cup of coffee can seem insignificant—but it doesn’t have to be. Small amounts of money can be leveraged to make a big difference in the lives of the poor, as Gospel for Asia (GFA) knows well.
For the price of just two large frappuccinos, you can buy a pair of chickens that will help lift an Asian family from below the poverty line. The eggs from the chickens can be sold or hatched to provide ongoing income.
That’s not the only livestock-for-livelihood option in GFA’s annual Christmas Gift Catalog. For $65, you can provide a family with a lamb, while $140 purchases a pair of goats, all of which provide milk to sell or drink and offspring to expand the herd. A water buffalo ($460) not only makes plowing fields easier but also produces milk for drinking and dung that can be used as fuel and fertilizer.
Ministry supporters have helped Gospel for Asia (GFA) provide these kinds of poverty-alleviating gifts at Christmastime for more than a decade. So far, almost 2 million families have been helped through gifts that generate income or increase quality of life.
Many other organizations have launched similar programs, prompting media coverage of how “charity gift catalogs are proliferating, offering donors the opportunity to ‘buy’ everything from a goat to a sewing machine to a herd of cows.” Heifer International has been distributing livestock for more than 70 years and has helped more than 31 million impoverished families experience poverty elimination.
All of those gift purchases combine to help a lot of families, who in turn can have an impact on their wider community. Such was the case with 44-year-old Kanal, a day laborer trying to support his family of three children on his meager earnings of $3 a day.
Then Kanal received a pig through a Gospel for Asia (GFA)-supported distribution, and everything changed for his family. The sow delivered eight piglets, seven of which he sold for almost $40 each. From a second litter, Kanal gave a piglet to a neighboring family in need, setting them on an upward cycle out of poverty, too.
The pig he received as a gift unlocked a chain of benefits, Kanal said. With the money gained by selling some of the offspring, “we have bought a goat and chickens, which are also going to be another source of income for our family. We do not have any problems now to pay the school fees for our children and to meet all their needs in school. … We also have purchased roofing sheets to construct our house.”
An important part of poverty elimination through income-generating gifts is not only how these practical gifts improve recipients’ circumstances but also how they restore their dignity and sense of value. Rather than leaving them dependent on future help, they are equipped and encouraged to have an active part in creating their own better futures.
This husband and wife were trapped in slavery. The International Justice Mission worked with local officials to rescue them and 10 other families. First photo: The day they were rescued. Second photo: Years later, they’re now helping rescue others. Photo by IJM.org
As a result, people have been forced to turn to the informal money lenders when they need to borrow money, leaving them open to being taken advantage of financially. Exorbitant loans have fueled the bonded labor population, estimated to be around 20 million—most of them in South Asia. Typical of the victims is Haresh, who borrowed around $110 from a local landowner to get married.
Such all-too-common stories provided inspiration for the microloan or microfinance movement born in the 1970s that sought to provide access to financial resources for the disenfranchised, especially women. Muhammad Yunus founded what became the Grameen Bank in the 1970s, making small loans to women in Bangladesh.
The idea has since spread to other parts of the world, with Yunus and Grameen jointly being awarded the Nobel Prize in 2006 for their part in developing micro-credit into “an ever more important instrument in the struggle against poverty.” Many organizations have embraced a similar model, including GFA’s field partners, which provide small loans to help women start income-generating projects.
With financial institutions also recognizing a market for small loans, microfinance has collectively grown from its small beginnings and has become a big business. According to the Institute for Microfinance Research, there are more than 75 million micro-borrowers worldwide.
“Using a low-cost microloan to repair a leaky roof, purchase school clothes for their children, maintain a farm and keep food on the table, or pay off a hospital bill can give poverty-stricken communities a fighting chance,” says the group. “Microloans in the form of farm financing have proven doubly effective in that both increased income and food supply are provided as a result of the loan.”
However, not all of the early promise of microfinance has been realized. While a study by big bank ING of small loans in India and Ghana found “many positive effects from having access to financial services,” it also concluded that “microfinance is not the silver bullet to poverty elimination it once promised to be.”
More cautiously, economics professor Dean Karlan co-wrote a 2016 New York Timesopinion piece that noted that six randomized evaluations of microloan programs “found that microloans, though helpful for the poor, didn’t actually increase income for the average borrower.
The fact is that poverty is this massive, incredibly difficult problem. There is no silver bullet.
However, in the opinion of Simone Schaner, an economist at Dartmouth University, while microloans may not have proved to be as transformative as initially hoped, neither should they be written off.
“Microfinance is a victim of an unfortunate tendency in development, which is that everybody wants to find a silver bullet to solve poverty,” she said. “And the fact is that poverty is this massive, incredibly difficult problem. There is no silver bullet.”
The microfinance movement was shaken by a crisis in one of India’s states in 2012, when a string of suicides among small loan recipients was linked to high interest rates, prompting the state to ban the practice there. Yet two economists who looked into the consequences of that move found the loss of credit had a measurable impact on the overall economy.
“Because people had less money to spend, consumer spending, investment, and entrepreneurship also dropped,” Emily Breza and Cynthia Kinnan noted in their report in 2018. The episode showed that “microfinance, despite its small loan sizes, can have meaningful impacts on rural economies.”
Poverty: Public Enemy #1 — Eliminating Extreme Poverty Worldwide is Possible, But Not Inevitable: Part 1 | Part 3
Last updated on: September 22, 2022 at 10:08 pm By GFA Staff Writer
Wills Point, Texas – Gospel for Asia (GFA) Special Report Part 3 – Discussing the impact of quality education on the eradication of extreme poverty and illiteracy.
More than 250 million women in Asia are illiterate. The women pictured learned how to read for the first time through Gospel for Asia supported literacy programs.
Gospel for Asia Introduces Quality Education to Families in Poverty
Remember hardworking Dayita and her roaming children? Their story also serves as an example of the powerful gift of education.
One day, some staff members from a local Gospel for Asia-supported Bridge of Hope center met Dayita and her family. Upon hearing of her struggle and seeing the condition of the family, the staff members offered Dayita’s 7-year-old daughter, Kasni, the chance of a lifetime: the opportunity to go to school.
That day changed the course of Dayita and Kasni’s family: The cycle of poverty and illiteracy began to break.
Dayita’s 7-year-old daughter Kasni is now enrolled in a GFA-supported Bridge of Hope center and is learning skills that will enable her to leave the cycle of poverty behind.
Dayita had never dreamed she would be able to send her daughter to school, yet now her little Kasni was developing and growing into a bright young student. Kasni’s future would hold more hope than her own had held at age 7, and hopefully Kasni would be spared from many of the trials Dayita had experienced from her illiteracy.
The Bridge of Hope center impacted the family in additional ways, too. Kasni received a nutritious meal every school day, which helped ease the financial burden of the family. She and the other Bridge of Hope students participated in health awareness programs and medical checkups, and all their books and school supplies were provided by the center. In addition, special programs were held regularly to help cultivate students’ social skills and character.
Kasni continued to care for her younger siblings for a portion of the day, and with her new skills of respect and responsibility, she was better equipped in her role as an elder sister.
Many of the things Kasni learned through the center benefited her mother as well. Special programs for the parents helped Dayita grow in knowledge, too.
Kasni is just one among 75,000 children enrolled in GFA’s Bridge of Hope Program. Through Bridge of Hope, these children and their families are finding a new way of life—a life that leads to hope and a door out of poverty.
Teachers at GFA-supported Bridge of Hope centers teach with love and care, which helps the children enjoy class and excel in their studies.
Efforts to Reduce Poverty Through Quality Education
Overwhelming evidence of education’s effectiveness in reducing poverty has prompted massive efforts around the world to make quality education available to everyone—especially to the poor.
An instructor plays with kindergarten children at an Internally Displaced Persons camp in Haiti. (Photo credit UNICEF)
These efforts range from large-scale endeavors like those of UNICEF and Global Partnership for Education, to family-run schools and volunteer-led tutoring. Although the groups are different in size, they have one significant component in common: people who are doing what they can to help the needy children in their sphere.
Gospel for Asia (GFA) is just one of those players, yet God is using this one organization to impact thousands of lives. GFA’s Bridge of Hope Program began in 2004 and was designed to help transform the lives of children who live in poverty.
“These children have learned to dream, and their education equips them to pursue those dreams, contribute to society and raise their children-to-come with the same life-changing values they have embraced.”
Stories abound of the transformations taking place in these little children—children who are growing up to be well-equipped adults who know they have value and potential. Children who were painfully shy or woefully behind in their studies when they started at Bridge of Hope later dream of becoming doctors, engineers or teachers.
Others aspire to design clothing or to help poverty-stricken families climb out of poverty. Some will grow up to hold positions of great influence in their society, others will help their family farms prosper in improved ways, and still others will invest into the lives of their children the way Bridge of Hope teachers invested in their own lives. These children have learned to dream, and their education equips them to pursue those dreams, contribute to society and raise their children-to-come with the same life-changing values they have embraced.
Aayush joined Bridge of Hope at 10 years old. Now a capable young man equipped with a quality education, he is pursuing his goal of becoming a teacher.
As far as which comes first, poverty or lack of education, the answer isn’t clear. But the solution is clear. And when you address one issue, you also address the other. The “magnetic draw” between poverty and education doesn’t only have to pull people down; it can also give the leg up needed to escape both perpetuating cycles.
Despite the magnitude of the task and the global scale at which quality education is needed, we’re talking about individual human lives, each one precious and full of potential. While the statistics of need can be overwhelming, we must stop and celebrate the lives that are being touched and the futures that are being transformed. Just one life changed in a village can multiply to impact hundreds of other lives.
It is good to ask ourselves what our part is in these global efforts. Not everyone is meant to be the leader of a large-scale movement to bring education to the world. Some people need to be teachers; others need to be financial backers for those who are on the frontlines; and others can be advocates for quality education in their own spheres of influence.
What is your part?
Solutions to Poverty Line Problems of the Poor & Impoverished: Part 1 | Part 2
This Special Report article originally appeared on gfa.org
To read more on the need of quality education worldwide on Patheos, go here.
Click here, to read more blogs on Patheos from Gospel for Asia.
Last updated on: September 23, 2022 at 12:48 am By GFA Staff Writer
Wills Point, Texas – Gospel for Asia (GFA) Special Report Part 2 – Discussing the impact of educational development on the eradication of extreme poverty.
Education’s Holistic Impact on Family Life, Income
God’s creation of the human mind is a marvelous thing. It has the capacity to imagine, dream, create, cherish, remember, deduce, learn and use logic.
When given opportunities through education to learn, cultivate skills and dream, we are capable of accomplishing extraordinary things. To name a few, these include sending human beings into space, discovering medical breakthroughs, crafting new written languages and rebuilding crumbled economies.
This woman works alongside her husband to make bricks, bringing her infant with her. Both men and women work hard in rural villages to try to make ends meet.
We’ve glimpsed snapshots of what happens when mankind lacks the necessary opportunities to cultivate the amazing mind God has granted him.
Underdeveloped minds and absent opportunities steal much of the influence people could make if they only had a chance.
What does it look like when people with little or no opportunity to receive an education are at last given that chance?
An article posted by Schools & Health states,
“Education is fundamental to sustainable development, it is a powerful driver of development and one of the strongest instruments for reducing poverty and improving health; it enables people to be more productive, to earn a better living and enjoy a better quality of life, while also contributing to a country’s overall economic growth.”[1]
Girls study in a UNICEF-supported ‘tent school’ in Afghanistan. Many of their families have been displaced by conflict. (Photo credit UNICEF)
The strong connection between education and income is easy to identify. For every year of primary education received as a child, a worker’s earnings experience a 10 percent increase.[2]
Knowledge of a skill empowers breadwinners to find jobs with better pay and better hours. A literate person in Pakistan earns 23 percent more than an illiterate worker. And in the female workforce, a woman with high literacy skills can earn 95 percent more than an illiterate woman or one who has low literacy skills.[3]
In rural Indonesia, those who finish lower secondary education are twice as likely to escape poverty. In addition, their chances of descending into poverty are reduced by a quarter.[4]
In one study done by an EFA Global Monitoring Report team, findings revealed,
“If all students in low income countries left school with basic reading skills, 171 million people could be lifted out of poverty, which would be equivalent to a 12% cut in world poverty.”[5]
Increased education doesn’t only open new job opportunities for breadwinners; it also enables workers to succeed in their inherited family businesses. Farmers who receive an education are more likely to implement the use of fertilizers and be better equipped to understand the needs of their crops and soil.
Equipped with mathematical skills, a parent can wisely make choices on purchases, contracts and family budgets. And in any business, an increased understanding of finances and mathematics helps guard business owners against being taken advantage of.
If a mother can read, her child is 50 percent more likely to live past the age of 5.
Education’s Impact on Health
By learning how to wash his hands, this young student in GFA’s Bridge of Hope Program helps his family to be more healthy.
The increase in pay a literate person receives also increases their chance for a healthier life. The extra income buys food for children who might otherwise suffer from malnutrition; it gives the family the option of visiting a doctor for medical treatment—and even better, it enables them to undergo preventative medical care such as regular checkups or vaccinations.
A healthy breadwinner misses fewer days of work than a sickly one, and medical bills demand less from the family budget. But education’s impact on a family’s health extends beyond their improved financial situation.
Education also empowers parents to make wise, healthy choices for their families.
If a mother can read, her child is 50 percent more likely to live past the age of 5.[6] The mother is able to read warning labels and follow those simple instructions intended to protect her family from diseases or accidents.
In places where education is absent, superstitions abound. Misconceptions on proper health practices endanger grown adults and children alike—especially children in the womb. In the case of one mother in Asia, her lack of education tragically resulted in her child perishing before birth.[7] Sadly, her story is repeated in villages across the globe. Simple health care classes for women who never received education can mean the difference between lost pregnancies and healthy, full-term babies.
One of the most common hygiene practices—hand washing—is virtually unknown in some parts of the world. According to UNICEF,
“Rates of handwashing around the world are low. Observed rates of handwashing with soap at critical moments—i.e., before handling food and after using the toilet—range from zero percent to 34 percent.”
As a result, easily avoided illnesses are claiming millions of lives. Every year, diarrhea claims the lives of more than 1.5 million children under the age of 5; proper handwashing practices can reduce diarrhea by more than 40 percent.[8]
A person’s health impacts their education as well: A study among primary schools in China with active hand-washing promotions and distributions of soap identified that students missed 54 percent fewer days of school compared to students whose schools had no such program.[9]
No country can really develop unless its citizens are educated.Nelson Mandela
Education Development and It’s Impact on Society
There is power in education. “No country can really develop unless its citizens are educated,” said Nelson Mandela.[10]
“Education inspires dreams and equips citizens to pursue their goals.”
Education inspires dreams and equips citizens to pursue their goals. The resulting entrepreneurial efforts help boost economies and create jobs, which aids in global efforts to eliminate poverty.
Literacy is also key to being informed about what is taking place around the world. It builds global awareness into a person’s heart and enables them to engage with others in ways that are impossible without literacy.
The UN states that “quality early education provides children with basic cognitive and language skills and fosters emotional development.”[11] Alternatively, an estimated US$129 billion is lost each year due to the 250 million children globally who are not learning basic skills (and thus have less potential).[12] The importance of quality education on society is revealed by its inclusion in the UN’s global Sustainable Development Goals.[13]
Ashima once faced punishment at school and scolding at home because her family could not afford the school supplies she needed. After she enrolled in Bridge of Hope, which provided for all of her school needs, plus many other gifts to support Ashima’s development, she shares, “My future ambition is that I want to become a medical doctor. Especially I want to serve the poor from our society.”
Beyond influencing the economy of a society, education also touches the fibers of morals and lifestyles in a region.
According to Professor W. Steven Barnett, author of Preschool Education and Its Lasting Effects: Research and Policy Implications, a child’s academic success can be impacted by early childhood education, which can also reduce incidences of crime and delinquency.[14]
“Beyond influencing the economy of a society, education also touches the fibers of morals and lifestyles in a region.”
The National Scientific Council on the Developing Child confirms that a person’s childhood heavily influences their mental, physical and emotional development, with children raised in secure, loving environments thriving more than children who have experienced trauma even one time.[15]
Do you remember the joy you felt as a child when you did something well in school? The sense of accomplishment and the praise from a teacher or parent give courage and confidence to approach other challenges in life. In the same way, the shame felt when encountering failure can hinder children in life. If a child grows up with a constant sense of failure and insufficiency, that can result in low self-esteem and lack of confidence.
Training children at an early age to pursue their goals and giving them the tools they need to succeed prepare them to thrive in the future challenges they will face as adults.
Solutions to Poverty Line Problems of the Poor & Impoverished: Part 1 | Part 3
This Special Report article originally appeared on gfa.org
Click here, to read more blogs on Patheos from Gospel for Asia.
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