Report from BHW Zambia Partnership Facilitator Following Visit

Key people:
Peter Bobo Chomba
Judas Chomba

Recent Events

Judas

Judas has been very sick and when we met with him and Peter he had just come out of hospital the day before after two weeks. He says he is feeling much better but looks very thin and weak.

Unfortunately earlier this year Judas suffered a severe loss with his chicken business. The birds he was sold were not healthy and this meant that of the 270 day old birds he purchased only 52 survived! He recovered enough to do another round of birds, buying 160. These have worked much better and he is about to sell them. 

His main issue is the funding of his eldest son into college (ZMK7,350) which is why he had the chickens in the first place.  

Education

The education program continues to drop as the farming program rises. This year there are now 36 children on the program which will drop to 22 next year with 14 finishing Grade 12. We continue to drop the funding for this program each year. By 2020 the funding will cease as families will have been empowered by farming training and business micro-loans to enable them to look after their own family's orphans in the community.

The orphan who was funded to study journalism at university has now completed his media studies in Lusaka and has received a couple of short term contracts. 

Farming Training

As at the end of 2015:
Rice farmers trained:85
Maize farmers trained: 95
Cassava farmers trained: 30

Total farming loans funds invested: ZMK 65,500 (US$6,550 at today’s rate although some funds were sent when exchange rate was 5 ZMK to 1 US$ not 10 as it is now) since 2010.

The rice farmers this year had to follow the new methods of growing a nursery bed and transplanting before they could receive a loan. The fields are looking much better this year and in addition the rains were also better which helped. They have used the new rice, Supa, and this, added with a more consistent grain size from correct transplanting spacing, should also see the rice mill become more effective.

At first cassava growing was met with some resistance from the community but now they are seeing the results of the methods and are all asking to be trained. Some are very worried that they may have missed out but the program will continue to expand. The loan program for the cassava is very simple as when they harvest they cut the sticks as seed to give out to another two farmers. The photo shows Peter with some of the cassava that he grew and took to the Samfya Agricultural Show to display - massive tubers!

Business Micro-loans

There have been 32 people who have received business micro-loans with a total of ZMK 40,000 (US$4,000 again at today's rate) invested in this program since 2012. Repayments are still 100% which is amazing. With Judas being away at Samfya Bible College this year Brown Bobo has been managing the program.

They would like to add another 20 people to the micro-loan program with another ZMK10,000 for loans this year. This will be the last year to add funds into the micro-loan program as they want to talk to the first people who got loans in 2012 about saving funds from the profits with them instead of taking loans each year so the program can naturally grow. 

The plan is that a person will be able to loan ZMK1,000 per year for four years as long as they repay the previous year’s loan. Then they will graduate to the savings program.

Ideas for the Future

- Continue to reduce the education budget
- Continue to fund trainings for farming and micro-loans
- Make this the last year of inputting into the micro-loan program and Chaba to aim to get first groups trained to save
- Look at Samfya School Bible school extension program

Current Issues and Challenges

As the number of people benefiting from the partnership continues to grow there is the need to add some younger people to help with the work load. 

Prayer and Praise Points

1) Pray for Judas' health and his recovery from the big loss in his chicken business
2) Praise for the way the partnership continues to grow and the number of people benefiting 
3) Pray for more young people to join the voluntary organization to help reduce some work load 

Comments

We didn’t visit Chaba this time but met with Peter and a very sick Judas at Peter’s house in Samfya. It was great to see them again. The pictures in the report are from Peter Bobo when he visited Chaba in March.

We discussed the need for them to start to look for some other younger people to help pass on the baton of what they are doing. Judas says he knows 4 or 5 young men who may be suitable and will follow up once he is back in Chaba after his bible school course finishes.

The harvest yields for 2015/16 crops are yet to be collated but they will send these to us after August when they will hold the next lot of training seminars.