Partnership Overview

Food production in rural Kenya isn't easy. Robert and Rose Gitau live in an area where there is little rain and poor soil and they need to feed many people. BHW is working with them to help them grow food, to provide for themselves and the hundreds of children they care for. 

There are around 220 children at the primary school run by Robert and Rose. There are more than 20 children in the secondary school and more in the hostel. There are another 100 children in another school (Isooni) 3 kms down the road and every day more people come for help from the community. This places huge demands on Robert and Rose as the Providers.

History of Partnership

For more than 10 years BHW has been partnering with Robert and Rose at the Nguluni Countryside School.
Over time the school has grown and the costs of food have increased astronomically. The need to produce food of their own has increased and this project is an attempt to help them do that. 

Robert and Rose have been doing their best for a long time in an attempt to grow more for the increasing number of people they provide for. They have a small farm with a couple of cows, hens and a large garden that Rose grows vegetables in.

They have also purchased 10 acres of land about 10 km up the road with the intention of growing an annual crop of maize, beans and other crops. For the last few years the production has been very poor, the costs far outweighing the return.  This whole area is grasslands and subject to drought. These droughts have been getting worse in recent years.

The school has been consistently growing in numbers and with the formation of Isooni School and the secondary school the numbers have increased even more. The needs have been growing to the point where it is almost untenable.

A serious attempt has to be made to produce more food locally and with this in mind, a fishpond and a greenhouse have been built. These should help to provide food and cash from time to time when there is a large harvest.

The fish pond has been stocked with tilapia and they are growing well. The greenhouse was erected in September 2012 and the first crop of tomatoes have been picked.  

From the middle of 2013 BHW will be working with Robert and Rose to increase production in the greenhouse and fishpond and to start conservation farming on the rest of the land.

Beneficiaries

The beneficiaries will be the children of the schools and their parents as well as the people who come to Robert and Rose for assistance.

What We Like About The Partnership

This is their initiative. They are already growing crops and doing their best to provide for the children, this is an attempt to make them more efficient.

They had already dug the fishpond. Previously under a government scheme, they were asked to dig a pond to certain dimensions and if they did, the government would give them a pond liner, some training and the fish. Well, the liner lasted about 4 months and it was ruined. So when they came to us, the pond was all there ready to go but couldn't be used. It seemed such a waste of resources and time and not an expensive solution. We therefore went ahead and lined it. 

Key People

Leadership Profile

After their marriage, Robert and Rose wanted to serve the Lord and began by travelling to different villages preaching and bringing aid to the poor. Eventually they bought a small plot of land in Nguluni and launched a small church. The church began to grow and they started to not only help the community with spiritual needs but they began to help economically and physically.

Robert and Rose adopted many children whose parents died from AIDS. Recently they took in six orphans when their parents, relatives of Robert and Rose, passed away. Robert and Rose are now responsible for raising these six children along with their previously adopted children.

Vision And Annual Strategy

The vision is to help the schools become self-sustaining.

The strategy is to assist them utilise their home block of land for efficient food production and to train others to help with that. The other block of land will be worked on in the future to make them productive.

Annual Budget

This was a one-off amount to purchase the greenhouse and fish pond liner.