10 adolescent orphans will be given an effective and sustainable way to break the cycle of poverty in which they currently find themselves - 3 full grown, female sheep each and lots of training to start their own businesses.
AIDS orphans are in a precarious situation, especially when they live in a country where they have no one to care for them. With no income, they cannot purchase food nor pay for school fees, rent or clothes. This exacerbates their terrible situation, leaving them either dependent on others or with nothing with which to survive. Ten adolescent orphans who are raising siblings will be selected and trained in order to benefit from the gift of sheep and seeds.
10 orphaned adolescents will receive husbandry, veterinary and gardening training, as well as marketing and budgeting trainings, AND 3 full-grown female sheep and seeds for gardens (transport of the animals is included, too). These sheep will give them and the children they are raising milk to drink and sell, as well as manure for their gardens. The flocks will grow and the children can start selling and bartering the animals in order to pay for their school fees, food, and other basic needs.
When children are educated, they have an easier time finding jobs as adults and they also have a better sense of worth. We know that the kids in our programs love to go to school because they know it is the only way they'll get out of the cycle of poverty. And, when families do better, whole communities do so, as well. We are excited to see how the kids benefit and how they, bit by bit, change where they live and how they live.