COVID-19 Emergency AID for Rural&Nomadic Nigeriens

Project Report | Jan 26, 2023
Life "After" the Pandemic

By Katherine Kolios | Executive Director

In 2020, we distributed masks and Covid trainings

Over the last 3 years, you have helped to support rural and nomadic Nigeriens to stay healthy and keep putting one foot in front of the other - in spite of all the roadblocks that Covid-19 put in their way.

Together, we:

Distributed over 1,000 bars of soap and 1,800 masks
Supported 101 women to distribute soap in their villages and provide local trainings to reduce transmission rates
Established 6 washing stations at middle schools
Trained 3,535 residents across 16 communities on limiting transmission, mask wearing, handwashing, safer coughing/sneezing practices, social distancing and more.

Recognizing that the pandemic increased food insecurity and inflation, leading to a toxic cycle of rising food costs, we also:

Provided emergency food aid to 360 individuals across 62 households who were suffering disproportionately and
Helped communities harvest corn, cabbage, onions, tomatoes and more to support almost 4,000 Nigeriens to access adequate nutritious food

Together these projects helped schools to reopen safely and supported kids and their families to navigate through the height of the pandemic.

Since Covid "went global" in early 2020, there has been a global response. Now, almost 3 years later, we're still dealing with Covid-19 but rather than focusing on emergency needs, the response is being integrated into our general operating practices. Communities need longer-term solutions to meet their continued challenges accessing water, food, income, and everything else that daily life requires.

We are grateful to everyone who supported this project and we hope you will continue to support our longer-term projects bringing access to education and opportunity to women and children in rural and nomadic communities across Niger.

To learn more and stay in the loop about RAIN's projects, check out our organization's page on GlobalGiving, our website, our Facebook page, or our email list. THANK YOU!

Supply chains and inflation risked food security

Join us to focus back on longer term solutions

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Sep 12, 2022
Some Stability in Unstable Times

By Amy Warnock | Development Manager

After 2+ years of living with the Coronavirus pandemic, Niger is still struggling to provide adequate resources to protect the health and safety of its population of over 22 million people. According to the Africa CDC just 6.5% of the population has been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 and there is still a significant risk for rural communities with no access to a local hospital or even a doctor.

Beyond the health concerns, the price of staple goods like beans and flour continues to increase, creating exponential challenges for families already struggling to make ends meet. In a time of supply shortages and price inflation, RAIN's community garden projects help bridge the gap to ensure parents can keep their children fed.

So far in 2022, RAIN-supported community gardens yielded more than 3,000 kg of produce including:

110 lbs of corn
315 lbs of cabbage
810 lbs of onions
5,365 lbs of tomatoes

RAIN gardens provide nutritious food for gardeners and their families, as well as an additional source of income from the sale of excess produce. Food grown in these gardens is helping to meet the nutritional needs of almost 4,000 Nigeriens in our partner communities and neighboring villages.

Covid's health and economic repercussions don't just impact the communities RAIN serves, they are also a daily reality for our colleagues on the ground. Price hikes increase the cost of doing this work and the pressure of keeping their own families fed and healthy, as they fight on for their neighbors and fellow Nigeriens. After a much-needed break during the month of August, RAIN's Field Team is back at work. They continue to approach their work with optimism and determination and remain poised to adapt to support our community partners as their needs change.

Thank you for your continued support, which ensures that families can maintain their own health and wellbeing even as it gets harder and more expensive to do so.

If you are able, please consider increasing your donation to ensure the women and children we serve can meet their rising needs. Share this project with your network and ask your friends and neighbors to join you to make an even bigger impact.

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May 16, 2022
Adapting to New Obstacles

By Amy Warnock | Development Manager

10th grade students at the ALC

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have disproportionate effects on women and girls in Niger. Considering the limitations of Niger’s health care system and that many have virtually no access to vaccines, the negative impacts persist nation-wide. With approximately 6% of Nigeriens fully vaccinated, at-risk populations are left vulnerable to illness. Ultimately though, the most severe outcomes of the pandemic have been economic. Covid-related lockdowns, reduced working hours, job loss, and travel restrictions have forced 400,000 more Nigeriens into extreme poverty. Impacted supply chains contribute to shortages and costs for everyday items have skyrocketed, making it even harder for Nigeriens to provide for themselves and their families. The cost of staple goods like rice and couscous have risen 40%, while oil and flour are up over 80%, and beans and cassava flour are up 100%.

This economic stress has had a ripple effect as families have been forced to reprioritize and look for ways to cut down on expenses. During the height of the pandemic, many schools were shut down. Across the country, we anticipated increased drop-out rates as parents married their daughters off to families better equipped to feed them. And unfortunately, despite our best efforts, daily costs per student at the Agadez Learning Center have risen 36% since this time last year.

In many ways, much of the world is "moving on" from Covid-19, but in Niger day-to-day survival is getting harder and more expensive.

However, RAIN's programs continue to expand with interest increasing steadily year to year. Despite the ongoing struggles from the pandemic, your support is still making an exponential difference.

Enrollment at RAIN's partners schools increased 18% within the last year, with a 20% increase for girls;
99.3% of mentored students overcame these additional hardships to finish the academic year;
100% of women participating in RAIN's Savings & Loans programs managed to repay their loans;
75 women gardeners, planted community gardens that helped feed 350 family members and 3,000 people in neighboring villages.

A major factor in the successful continuation of RAIN's programming throughout the pandemic has been flexibility. When challenges like the ones we faced last year arise, RAIN seeks opportunities to maximize our ability to carry out our mission within the given context. Having the support and understanding of our donors and community partners is critical in allowing us to adapt. Without your flexibility and support, we would not have been able to pivot so quickly to continue providing programming at the same scale -- it is likely that we would only be in half the number of communities this year.

We believe that international support and collaboration are key to resolving these challenges. Thank you for your continued partnership, ensuring we do not leave the most vulnerable to fend for themselves in this time of uncertainty.

Boys helping with seed removal

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