By Davina Patel | Chief Operating Officer
Thank you, as always, for supporting our Healing the Desert: Tree Nursery in Darfur Village project. Your support makes it possible for communities to plan for a future even in the hardest of seasons, and this has been one of the hardest.
This month I received a message from Abdullah, one of our village coordinators. I want to share it with you because it shows both how difficult the situation is and why we cannot give up:
“The seedlings failed due to the lack of water, and even the donkeys became weak and could not fetch water from the pumps. Even our drinking water became very difficult and our economic conditions are in danger.”
Darfur is on the front line of climate change. The effects of El Niño have brought drought, and with it the loss of crops, weakened animals and a daily struggle for clean drinking water. This is exactly why trees are so essential here. Trees protect the soil, provide shade, fodder and fruit, and help hold back the advance of the desert. But establishing them is incredibly hard when there is so little water to keep young seedlings alive.
Abdullah had done everything right. Just a month earlier, he completed an online training course in planting seedlings, determined to give his trees the best possible start. Without water, even his hard work and new skills could not save them.
Yet his message did not end in despair. He made us a promise:
“If the pumps are maintained, we will plant seedlings in a better way than in the past, I promise you, God willing.”
We believe him, and we are determined to help him keep that promise. Our priority now is repairing and maintaining the village water pumps, so that families have safe drinking water again and seedlings have a real chance to take root. £1,500/ $2,100 can repair a hand pump.
Setbacks like this are painful, but they are part of building resilience in a changing climate. Every tree that survives is a step towards a greener, more secure future for the children of Darfur, and we must persevere.
Thank you for persevering with us. Your generosity means that when Abdullah plants again, he will not be planting alone.
With heartfelt thanks,
Davina
Kids for Kids
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