Transforming lives

“I can now meet all my needs myself – even feeding my family a better diet. My husband and I decide together how to spend our money, which is a huge change.”

Julia and Jacob Katende, from Uganda.

Poor people in rural Africa often need more than just resources to turn their lives around, they need skills and confidence. That’s why Send a Cow reaches beyond sustainable farm training; we support people from all sorts of vulnerable backgrounds, helping them reach goals such as happier homes, better diets, improved health, and education for their children.

We work mainly with women as they tend to be the poorest in their communities; but nearly all our groups are mixed as we also support people with HIV/Aids, child-headed households and disabled people.

This year, our work will enable some 16,000 families to build secure livelihoods, prosper in the long term, and increase their social standing. And by passing on young livestock and new skills, they will also enjoy the dignity that comes from helping others and the respect of their community.

Happier families

Our social development teams work with people to help them overcome barriers such as lack of education; social stigma about Aids; and gender issues. Women, for example, are often excluded from decision-making in the home, while disabled people may feel they are a burden to their families. The social development teams encourage group members to bring relatives to training sessions and often act as parent figures to child-headed households, giving young orphans general advice as well as practical skills.

As people start to make a success of farming, the pressures of poverty are eased and family harmony grows. Husbands and wives are encouraged to share household chores and make joint decisions about spending their income. Women feel their status rise and enjoy their new found respect.

Standards of living

The training we provide covers a huge array of topics. As farmers begin to earn more money and produce more food, they are able to put their knowledge into practice and reap the benefits.

They can improve their families’ diets; set up basic home hygiene methods such as tip-tap hand-washers; and pay for healthcare. Our social development teams also raise awareness about HIV/Aids, family planning, and other health issues.

Families often replace their mud-walled homes with brick-built houses; create separate sleeping quarters for parents, sons and daughters; and buy proper bedding. As families’ living conditions improve, many report with delight that they feel able to invite guests to their homes.

A brighter future

As farmers move away from a hand-to-mouth existence, they can start preparing a better future and even think about providing for generations to come.

The basic financial and business training we provide enables people to keep records and save money. Once they are able, farmers generally invest in small businesses. Often, they expand their farming: perhaps by buying poultry or more land. They may also buy foot-powered sewing machines to start home tailoring businesses, or even set up small shops.

Invariably, farmers make educating their children a priority. Although primary schools are free in the countries where we work, parents must pay for expenses such as books and uniforms, as well as for secondary schooling and further training. We encourage families to educate daughters as well as sons. Many families are now seeing their children through university – a source of great pride and hope.

Julia and Jacob Katende, from Uganda, used to struggle to care for their five children and two grandchildren. The compound around their house was bare land, as they did not know how to revitalise the soil.

Since receiving a cow and training, that compound is now filled with vegetable gardens, fertilised by composted manure. Their bananas are also blooming, thanks to liquid manure and compost. The Katendes have dug contour trenches to harvest water.

Their cow gives them up to 15 litres of milk a day. Milk, they say, enabled their young grand-daughter finally to learn to walk. It also brings in money for them: they have bought beds, mattresses, and household utensils with the profits.

After so many years of subsistence living, Julia and Jacob now have a clear vision for their future. They are planning to build shelters for more livestock, and start poultry farming.

The couple also find they have strengthened friendships – for example, by helping two neighbours set up their own vegetable gardens.

“We now have visitors to our home,” says Julia. “We’re both very happy.”