God is our ever present help in times of trouble. Psalm 46:1
I hope that you are all well as the easing of lockdown begins in our country. Our shops are now open and our volunteers are working hard to sort out the donations we have received.
Our dry season projects in Ghana have been very successful and the beneficiaries have been very grateful for this opportunity to grow food outside of the usual farming season (the wet/rainy season) giving them nutrition and a marketable crop. Jacob’s Well Appeal, with your help, plans to support these projects for 2-3 years until they are well established and can thrive on their own.
Our partners will soon be starting the seedbank project again as the rains in Ghana have started and they will also be planting another 120 mangoes. It is hard work, as everything needs to be done as soon as possible to get the best out of the rains. Those who plant the earliest tend to get the best crop. We pray that the rains are good and the harvest plentiful. We have been planting mangoes for several years now and the first ones are starting to produce fruit. It is such a blessing!
Burkina Faso is struggling at the moment both with this pandemic and also insurgents coming on motorbikes into the country and shooting at schools, churches and hospitals – anything that they identify as ‘western’. Despite this, the people desperately need our help and I am so pleased to say that this has not stopped the medical centre in Banfora from being built – the second phase is almost completed. This will provide basic medical services for the most vulnerable people in society and physiotherapy for disabled patients. In Burkina Faso the cost of medical care prevents most people getting even treatable illnesses sorted out and if they survive they are often disabled and not able to work. This clinic will be free to those with no money and cheaper than the government clinics for those who can pay something. It is so desperately needed. It will also provide mental health services, which are very limited in West Africa. People with mental health issues are stigmatized and excluded from society. This includes epileptic patients. With suitable medication these patients can live a normal life within their communities.
We are planning to send another curtain-sider lorry to Moldova next week and our medical container to Uganda, which arrived at the end of April, has finally been cleared from the port, the delays due to coronavirus.
I pray that you all stay safe during this difficult time and thank you all for your support.