Mama Paola and Mama Kodemo
Like many of the women in her agricultural group, Mama Kodemo has lost children to malnutrition. Only seven of her ten children are living. But recently, she’s learned critical skills that have drastically improved her family’s health.
After attending one of Mama Paola’s agricultural trainings, Mama Kodemo learn how to farm and keep a garden. Through the support of Covenant Kids Congo powered by World Vision, which provided tools such as machetes, hoes, rakes, watering cans, seed, and different crops, gardens began in 11 out of the 13 neighborhoods in Gemena. Women in these groups have learned to grow crops for consumption and sale, and to save seed for the following year.
In doing so, they now have access to highly nutritious foods, and they’re earning money to use for their children’s school fees, for healthcare, or for other essential household items. Mama Kodemo has used her earnings to buy a basin of squash seeds.
“We pressed on and had our own garden space,” said Mama Kodemo. “We began to feed that to our children. My children did not have good health beforehand. My health was not good either. Because of the greens we were raising, my children now have good health. They’re not getting sick.”
With each group training about 75 women, agricultural leader Mama Paola has been able to touch 1,050 households. There are 2,350 sponsored children within those households. Three of Mama Kodemo’s children are sponsored through CKC.
When asked how she has seen God working, Mama Kodemo replied: “I’ve seen God at work, because I buried three children who died from malnutrition, but now that I have my own vegetable garden, we have good food and my children are healthy.”
Hear more stories from farmers like Mama Kodemo. Watch the Women’s Agricultural Group video below!
Sara Blomgren is an intern for Serve Globally. She recently graduated from Moody Bible Institute with a degree in Intercultural Ministries, and her home church is First Covenant Church in Rockford, Illinois.
