A few days ago, I posted a short note with
impressions from Carole Jampsa Southam as she arrived in
Niger to review some of the projects sponsored by
Lutheran World Relief. West Africa is experiencing a serious food crisis, and LWR
is responding to the emergency with short-term assistance and longer-term sustainable development support.
Carole, a former vice president for finance at Bread for the World, is now international finance officer at LWR. Here are some photographs that she took in
Kalfou, Tahoua, Niger, along with captions that she wrote for each image.
One
of the objectives of the project in Kalfou is to build small "half-moon" dams and
plant vegetation to stop the rain from washing down the sides of the
mountain so quickly. Here I am planting a bush right above one of the
demi-lunes. I'm the LWR finance person, and I'm planting with the
project accountant to show our teamwork..
Over
80 camels waited for us at the village gathering to welcome our group.
It was a sign of honor. We walked from one end to the other to observe
them and show our appreciation. And then I got to ride one!
One of the project staff who helped translate the local language to French.
People
of the 2nd village we visited - these are a handful of the 1000+ people
who came to greet us. Their dress shows they are Tuareg. Note the
Nigerien security force person there.(He was one of 12 that accompanied
us).
The chief of the area (several villages) coming to welcome us to the project and thank LWR for our work with them.
This is great. Sustainable solutions. Are they using moringa trees as a part of the project? I Kenya moringa is being used for erosion control and carbon sequestration while providing nutrition and the seeds are bing used for local water purification. Isn't it great what can happen when we work together to solve problems. Thanks to all involved.
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