Serving With The Poor In Africa

I recently read a great book by Yamamori and Myers called Serving With The Poor In Africa, and I thought I would share what I learned. The more I am exposed to people that have been involved with 2/3 World Community Transformation, the more I realize how little I know and how much I have to learn. It also reminds me that: 1) with God all things are possible 2) without God, were are only foolin' ourselves.

So here are eight things I learned from this great resource:

1. Nehemiah is the classic OT example of facilitation and participation (read Visioneering by Andy Stanley). The NT also provides a vivid example of many of these concepts.


2. Appreciative Inquiry (AI) asks two critical questions: 1) What in the particular setting, culture or community makes life possible? and 2) What are the possibilities that provide opportunities for more effective forms of organizing, facilitating and training?


3. A Holistic Training Approach is important to build capacity. Materials and training are needed in all areas, such as health and agriculture, as well as in Christian education and spiritual maturity.


4. Guidelines and principles for facilitating participation and sustainable community development: 1) community involvement in assessing needs and planning: people organize best around problems they consider most important 2) start small: a project should start small with simple activities that respond to the needs and capabilities of the local situation 3) resource contribution: no community is too poor to contribute something -- voluntary local investment of labor, time, material and money is an indicator of participation and engagement 4) take a process approach: facilitating effective participation requires a process approach to project implementation and management 5) communication and project implementation: establish a two-way information flow between project implementers and potential beneficiaries at the start of the project 6) community organization: projects should try to work with and through local community organizations 7) local control over benefits: local control over the amount, quantity and distribution of benefits represents the ultimate confirmation of participation and directly related to becoming self-sustaining.


5. Where projects begin with the ideas of the local people instead of those imposed by an outside agency, there is greater impact.


6. Wihtout appropriate participation there will not be ownership. Without ownership there is little hope of achieving sustainability.


7. On average, it takes $500 of investment to create one new job in the informal sector, as opposed to the $25,000 o finvestment it takes to create a job in the formal sector.


8. Changed lifestyles are fundamental to defeat poverty. Commitment to Jesus as Lord changes lifestyles. God answers prayers.

Our hope and commitment is to implement all of these learnings as part of the Jubilee Village Project. We have a great start with the concept of organizing Team Kager and Team Indiana with eight sector leaders in each continent. Also, building a partnership with the local churches and local schools will be a critical success factor for the Project...we have a great start with the End Time Revival Mission / Kager Vision Centre and the Heartspring Academy.

May God bless you richly and reward your service to the poor.

Ned