Fifty years, fifty countries: Zambia

To mark 50 years of Tearfund, we’re sharing about 50 countries where we’ve worked, celebrating God’s provision and power to transform, and praying for each of these nations. This week we’re in Zambia.

The landlocked country of Zambia sits in Southern Africa. It’s known for being the home of the beautiful Victoria Falls, but what is less known is that 350,000 people in Zambia lack access to a regular food supply.

Tearfund has been working in Zambia for more than 20 years. The foundation of our work is church and community transformation (CCT). We work with our partners and local churches to empower people to unlock their God-given gifts and use their potential to become agents of change in their community.

Mobilising change
In the community of Nsanjika, churches are filled with farmers whose livelihoods have been affected by climate change. Many children also have to work, herding cattle, crushing stones, farming and trading. If there is a bad harvest, the whole community suffers.

The introduction of CCT has envisioned many changes in Nsanjika: Bible studies and regular prayer meetings have united divided churches; congregations have fundraised to build toilets, making churches safer and more functional places for communities to meet. And congregations have realised that they have local resources which can help them solve their own poverty problems.

An inspirational role model
Evelyn is living proof of how CCT can change lives. Widowed 10 years ago, with four children to care for, as well as her own younger siblings, she has become an entrepreneurial role model within her community with the help of our church partner.

Her courage and persistence to use income-generating skills such as baking, knitting and gardening has enabled her to care for her family. Selling her knitting and baking in the community has provided the opportunity to build and furnish a home, make enough money to install and use electricity and kept her children and siblings in school.

Many of the women in Evelyn’s community are inspired by her success in building her own business. She is showing others around her how they too can use their God-given skills and the resources around them to overcome poverty.

PLEASE PRAY

• Pray that Evelyn will have the strength to continue caring for her family. Ask God to encourage her by showing her how much she has achieved and to reveal even more gifts and skills to her.
• Ask God to continue working through the CCT approach in Zambia, to inspire individuals and families to make sustainable changes to improve their own lives.
• Praise God for the growth of the church in Nsanjika, and pray for even stronger relationships between the churches in the wider area.