For 48 years, Esther Phiri has lived a mostly difficult life. However with the help and support of African Enterprise (AE), Esther now has the chance to turn her life in a different direction.
Born in 1975 in the eastern province of Zambia, Esther was unable to attend school due to her family’s poverty. This left her with no education or chance to gain a skill set to generate income. She was only 16 years old when her family decided to marry her to a man named Rodgers.
After almost 12 years of marriage, Rodgers left Esther for another woman in a different town. At the time Esther was seven months pregnant with their third child, so she was left to care and provide for the older two children and manage her pregnancy as a single parent.
She shares that life as a single parent was not easy, but she tried to make the best of the situation.
“In 2010, I decided to enrol in a tailoring course in Petauke in the hope of gaining a skill that would help me generate more income. However, I dropped out because I couldn’t manage to pay for myself to complete the course,” Esther said.
In 2012, Esther’s grandmother became unwell and her family asked her to move to Lusaka to care for her. Once she passed away, Esther thought it best to stay in Lusaka and started work as a maid to pay for her rent and buy food to feed her family. For a while things were beginning to look up for Esther.
“My boss, Mr Chiti was so happy with the way the garden boy and I were working, so he decided to take us for some skills training. I chose to do tailoring while the garden boy decided to do driving. My dream to do tailoring was being revived! However, my dream was short lived because Mr Chiti remarried and his new wife influenced him negatively and so he stopped sponsoring us to do our skills training,” Esther remembers.
Once again, Esther’s desire to be trained in tailoring was unfulfilled. But despite these setbacks, Esthers feels that through it all God had been faithful to her. Esther became a committed Christian in 2020 and in 2021 she joined the True Worshippers ministry. As she began to serve among the other women, the Bishop told her about African Enterprise and their intention to start Community Transformation Groups (CTG) in her area.
“I joined the CTG as soon as it was formed! Before long, African Enterprise announced that they were going to start a Women Empowerment Project training women in tailoring. My CTG leadership selected me as one of the five women from the Bauleni CTG to benefit from this training,” Esther says.
“I am so happy, my dream of becoming a tailor is finally coming true. Thank you African Enterprise for helping me live my dream at my age!” Esther exclaimed.
Praise God for his faithfulness and love for Esther and her family. Pray for her as she works to complete her tailoring course, along with the support from African Enterprise.
In early 2023, Malawi was struck by a tropical Cyclone Freddy. The cyclone lasted five weeks, making it the longest-lasting tropical cyclone on record, and took over 1000 lives as well as leaving destruction and devastation in its wake.
The Cyclone Freddy Relief Initiative (CFRI) is an AE Malawi intervention that aims to provide relief activities such as relief items, trauma healing and counseling, and rebuilding of houses for victims affected by this disaster.
Macleana’s story
One such victim is Macleana, an elderly lady who sought shelter in the Cyclone Freddy victim Mwangata Camp after her house and its contents were mostly destroyed by running water as a result of the cyclone. With the support of the CFRI and the Mwangata Camp, she is steadily getting back on her feet.
Macleana feels grateful to God for having had her life spared during the disaster, saying “It is only by the grace of God that my bedroom wall did not collapse, I would not have survived the disaster”.
Though she has expressed that life in the camp has not always been easy, she is thankful to have a place to rest her head along with the 200 others who live in the camp alongside her.
The CFRI has been able to provide relief items to Macleana such as soap, flour, oil, sugar, salt and blankets to support her as she gets back on her feet. Macleana shares, “These items mean a lot to us, far beyond what the ordinary eye can see. The depth of our problems in the camp is beyond description but these items have brought great relief to our lives. You have provided a stepping stone for me to get back on my feet as I hope for my house walls to be rebuilt. May God bless African Enterprise for thinking about us, even though it has been a while after the disaster happened”, she says.
Chisomo’s story
Chisomo is only 13 years old, but was also a victim of Cyclone Freddy. Like Macleana, he has received support and assistance from the CFRI in the form of supplies.
Prior to the cyclone, Chisomo had a fairly comfortable life, living with his parents, attending school and eating dinner with his family in the evenings and playing with his friends. For Chisomo, the cyclone took more than just his house – both his parents were also killed in flood waters.
“Cyclone Freddy robbed me of both my parents in one night. It all happened very quickly, one moment we were trying to keep water out of the house and the next moment we had no house. Amidst the confusion and running water, I lost sight of my parents and that was the last I saw of them. One lady found me that night and took me to Chikunje Camp where I am currently staying,” he shared.
With the help he has received from CFRI, Chisomo shares a glimmer of hope that he holds in the midst of his tragedy. “I lost two parents that night, but I also survived that same night. The relief items I have received today give me hope that I can still live and grow up to be what my parents had always wanted me to be”.
African Enterprise Malawi is grateful for generous friends and partners that have joined hands to provide relief to Cyclone Freddy victims through CFRI.
Please pray for the victims of this tragedy, especially Macleana and Chisomo as they work to rebuild their lives and manage their grief. Pray they would trust and rely on God during these difficult times.
“Where there’s a whisk, there’s a way”
Five young ladies will graduate soon from the bakery training, a vocational training course offered by AE Ghana as part of the Street Children Apprenticeship Program (SCAP). One of the current students, Freda Omari, said her heart is gladding for an amazing opportunity to better her life. She further stated that she will go all out to learn and put to use the skills she will acquire.
Each year the SCAP program transforms the lives of young adults who were unable to finish school or enrol in tertiary studies.
Ohene Akrofi Enid
Enid Ohene Akrofi is 25 years old and a beneficiary of the AE Ghana project.
Enid heard about AE during the Akwapim Mission in 2018 when her church was one of our partner churches for the mission. She became deeply involved with the Akwapim Mission, especially youth events. In 2021 her church recommended her for the Street Children Apprenticeship Project.
Enid completed School in 2018 but her desire to further her education could not be fulfilled as her parents were unable to provide financial support.
As a diligent and hardworking lady she engaged herself in doing menial jobs to raise the money herself for tertiary education. Unfortunately, her meagre earnings were not enough to cater for herself, let alone support her through tertiary education.
After joining the SCAP program in 2021, Enid committed herself fully to the intensive training – comprising of skill training, entrepreneurship, costing, packaging, etc.
After completing the program Enid started in her own small way to apply the skills she acquired. She baked and sold varieties of bread and other pastries. Gradually Enid was able to save some money and she finally enrolled at the Accra Technical University to study Home Economics which is in alignment with the AE vocational training.
Enid is very happy, and she is very appreciative to AE donors for giving her the opportunity to add value to her life.
According to her, without AE’s support, she couldn’t have acquired the vocational skills.
She said, “I will gladly support some needy ladies in future when I have established myself.”
Each year the SCAP program transforms the lives of young adults just like Enid who were unable to finish school or enrol in tertiary studies.
AE is grateful to God for the progress we have witnessed in our Mathare Women Project and the Soweto Kayole Clinic. It’s incredible to see disadvantaged women given opportunities to sustain themselves, and to witness lives transformed through the provision of health care.
AE currently has 14 vulnerable women enrolled for skills training in dressmaking and design. The women will help make dresses, face masks, and reusable sanitary pads. The products will be given to schoolgirls in the Korogocho slums who come from disadvantaged homes.
27-year-old Florence Juma from Nairobi enrolled in the Mathare Women Project after completing her secondary studies. She was unable to continue with her education at the time because her parents couldn’t afford it and has since been working to support her family.
COVID-19 significantly impacted Kenya’s economy, which made employment opportunities scarce. However, this only fuelled Florence’s desire to learn a skill that would help her create a sustainable livelihood. But she had no means to pay for vocational training herself.
When Florence heard about the Mathare Women Project, she immediately sent in her application and was accepted. She is so excited about the opportunities that dressmaking and design will give her. After she finishes her training, she hopes to start her own business.
The Soweto Kayole Clinic has also aided in the management of the pandemic’s effects on the local community. Job losses and homelessness as a result of lost livelihoods have had a significant impact on the population. In addition to health care, families have also been provided with food parcels.
Last year, the clinic was able to help 26,241 people, and praise God, it didn’t have to close for Covid. In fact, the clinic was a big part of getting people to take care of their health and was able to give out face masks.
Victor Nyikuli is the Senior Nurse in Charge of Children’s Welfare and Antenatal Care at AEK’s Soweto Kayole Clinic. Every month, on average, fifty newborns are vaccinated at the clinic. These children are often malnourished, and Victor takes the time to teach their mothers about the significance of proper nutrition.
“I am very excited and happy for the opportunity to work at this facility,” says Victor. “I love to contribute to the positive transformation of lives through health services.”
A shortage of resources is one of the issues facing the Soweto Kayole Clinic. The facility, according to Victor, is in desperate need of improvements to guarantee that it is safe and patient-friendly for the community.
Without the help of our AE donors, none of this work would be possible. Please join us in praying, as we trust that God will provide the money we need to make renovations to the clinic.
AE is so excited to report on the progress of our work in Ghana. The Togo Farming Project, the Children’s Apprenticeship project, and AE Ghana Vocational Training are all programs that are ongoing thanks to the grace of God, and the generous support of our donors.
The first beneficiaries of the Togo farming project have started preparing the land ready to plant seeds. They have received assistance in the form of farming tools, seeds and a monthly allowance to enable them to care for the land.
The Agricultural Regional Director visited the farmers and donated two litres of Bio Pesticide to support the project. He also praised AE for starting the initiative to help young people in Togo, and offered to send Agricultural Officers to provide some technical assistance.
25-year-old Enid Ohene Akrofi, is thankful to God and AE for changing her life through vocational bakery training. Enid became involved with AE during the Akwapim Mission youth events and was then recommended for the Street Children Apprenticeship Project.
Enid completed High School, but was unable to fulfill her dream of tertiary education because she had no financial support. But her diligence and hard work paid off, and Enid committed herself to intensive bakery training – including entrepreneurship, costing and packaging.
After completing training, Enid baked and sold a variety of bread, chips, and other pastries. She was able to save some money and eventually enrolled at the Accra Technical Institute to study Home Economics. Enid is grateful to God and AE for giving her this opportunity.
Prince Aboagye’s church, New Fountain Ministry International Ghana, participated in the 2018 AE Akwapem Mission. When it came to counseling, Prince was an enthusiastic participant, and he was rewarded for his efforts by God.
He was offered the opportunity to learn computers as part of the AE Ghana Children’s Apprenticeship Project. “God never forsakes His own people”, says Prince. “Perseverance always pays off”. Prince was able to enroll in the Computer training program in 2019.
It’s a privilege to see the work of AE continuing to transform the lives of young people all across Africa because of your support. God’s faithfulness is inspiring!
AE’s participation in Ethiopia’s Emergency Response Program and the Sewing Project for Vulnerable Women has been an answer to prayer and a genuine blessing. The benefits of both are being felt by entire communities.
Our first round of graduates from the sewing program are already in the process of establishing their own businesses! The AEI Team was able to visit to provide valuable mentoring advice, and focused on assessing the success of this Community Transformation Group (CTG) program.
It was heart-warming to see how skills development coupled with the love of Christ can change the lives of vulnerable women. In the last 4 months, the graduates have even progressed to marketing their products.
Young orphan, Lemlem Tibebu has benefited greatly from the project. “It is a miracle that I joined this training program,” she says. “I have hope for my life now. I know there is someone who cares for me. My goal is to help myself and others who are like me.”
AE was also part of the emergency response targeted at displaced people currently in camps in an area called Azezo. The support focused on 598 women as direct beneficiaries. 12 kilograms of wheat flour, 2 liters of cooking oil, and one bar of soap were supplied to each woman.
Donations were distributed with love and messages of encouragement, and the majority of the 1,654 people in the camp were indirect beneficiaries. The emergency response was implemented in partnership with the Azezo Mulu Wongel Church.
Thanks to a previous working relationship with AEE, the church was able to facilitate discussions with local government and camp administration. They also gathered several donations that were distributed throughout the camp.
The Government’s Head of Gondar City Administration Emergency and Food Security Office made a plea for the continued support of displaced people. Due to ongoing fighting between groups, the numbers arriving at the camp continue to grow.
AEE is grateful to Barnabas Fund UK, who supported us through AEI. We also want to thank the AEI staff from Nairobi who led the distribution of emergency aid on the ground. This outpouring of love and care is a huge help to people who are desperate at a time when they need it the most.
