Mbudzi Project

In many parts of Africa, a goat is more valuable than an orphan child. 

Sadly, this is true in much of rural Zimbabwe as well. Because of the vast poverty throughout our nation, when extended family is forced to take in additional children to care for, many times they are put to work to “earn their keep” in the household. The added stress of more mouths to feed makes it culturally acceptable for orphans to become laborers. 

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In an effort to help create solutions for children who find themselves in this very sad circumstance, Renewal Ministries has launched the Mbudzi Projects. Mbudzi is the Shona word for “goat”. Through an evaluation process, the ministry has been able to locate orphan children who’ve been placed in struggling families, and gift them with a single goat. The child is then tasked with caring for and raising the goat, while being under the monitoring of the ministry. Once the goat is grown, the first offspring from it is sown back into the project to be given to another child in need. Meanwhile the child that raised the goat learns how to use the goat as an asset to bring income through selling the goat’s milk and breeding the goat. 

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This project is proving to be incredibly successful. The child that receives the goat gains value within their extended family and the community by now possessing wealth of his own. Eventually, the goat project can provide school fees for the children to receive education along with creating a long term source of income. 

 

Every life is valuable to the Father, and the Goat Project is one of the tools God is using to establish value in the hearts of orphan children.