HOTLINE - week of July 04, 2005

2005 is the UN's International Year of Microcredit. Church World Service supports many microcredit programs worldwide. For example, a project in Uganda provides animals instead of currency for food security and income generation. The animals' offspring will be passed along to future recipients, and they will do the same – extending the credit from generation to generation.

"We extend our gratitude [for the] support that you continue to give to FDNC. Our gratitude will continue to be shown by… being good stewards," says the executive director of FDNC (Foundation for Development of Needy Communities), Sam Watulatsu, of the assistance that Church World Service is providing the organization to help improve the lives of vulnerable people – particularly girls -- in parts of rural Uganda.

FDNC is working to reduce the number of uneducated girls and street children by alleviating poverty in some 80 families. The families are receiving milk goats, which will help to improve their nutrition and food security, and enable them to earn a small income through the sale of extra milk. An improvement in the families' circumstances will allow them to think more seriously about sending their girls to school. The goats are part of a pass-along scheme, whereby the offspring of a goat owned by one family will be given to another vulnerable family who does not own one.

Church World Service is also helping FDNC to promote girls' literacy, which is vital for propelling girls and women toward a brighter future in Uganda. More than half of the girls living in the Mbale area, in eastern Uganda, drop out of school before finishing their primary education, for example.

FDNC is encouraging girls to stay in school and is helping to improve future opportunities for about 9,000 girls through better access to education, including women’s health education. This is being accomplished through establishing and empowering rural clubs, training people on gender issues, and informing the community about the importance of education for girls.

Hundreds of girls are taking part in vocational training in such areas as tailoring, catering, secretarial work, computer operation, home economics, nursery education, carpentry, masonry, and hairdressing. Other girls who are excelling in their rural schools are receiving scholarships and awards through FDNC.

FDNC is working to support the girls' families through home and school visits, counseling, workshops, and training that helps to empower girls and women. And, a rural resource center is being established that will provide education about girls' development, gender issues, and community development using print resources and the Internet.

Says FDNC program assistant Grace Kanagwa, "We are grateful to have Church World Service as our partners in development. Please continue. God bless."

Many Haitians who have made it to U.S. shores after fleeing armed conflict, environmental disaster, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions are being threatened with return to Haiti by the U.S. government. CWS is urging interested individuals to contact President Bush and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and ask them to grant Temporary Protected Status to Haitians in the U.S. Information on how to do this.

Your prayers and support - and your participation in CROP WALKS and the TOOLS & BLANKETS Program - make possible these and other life sustaining programs. For information on how to get involved, please call your Church World Service/CROP Regional Office toll-free at 1-888-CWS-CROP, that's 1-888-297-2767.

For information about free loan videos, please call 1-800-297-1516, ext. 338, or e-mail us at: videos@churchworldservice.org.

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