Blog: Asia

*U Village, Sri Lanka

Naomi, a 7-year old girl living in rural Sri Lanka, loves school! She rushes to the GHNI sponsored after-school program in *U Village, even though it’s a tough uphill climb. Naomi enjoys reading and learning English. However, many children in Sri Lanka, especially those impoverished in rural villages, must drop out of school at a very young age.  Families need every member’s help to bring in income, so school is not a priority.

After digging a well in their village for drinking, cooking, and washing, these Nepalese villagers are now looking forward to irrigating their crops. David, a GHNI leader, shares about the trials and triumphs of this project.

While studying can be a bore for children in developing nations where opportunity is abounding, these students in Sri Lanka love it! The following is an inspiring update from Celeste and Jay in Sri Lanka.

No matter where you live, poverty exists.  What we see on our national news, it is just the glimpse of the extreme poverty in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.  Much of the world’s poverty is hidden, covered or ignored in our modern existence.  It is too much for us to bear!

GHNI workers cannot turn away from the realities. Our field workers walk daily alongside hidden and hurting communities. They watch as villages transform before their eyes.  There is a solution to poverty and it lies within villagers; it lies within those currently living in poverty.

Helping people to realize their dreams is rewarding for Celeste and Jay, GHNI leaders in Sri Lanka…especially when the dream is to help others realize their dreams. Celeste and Jay share Ashokumar’s story with you.

Thar Yar Kung, Myanmar

School attendance in Thar Yar Kung Village was sporadic.  Illness, mostly diarrhea from poor sanitation, kept children from going to school on a regular basis.  Without school, the future of these children held little hope.  Like many rural villages in developing nations, the people of Thar Yar Kung did not have toilets; relieving themselves wherever they wanted.  This posed high sanitation risks which caused their children to be sick much of the time.

Part of sustainable development for the villagers who work with us is learning to change their way of thinking—“Will this sustain me today?” to “Will this sustain me for a lifetime?”  These two villages have been making great progress, according to GHNI-India’s leaders, who have shared these transformational stories…

Because YOU believed in the ability of others to transform and be filled with Hope: Another Project Nationalized for Transformation!

One changed life representing many. *Mary has tears in her eyes of excitement. She was an adult before she learned how to read. Her life was changed when she learned not only how to read, but also to share the stories of life-changing principles through telling stories she read to other illiterate people.

Several families rural Afghanistan are able increase their income and have hope for the future because of this agricultural project. We are excited to hear from our leaders in Afghanistan about the progress being made!

*Valley of Ali, Afghanistan

“Some good progress has been made with the tree project in the past month and we have now added a total of 14 new farmers to this project.

From the desk of GHNI-Sri Lanka’s National Leaders, Celeste and Jayarani Pieterze—

Nallthanniya Village, Sri Lanka

Lansantha and her husband, Sandanam, are residents of Nallathanniya. Their love bloomed to a marriage. They have three children of the ages 12, 11, and 2.