Madelina's husband died in the South Sudan conflict. She felt helpless. She was unable to provide for her young son. Madelina desperately needed assistance – she had lost hope for her son’s future.
GMP Relief and Development partner, Christian Mercy International (CMI), assists mothers like Madelina through their Goat Project. CMI's Goat Project provides resources to improve the lives and futures of the most vulnerable.
CMI has distributed goats to 150 children’s caregivers in all community schools in Aweil West. This includes a nursery and primary school where most children are from homes with single mothers. These families are vulnerable in the community, often with children who have lost one or both parents, or come from the poorest families.
Three goats were gifted to Madelina. When she received the goats, her confidence soared. “This makes us feel proud, positive and confident," she said.
CMI Director, Paulino Malou, explains, “Each child’s caregiver in the community receives one male goat and two female goats”. The caregivers breed the goats to earn a small income. CMI provides training and the necessary support to care for the goats. Madelina said, “They have linked us to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation for mass vaccination of our goats”.
Through the assistance of the Goat Project, Madelina can provide her 12-year-old son with uniforms, school fees, and medical care. "I have gained hope,” Madelina shared. “Receiving goats is one of the greatest investments to keep disadvantaged children at school.”
Madelina attends Chelkou Church of Christ, where she finds social and spiritual support for herself and her son. And at Emmanuel School, her son receives additional food assistance from CMI.
Madelina is encouraged that this support helps her situation and children in the community, specifically "in the absence of their biological fathers”.
Paulino believes in the Goat Project. “It is one of the best mechanisms to assist us to break through the extreme cycles of poverty here in South Sudan,” he shared.
CMI enables children to access education, regardless of their family background, so that they can succeed in life.