Despite El Nino, We’re Growing
While most of Zambia has felt the harm from El Nino this year with limited crop production and even loss of electricity—as highlighted in this New York Times article—our network has seen growth and normal, if not improved, harvests.
We have recently registered a grain company that is building grain storage sheds for the farmers in the Partners Worldwide network in Zambia. The storage facility is coming along nicely thanks to the local contractors and engineer working on the project. So far, the foundation steel work and brick work are done, and back filling and compacting is finishing. It has been exciting to watch this construction and see the progress being made.
In the Eastern Province of Zambia, we are working with the Reformed Church of Zambia (RCZ)-Diaconia through our Farmer to Farmer partnership. RCZ Diaconia attends to about 3,000 farms whose farmers are actively participating in different programs. For these farmers, the rainy season started on a very low note and many were worried that there may be a drought 
in the country, as this was happening in many parts of Southern Africa. Fortunately the rain stabilized in January andcontinued normally. According to the group field assessment and crop reports from February and March, the expected crop yield for corn improved. The photo here show crops from one of the farms in this network. We are praising the Lord for these results and for answering our prayers for a good harvest!
As Jesus says in Matthew 13:23 telling the Parable of the Sower: “But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
April 26, 2016