Nicaragua_ Missionary Tae-jin Park 2020

The Coronavirus pandemic has been ongoing for almost a year now, and it is affecting every country in the world bar none.

Nicaragua is in a strange situation. According to government data, Nicaragua has one of the lowest transmission and fatality rates in the world.

But in reality, cemeteries are being filled and new ones are being made, and the economic impact of the coronavirus, especially in the tourism sector, has caused widespread unemployment and hunger in many Nicaraguan homes, especially since almost half of Nicaraguans live below the poverty line.

The GCF contribution is used in a twofold strategy to help the communities at the 38th Kilometer at Carretera a Rama.

First is to fight hunger directly in an emergency response to feed children by distributing food packages. This alleviates the financial burden placed on the parents due to the economic disruption caused by the pandemic.

The food packages contain basic food staples such as rice, beans, cooking oil, and several other basic items. The monthly handout was not enough to be the sole source of sustenance for most families, but has helped them when food was most scarce.

Second is to empower families for long-term prosperity through distribution of piglets, which can be raised from food scraps and grains, and then sold for much greater profit on a medium- to long-term basis.

Those who have worked hard and cared for their piglets have managed to build up a self-sustaining business, making up a significant addition to their monthly income.

In a world where even neighbors are no longer able to see face-to-face, but have to hide behind masks around each other, the GCF contributions, arriving from halfway across the globe, from people who these Nicaraguans have never seen face to face, have proven to be a beacon of hope and a source of inspiration for the families of these 61 children. In spite of the economic downturn affecting the world as a whole, it is our hope that these contributions can continue in the year 2021 and continue to provide opportunities and a helping hand to those most in need.