World Ark Magazine - November/December 2008 - (Page 26)

Warra Kargbo, 15, Ramatu Kargbo’s granddaughter, prepares cassava sauce near her grandmother’s patch of Chinese yams, pumpkins and corn. The family likely will become a Heifer beneficiary as part of the Port Loko project. During the war, I was struggling with my family. I was suffering.” Fatorma isn’t the only person whose life has changed because of Sankoi’s work. She is a staunch advocate for the slow. But we have seen poverty decline in the recent years since the war—even more than what we were expecting.” “Change is very women in Port Loko and throughout Sierra Leone, and hundreds have benefited from her efforts. “We are committed to gender balance, so that women work with the blessing of their husbands,” Sankoi says. “The men may join us, but women are the only ones allowed to have the leadership roles.” Sankoi says all the communities she works with now concentrate on agriculture. “Because of this food crisis, one thing we are heavily doing now is farming, putting a premium on producing what we can eat. They need to concentrate on feeding their families— it is most important right now.” Rashid Sesay looks forward to Heifer Sierra Leone’s future partnership with the group that Sankoi leads. “The Kamuyu Women’s Development Organization is one of those vibrant women’s groups that has been working for quite some time now,” Sesay explains. “Some of them have lost their husbands during the war, so this group is a way of coming together to help one another. They decided to form this organization. And Heifer, as an organization that seeks to improve livelihood conditions in this district, we decided to see what they were doing and see how best to come in to assist them.” Sankoi says she’s optimistic about the group’s success so far, and she believes that Heifer will be the handup to self-reliance these dedicated women need. “If Heifer can put the mechanism in place, it will be successful because we have seen in other areas, when goats or sheep or any other animal are supplied to the community, things change.” “It will take some time,” she cautions. “The waiting will be hard. Some will see others with animals and will be impatient for theirs. Change is very slow. But we have seen poverty decline in the recent years since the war—even more than what we were expecting.” See additional photos and learn more about the Western Rural District, Port Loko District and Tongo Fields, a diamond-mining community, at www.heifer.org/worldark, where you can find out how you can help. Photojournalist Geoff Oliver Bugbee has focused on global health, basic human needs and social-justice issues for 14 years. In 2007, he photographed stories in more than 15 countries including Syria, Egypt, Kosovo, Rwanda and Tanzania. Learn more about Geoff’s work at www.geoffbugbee.com. www.heifer.org 26 November/December 2008 | WORLD ARK http://WWW.HEIFER.ORG/WORLDARK http://www.geoffbugbee.com http://www.heifer.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of World Ark Magazine - November/December 2008

World Ark Magazine - November/December 2008 Contents Letters For the Record The Good Life Asked and Answered Finding Peace in Africa Sierra Leone on the Mend The Roma: A People Apart Mixed Media Heifer Bulletin Heifer Spirit Calendar First Person

World Ark Magazine - November/December 2008

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