Current Projects in Afghanistan
Helping Believers Stay in Afghanistan
As the climate has begun to change in Afghanistan with the US already starting to withdraw troops, the Taliban and warlords that ruled the different territories before the US entered are already back in place to assume their rule. Already in central parts of the country the Taliban has taken over complete villages and those that live there either have the option to work now for the Taliban or they are forced to flee to more remote villages. Control of all major roadways has also been taken over by the Taliban, and heavy fees must be paid on any goods being transported along these roadways or the goods will be seized.
When Muslim villagers flee, they move to where other family are living. When a Believer has to flee, the only options they have is to flee the country or to go to the most remote mountain villages where the the natural resources are so minimal the area is of no worth to the Taliban.
Already many Believer families have chosen to flee Afghanistan because of not being able to support their families. We have worked hard over the past few months to come up with ideas that will provide ongoing support for Believers so they have a means to continue supporting their families and remain so they can share with others about their relationship with Christ.
Following are 2 of the most viable options we have come up with where we can provide financial support towards and can give training that will lead to their sustainability.
Trike Truck
As Believers are chased from their homes, the only place they can go without leaving the country is to the remote mountain villages where the limited resources are of no value to the Taliban. Roads are impassable for the normal vehicles so most have to spend 1- 2 days walking to distant villages down the mountain to buy and carry their 50lb bags of rice and flour.
We have found a trike truck made in Kabul that can carry up to 600lb of cargo and is made specifically to withstand the rugged mountain road and trails of Afghanistan. 600lbs would mean that 12 bags of rice or flour could be hauled at a time and families are willing to pay to have their purchases hauled so that they don’t lose 2 days of working their crops making the trek to make their purchases.
At most the families make the equivalent of $60 per month, which barely provides for the necessities needed to live. We have found that if we can purchase a trike truck for a believing family, it can be used to haul for different villages on different days each week and with a minimum amount being paid for their hauling the monthly income can more than be quadrupled!
The trike truck will not be given to the Believer, but rather sold to them by the church in Afghanistan. They will sign a legitimate contract to pay back the money to the church with monthly payments. This provides accountability to the Believer, but also saves their honour in the fact that they are not receiving charity. Instead they are making a purchase to fund a business venture that will provide needed support for their families and also financial support to the church through their tithes. The church will then use the payments received to support other needs that church families have.
We need to purchase 3 trike trucks before winter that will serve believers in 3 different regions in the central part of the country. The coast per truck is $2000 US dollars. If you would like to make a donation towards the purchase of one of these trucks, you can either make a secure online donation by clicking here, or you can mail a check to the address below and designating the donation to “Trike Truck.”
Animal Husbandry
We are not able to provide all of the needing Believer families with the trikes, so we have come up with another program where we will be buying sheep and chickens and “selling” them to the families much as we are doing the trikes. The families will make the “purchases” from the Church in Afghanistan. A contract will be signed stating that the family receiving the sheep or chickens will have total responsibility of overseeing the animals for a set period of time, from 1 to 2 years in length. During this time they will be trained on best practices for raising their animals to be healthier, which will result in better reproduction yields as well as benefitting from the sale of milk, cheese, eggs and meat. At the end of their time, if they purchased sheep then they will be responsible for returning the same sheep they received to the church, or a replacement in case one of their sheep dies and, if they purchased chickens they will be responsible for returning the same amount of chickens they received to the church. Then the church will make the same agreement to other Believer families that will benefit from this program.
The number needed and the cost are listed below:
Sheep: This year we need to purchase 70 sheep that will be distributed to 10 families; 7 sheep each. Cost per family is $700 US dollars, with a total cost of $7000 US dollars.
Chickens: We will be purchasing 25000 chicks from a Believer in Iran that will be distributed to 50 Believer families in Afghanistan; 50 chicks each. Cost per family is $100 US dollars, which will include the shipping, wire and materials to build chicken coups.
If you wish to make a donation towards the purchase of the sheep or chickens, click here. Checks can also be mailed to the PO Box below, and designate on the check which purchase you wish to donate towards.
Mailing Address:
24:14 Ministries International
P.O. Box 117
Dolomite, AL 35061