2015 was a very productive and rewarding year for Friends of Turkana, as we succeeded in funding the following projects:
The purchase of a tractor, plow, and trailer to be used in the vicinity of the capital city of Lodwar. With its consistent climate and wealth of sunshine, it is notunusual to be able to realize three crops each year. A principal obstacle is the laborious tasking of clearing and preparing the soil by hand. The use of a tractor will of course expedite that work, making it more likely that farms will see a greater yield.
The pending installation of a borehole, solar pumping, and two giant greenhouses at Kakuma Mission Hospital, located adjacent to the Kakuma refugee camp, with a present population of 185,000 and rising. There are only 3 medical facilities in the Kakuma area, a hospital in the refugee camp, a small private clinic in town, and Kakuma Hospital. The demands on the Hospital are obviously great, yet the Hospital receives water from the town only 2 days a week, and has no source for fresh produce. This planned borehold and greenhouses will change that and ease the suffereing and improve the care of the many patients who are treated there.
Supplied seeds, tools, supplies, and farm animals to a community at Kangalita. The village’s fields were destroyed in flooding from the adjacent Torkwil River, and missed several growing seasons as necessary repairs were made. Our grant will enable the village – which has been farming for many years – to make up for lost time, and the tools – and access to the tractor! – will mean they will become more productive.
None of that would be have been possible without your support.
In 2016 we would like to support a single project: The installation of solar pumping and gardens near a village located in Sopel, an hour outside of Lodwar. We are particularly attracted to this investment opportunity. A decade or so ago, we were asked by the villagers to drill a borehole. In the years since, we have regularly visited the well and spoke with local villagers. The well has dramatically changed their lives, especially those of the women and girls, who no longer have to journey miles each day to locate and return with water, a task which took hours and had to be repeated every day. It was also dangerous, as the girls were often sent down deep holes dug in riverbeds, which collapsed from time to time. Now, they have time to address matters that they previously had to ignore. They also report that their general levels of health have improved.
On one of our last trips the women at Sopel asked if we would install a garden so they could further improve their children’s health.
This is precisely the kind of request which we favor: A project which was conceived by the local community, addressing an issue known best to them. It is also, the natural outgrowth of the prior support we provided.
The total budget, including construction, supplies, training etc., is about $55,000. We will work with the village to see if we can manage the expenses somewhat, but we are hopeful that you will help us meet a goal of $50,000.
We recognize that you all receive many appeals from worthy causes, and we are humbled at your continued trust and confidence, for which we are grateful.
Board of Directors
Friends of Turkana