In Sierra Leone, “Farming is the main source of sustenance and income for the rural people… and it is at subsistence level,” says Pastor Francis A.B Rogers, district coordinator for our in-country partner Faith Healing Development Organization, which operates an agricultural training program for women and youth supported by Bread and Water for Africa®.
The Faith Healing Agricultural Project (FHAP) supplies seeds to women’s groups in various villages in Yakansa and other communities “with a view to empowering them,” he noted.
However, in 2024, thanks to the supporters of Bread and Water for Africa®, the FHAP expanded to include a training program for 50 women and 25 youth smallholder farmers in the impoverished country’s Bonthe District, which not only provides them with knowledge but also with tools and supplies to increase their harvests.
“Most women and youths in the Sogbini Chiefdom where FHAP operates are unskilled and do not have knowledge of enterprise development, petty trading and related activities, let alone capital for startup,” explained Pastor Rogers.
In addition, the program provides training in business management skills to enable them to generate income from selling their surplus produce once their families’ needs are met.
The ultimate goal of the program as Pastor Rogers described, it is “to liberate 50 women and 25 youth from economic dependency and poverty.”
Among those who have recently successfully completed the training are Mabinty Momoh and Janet Kpanabom.
From Survival to Stability: Mabinty’s Journey to a New Beginning
Mabinty, her husband and their three children were living together as a family in Mogbwemo Village until a misunderstanding between the couple led to a quarrel, which ultimately led to a divorce.
While the young children stayed with their mother, the husband left the area in search of a job and has not been heard of since.
“Living conditions became sour in the face of the biting economic crunch, and the children dropped out of school,” reported Pastor Rogers.
Mabinty sought to help others with household chores to feed herself and the younger children, while the oldest “became an errand boy in the community for survival.”
However, her and her children’s lives changed for the better when Mabinty was recruited for the training program, which “greatly motivated her.
“Among other crops, she planted sweet potato, which is a well-loved food in their community, groundnuts (peanuts) and peppers.
“She has not only been able to provide food and other needs for the home, but she has been able to save money to send her kids to the village school and start a small business.”
And as for Mabinty herself, “I am so grateful to God that He brought Bread and Water for Africa® and FHDO to our village to save us from suffering.
“I cannot wait until the next farming season.”
From Loss to Livelihood: Janet’s Path to Stability
WhenJanet lost her husband, the responsibility for caring for her two children in Gangama Village fell fully on her shoulders, reported Pastor Rogers.
She tried to cope for a while, but eventually could not continue to feed her family because of the country’s “galloping inflation” that hit the nation and had no income coming in.
“With no one to help, the kids stopped attending school because she could not pay the bills,” he told us. “She resorted to helping her late husband’s family members with their own farmwork just to keep herself and her kids alive.”
She found solace in her small Christian congregation, which assisted her with food for her children, which she knew was not a sustainable solution.
But all that trauma was before FHAP staff members were made aware of Janet’s dire situation, travelled to her village and registered her for the program.
She began immediately benefiting greatly from the training, tools and materials she received, telling us, “I implemented the new farming skills I learnt during the training, and it helped improve the yield.
“My groundnut and potato crops did well, and I have been able to raise money to send my kids back to school this year.”
She commented that her inlaws “are surprised at our improved conditions of living with my children.”
In addition, Janet expressed her profound gratitude to the supporters of Bread and Water for Africa® and thanked FHAP staff for including her in the project.
“God has done it for us.”…
In 2026, the Faith Healing Agricultural Project, with the support of Bread and Water for Africa®, plans to train 100 additional individuals in the Yakansa community and the Rutile area of Bonthe District—continuing its mission to empower women and youth, strengthen food security, and break cycles of poverty.
