Longtime Bread and Water for Africa® partner Esther Ndichafah, CEO of Hope Services, may be located in Cameroon, but that doesn’t mean that she doesn’t care equally for the children and youth of neighboring country Chad as much as she does for those in her own country – especially when it comes to ensuring they get an education.

Chad is ranked by the United Nations’ Human Development Index as the seventh most impoverished country in the world with 80 percent of the population living below the poverty line while Esther describes the country she knows well as “a sub-Saharan nation ranked among the poorest in Africa, ruined by war, poor leadership and environmental extremes.”

And that’s among the many reasons she is so determined to see that, with the assistance of the supporters of Bread and Water for Africa®, she is able to send as many children and youth to school as she possibly can – and that includes both girls and boys in a country where “there is the cultural tendency to prioritize male education.

“This program has given so many young girls a hope for the future,” she notes.

In the community of Lolo and its environs where more than 200 students are attending school “the whole community has been salvaged by this program,” says Esther, adding that the entire community is supportive and appreciative for her efforts in making it possible for their children to attend school.

“The program has thrived for more than six years thanks to the support of the local community authorities, parents, clergy and school authorities who have been collaborative when and where they need to be,” she told us. “The Chief of the village where most of our beneficiaries are based is one of our volunteers directly following up to ensure the success of our program.”

In achieving her long-range vision, Esther focuses on providing an education for children from when they are able to begin school and through secondary school where for most their education is complete and they are able to secure employment that would never had been possible without the knowledge they learned during their years of education.

But that doesn’t mean that their education must end there, as some continue on to vocational training and a few are even able to continue on to university thanks to their own determination, ability – and scholarships made possible by the supporters of Bread and Water for Africa®.

“Two of our beneficiaries officially were admitted into University,” states a deservedly very proud Esther.

Achille Djenainbeye, now 23, whose education has been sponsored by Hope Services since 2017 and is now in university studying mechanical engineering, and Merci Dakeinodji, 21, who has been sponsored by Hope Services since 2017 and is studying economics.

“As the years go by, we realize that more and more children depend on this program to trace a beautiful path to their future. The impact of this program is tremendous, and we fully understand that in a few years to come when these children are spread across the society living out their dreams and multiplying the impact.

“This program is laying a very solid foundation for a long term in Chad.”