Anonymous donor gives hope to Nigerian orphans
ADA (Abanbeke Development Association) was founded in 1988 by Agnes Ingwu who through personal experience understands the trials faced by single mothers and widows in rural African communities.
The reality of rural subsistence life for people in West Africa is a far cry from the romantic western notions of simple, tranquil, close to nature existence. Mud huts, a long trek to water and back breaking work to grow just enough to feed your family is the norm.
Single mothers (39% of the population) and widows (19%) face desperate problems in providing the basic essentials for their children. In 2005 the annual household cash income from subsistence farming locally was equivalent to $36, far below Nigeria's average in the same year of $790. Deep-rooted patriarchal customs make it impossible for a widow or a single mother to find a chief willing to guarantee a loan to start a business.
ADA helps 150 people in more than twenty four communities, mainly young mothers and widows with finance and micro-credit. The anonymous donation will go a long way in supporting ADA in 2008, and Agnes and her team would like to extend a warm thank you for this support.
If you would like to help ADA, or any of the other programmes that Village AiD support, please call Jo on 01629 814434 or email jo@villageaid.org