Empowering Communities

Agriculture & Income-Generating Initiatives

In developing countries, farmers are some of the most food-insecure members of society. Farm yields are constrained by availability and affordability of quality seeds and fertilizers. Climate change has made weather patterns unpredictable, which affects planting and harvesting seasons, as well as the availability of fodder for animal herds. Those in rural areas often lack access to markets where they can get a fair price for their produce.

Rise Against Hunger aims to increase agricultural production and incomes through programs promoting improved agricultural methods, business skills and market access. Our programming helps smallholder farmers build resilience to the shocks and stresses of climate change by promoting ecological approaches to agriculture as well as diversification.

For those who do not grow their own food, income is a key determinant in acquiring adequate nutrition. Through business training, we help individuals increase their earning potential and thus their consistent access to food.

Our Empowering Communities Initiatives

Below, find descriptions of our ongoing Empowering Communities initiatives around the globe.

Elevating Women and Youth Farmers
Mali

Mali is a landlocked country where rain-fed agriculture is stressed by climate change effects including more frequent and severe droughts and floods and high variable rainfall. Climate trends in future scenarios imply an upsurge in the impacts of climate change on the main sectors in Mali, including agriculture and livestock. The goal of the Elevating Women and Youth Farmers project, implemented by Association Malienne d'Eveil au Developpement Durable (AMEDD), is to improve food security among women and young farmers through improved access to secured agriculture land, livestock ownership and climate-smart agriculture technologies. The project aims to empower the women and young farmers by improving their access to land, water, inputs, means of production and market access in the regions of Segou and Sikasso.

Leveraging Agriculture to Unite Communities and Hospitals
Senegal

Food insecurity remains widespread throughout Senegal and is a major contributing factor to malnutrition. Through the Leveraging Agriculture to Unite Communities and Hospitals project (LAUNCH), Development in Gardening (DIG) and Rise Against Hunger will improve food security for at-risk populations, including people living with HIV, undernourished children, pregnant and lactating women, and people with disabilities. The project, implemented in southern Senegal, increases the availability of nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables by establishing community gardens at hospitals and supporting participants to set up their own home gardens. In addition to the nutritional benefits, the garden produce is in demand on local markets and can generate income in a short period. LAUNCH will directly benefit over 2,000 people with increased production and consumption of produce as well as increased income and/or reduction of food expenditures. Read more.

Harvesting Prosperity and Resilience
Malawi

In an effort to address Malawi's ongoing food security challenges, Rise Against Hunger and Foundation for Community Support Services (FOCUS) are implementing the Harvesting Prosperity and Resilience project which will target 2,100 smallholder farmers in the Karonga and Mzimba regions of the country. Several factors constrain the production capacity of smallholder farmers such as lack of access to improved/quality seed, planting materials, credit facilities and extension services. The project will train women and men farmers on the use of labor-saving farming technologies and practices, including high-yielding crops, conservation agriculture and improved livestock husbandry.

Planting Seeds for Strong Communities
Zimbabwe

Planting Seeds for Strong Communities, in partnership with Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) Zimbabwe will establish a sustainable home-grown school feeding program in five schools, providing a safety net for school-age children while stimulating the local agricultural economy in Gokwe North District. The project will also sustain the gains generated from the Rise Against Hunger-supported Southern Africa School Feeding Initiative (SASFI), which provided food assistance following the 2016 El Nino drought. Planting Seeds for Strong Communities will focus on horticulture, indigenous poultry, sunflower, biofortified cowpeas and small grains as the viable value chains to be promoted as they strengthen household nutrition and women’s empowerment.

Empowering Leaders through Nutrition-Smart Agriculture
South Sudan

South Sudan currently faces one of the world’s worst food crises. A 20-year civil war claimed 1.5 million lives and displaced 4 million people before South Sudan gained independence in 2011, and continued internal conflict undermines fragile food systems. Just a few miles from the city of Torit, where the first shots of war were fired, sits Hope for South Sudan, a residential school and orphanage that is working to protect and empower 400 children at-risk to human trafficking for a future in which they build peace rather than conflict. To assist Hope for South Sudan and the surrounding community in achieving food security, improved nutrition and economic independence, Rise Against Hunger and Lift Up the Vulnerable are implementing the Empowering Leaders through Nutrition-Smart Agriculture project. This five-year initiative aims to build capacity in crop production for consumption and income generation, and increase dietary diversity for improved nutrition among school and community participants. The project focuses on behavior change communication, animal husbandry, conservation agriculture and crop diversification.

Past Initiatives

Below, find descriptions of our past Empowering Communities initiatives around the globe.

Siloe Agricultural Development Initiative
Haiti

To empower local families to become self-sufficient and break the cycle of poverty, Rise Against Hunger and Hearts and Hands for Haiti partnered with 350 farming households and nearly 600 youth to educate on improved crop production practices. The initiative had several objectives to build toward sustainability, including the introduction of improved technologies like on-farm crop production and fish farming, promotion of dietary diversity and safe nutrition, access to clean water, and increased school attendance for children who previously collected water. Read more.

Jai Prabha | India Sustainable Livelihoods Initiative
Sitamarhi, East Champaran, Banka and Nawada Districts, Bihar, India

The goal of the India Sustainable Livelihoods Initiative was to increase incomes and access to sufficient food, by training farmers on the farming of a new crop, moringa. In partnership with a local Bihar organization, Jai Prabha Mahila Vikas Kendra and Rise Against Hunger India, the initiative sought to increase the per acre income of 100 farmers and their families (500 people) by promoting moringa planting in one-acre units and increase return on livestock by promoting goat rearing and cattle rearing based on moringa feed. Read more.

Enabling Year-Round Food Access in Kenya
Tigania East and West, Meru County, Kenya

In partnership with U.S.-based nonprofit organization Growing Hope Globally, we supported an existing program in the Tigania region of Meru County, Kenya, which sought to improve food security for 1,000 people (200 households) by improving the availability of a variety of foods in the community and the ability of households to access food throughout the year. The initiative focused on income diversification by supporting poultry farming, tree planting for food and firewood, as well as diversifying the field crops. At least 50% of selected participants were women, receiving skills training and support with farm inputs and assets. Caregivers for children under age five were also trained on safe hygiene and sanitation practices. Read more.

Empowerment Through Enterprise
Vietnam

Rise Against Hunger and Children of Vietnam scaled up their work to break the cycle of poverty for children and families by assisting single mothers through a program called Empowerment through Enterprise. The goal of the program is to increase incomes and support nutritious diets for single mothers and their children in central Vietnam by providing financial literacy and business development training through which participants learn to develop a business plan for their microenterprise and receive a small grant to scale up their business. Read more.

Introducing Climate Smart Agriculture in Cambodia
Cambodia

To address the state of food insecurity in Cambodian communities, partners Growing Hope Globally and World Hope International are piloting two agricultural innovations that are adaptive to climate change, directly impact household food security and will be studied for their commercial viability by establishing scalable links to markets. The program provides women farmers the opportunity to develop their agricultural and business skills through an initiative to grow climate-smart crops such as mushroom grow houses. Project participants receive training in organic horticulture, basic business management and assistance with access to food markets, including supermarkets, processors and restaurants and the area served will receive increased access to clean, safe water, via wells that can provide water for household and garden use for up to 200 families. Read more.

Building Resilience to Climage Change
Nicaragua

In partnership with Growing Hope Globally, farmers in Carazo, Nicaragua are learning sustainable agriculture methods which reverse environmental degradation and maximize scarce water resources. Families are restoring soil through crop rotation and mitigating risk of crop failure by planting a larger variety of crops, including drought-resistant varieties. Growing Hope Globally’s in-country partners are also training community leaders how to advocate within their municipalities for water access and climate adaptation plans. To date, three communities have gained access to piped water due to their willingness to hand dig five miles of trenches for the pipes — part of their cost-share in an agreement with the government. By 2019, 625 people will possess the skills to provide their children more nutritious foods. Read more.