Where Can I Learn How to Break the Cycle of Poverty?
There are many methods for how to break the cycle of poverty which one can learn about. From education assistance to income-generating gifts like sewing machines or farm animals, there is hope for families who have been poor for generations. GFA World works in communities in all these ways through sponsorships and gift distributions, and one by one, we see lives changed as families escape poverty.
Raina’s life had been dominated by poverty. She was part of a highly underprivileged people group that faced discrimination and deprivation from others in the region. Despite that, Raina had been able to attend school up until tenth grade, but she discontinued her education when it became too much for her parents to afford. Rather than receiving her certificates of completion, she had to join her parents in the field to earn money to put food on the table. After she married Ander, Raina continued to work in the fields to supplement his income with her own. In search of better job opportunities, Ander moved miles away to a neighboring city, but though he worked long hours in a car shop, his pay was minimal. Had Raina finished school, she may have been able to find work away from the fields. Instead, all she could do for her children was pass on the poverty she was raised in, continuing the cycle for another round.
Raina would sometimes join her parents at a nearby church led by a GFA pastor. He knew of Raina’s situation and knew there was a way to help. Thanks to donations from people around the world, the pastor was able to give Raina a goat. Goats require less money to feed and care for than larger livestock. They produce milk, which can supplement diets or be sold. Should the need arise, goat meat can also be eaten or sold. Raina’s goat could also help till the fields and provide fertilizer, helping the crops grow, leading to a more bountiful harvest to sell at the market and more income to help Raina and her family rise above the poverty line.[1]
It only takes $140 to provide a pair of goats for a family like Raina’s. A pair of pigs is only $65, and a pair of chickens is a mere $11.[2] Any amount can be life-changing, providing a path a family can take to escape poverty for good.
Consider joining this effort with GFA, not just to answer, “What is the cycle of poverty?” but to help end it.[1] “Goat Shatter Mother’s Cycle of Poverty.” GFA World. December 2021. https://www.gfa.org/news/articles/goat-shatters-mothers-cycle-of-poverty-wfr21-13/.
[2] “Gifts from the Stable.” GFA World. Accessed July 6, 2023. https://www.gfa.org/donation/browse/items/from-the-stable/.