Helping the poor to break their cycle of poverty
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Cross International gives the poor "a hand up" rather than "a hand out"—through "self-help" programs that enable impoverished families to eventually provide for themselves. As more and more families produce income and become self-sufficient, they are able to get ample food, shelter, education and medical care. Poverty, and the problems associated with it, is inherently eliminated and entire communities transformed.
Self-help projects vary by area and need. A farming initiative in Kenya allows mothers to earn income to feed their families and send their children to school. Carpentry and sewing skills become the basis for income-producing businesses in Mozambique. Chicken or pig farming in Belize can feed a family and provide income from sales of piglets, meat or eggs.
Micro-lending also helps the poor to help themselves. In basic terms, a micro-lending program is a simple, localized system of borrowing and repaying small loans for poor people who would never be able to establish credit trough conventional means.
Through a gift to Cross for self-help programs, you can help poor families improve their standard of living, break their cycle of poverty, and restore their dignity and hope.
