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Goducate Children’s Home in Cambodia prepares to rear goats and chickens

Tilapia raising is not the only livelihood project that the Goducate Children’s Home is embarking upon. Goat raising is also a good livelihood project. Different species of goats have to be raised for different purposes. Although we would like to raise various species, we are at present focusing on producing organic-meat goats.

To maintain success with this project, we have started seeding various kinds of legumes, to be able to provide the animals with a complete plant food. In about a year’s time we will buy several female goats and one male.

Chicken rearing is quite a difficult project that requires more care and monetary investment. However, our administrator’s experience with poultry has encouraged us to start breeding chickens as egg layers and as meat for sale.

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Goducate Children’s Home in Cambodia starts self-sustainability projects with tilapia raising

The Goducate Children’s Home has long wanted to be self-sustainable. It has also wanted to teach the children at the home not only to stand on their own feet, but also to go and impart what they have learnt to the community. Over the years we have been gathering information and trying out various projects. Recently, our administrator, Noe Pulmones, went to the Philippines for intensive training in livelihood programs. We are now starting to introduce these programs, starting with short-range goals but with the aim of reaching long-term goals.

Feasibility studies have shown that raising tilapia for sale has more advantages than any other livelihood project. Thus during the Khmer New Year vacation, the boys at the home dug out two new fish ponds.

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Sarah, the success story of a child at the Goducate Children’s Home

This is Sarah, together with Margaret, who visited the Home for the first time with us a few weeks ago.

When I first interviewed her in Dec 2008, I remembered a nervous girl taking a long, long time to figure out how to respond to the question, “How old are you?”. When we decided to interview the children again during our recent April 2011 trip (without giving them any advance notice to prepare!), Sarah spoke confidently and answered my questions correctly and quickly in English.

Encouraged by her responses, I tested her further and found a rather difficult passage in English for her to read to me. She did so without any difficulty. I also asked her to write her name in English, as well as in Khmer.

The homeschooling program at the Goducate Children’s Home had certainly been successful in helping these kids improve in their studies. Moreover, they are happy, well fed and well cared for by the people who run the Home. Hopefully Sarah and many of these children will grow up into successful adults who can help other Cambodians help themselves.