Luhombero is Chalice’s newest sponsorship location; a sub-site of our Mbinga site, Tanzania. Luhombero village is very remote. The villagers depended on rain-fed agriculture. They use river and swamp water to irrigate their lands to grow food during the dry seasons. For many years, the fertile soils and good rains have fostered strong and reliable harvests.
Four villages in our Luhombero sub-site have been particularly affected. The villages are along the surrounding mountains’ lowlands. The heavy rains caused massive overflow into the Luhombero river and the Makaikai swamp. Floods have destroyed infrastructure and roads, and swept away crops and livestock.
From these four affected villages, 45 sponsored families and 80 non-sponsored families have lost everything: furniture, bedding, clothes, kitchen utensils, and food.
Many of the families are now living in the Luhombero Catholic church. Only a few families could move away to live with relatives in other villages on the higher lands. The families living in the Catholic church depend on the parish priest, Fr. Kindata.
The situation is dire. They lack proper shelter, nutrition, medication, personal hygiene supplies, and household items such as beds, mattresses, blankets, bed sheets, mosquito nets, lighting, and cooking stoves. Their current conditions are unhygienic, and the families are at extreme risk of diseases such as typhoid, malaria, pneumonia, diarrhea, and cholera.
The Mbinga site staff have requested $75,343.00 CAD in emergency relief funds to give the 125 families food baskets, medical kits, clothes and bedding. Their immediate aim is to reduce their risk of acute malnutrition and waterborne disease.
Each family will receive food hampers containing 40 kg maize flower, 5kg enriched porridge, 2 kg milk powder for babies, 40kg each of rice and beans, 10 kg dried fish. They will also receive a medical kit, mosquito net, and a dozen reusable sanitary towels and bars of soap. The site will also give each family a mattress, a set of bed sheets, two blankets, and clothes.
Project Code: DFTMB0424
Funding request: $75,343.00 CAD
