Auta’s skin is dark and taut with valleys of worry and determination etched into her forehead. She is 58, and her husband died three decades ago. She sits on a small rock outside her home in a village in Niger, West Africa, and holds a wiggly granddaughter as she speaks. Around her, she sees a…
Feeding Programs
Courage Undeterred
Since their emergence in northeastern Nigeria in 2002, militants in the terrorist organization Boko Haram have set about the task of remaking West Africa into their own image. Seeking to eliminate differing ideologies, they have killed thousands of people of various backgrounds. Often overlooked are the faces of those that survive. Throughout Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon,…
Construction Projects
A Labor of Love
By William King, program coordinator for the Egbe Hospital revitalization project in Nigeria I have volunteered on over 25 mission projects. I have met hundreds of volunteers and have been in their shoes. They come in all shapes, ages and vocations. But one thing comes through in all of them, and that is Christ! They…
Construction Projects
A Labor of Love
By William King, program coordinator for the Egbe Hospital revitalization project in Nigeria I have volunteered on over 25 mission projects. I have met hundreds of volunteers and have been in their shoes. They come in all shapes, ages and vocations. But one thing comes through in all of them, and that is Christ! They…
Discipleship, Education & Training
‘We’re Treating the Whole Person’
Lying in his bed at Tenwek Hospital in Kenya, a man named Geoffrey reflected on his wayward life as he recuperated from an illness. He had been struggling with drinking and wondered if there was hope for change and a brighter future. He had heard about Jesus Christ and His promise of new life for…
Animals, Agriculture & Livelihoods
The Trees of Guidan Ara
Renae Chrystal is the communications intern in Niger. As a country in the sub-Saharan climate of West Africa, Niger struggles yearly with heat and a shortage of rain. Particularly in the north of the country, the climate is dry and desert-like for most of the year, which creates a tough environment for crops and any…
Water, Sanitation & Hygiene
A Village Without a Well
It’s nearing 120 degrees outside, and already the women have walked three miles in the desert heat. They’re only halfway to the well in the neighboring village, and there’s no shade to hide from the sun’s harsh rays. At the well they’ll wait in line, draw water, and pour it into their jerry cans. Then…
Feeding Programs
Fleeing from Boko Haram
Editor’s Note: Names have been changed throughout this article to protect identities. In the Diffa region of southeastern Niger, there is little sound. Apart from the side-to-side rocking of the moving Land Cruiser and subtle shifting of sand in the wind, the sun beats down on a sparse landscape largely devoid of movement. Motorcycles are…
Operation Christmas Child
The Good News Blossoms in West Africa
Johnjames left his home in Nigeria to serve as a missionary in Gambia, a nearby West African nation, in January 2020. He brought with him his 5-year-old son, Unique, while his wife and newborn son planned to join them a couple months later. Due to the global pandemic, however, those travel plans were thwarted. Undaunted,…
