Fungaimudoti Mafuta and his wife, Kudakwashe, are farmers in Matamba, a town in the center of Zimbabwe. For years they struggled from lack of resources — not enough money, not enough food, not enough time, not enough energy — not enough to keep their heads above water.
In the last few years, Fungaimudoti, Kudakwashe and their five children have found new hope — and they have you to thank for that. Because of your generous monthly gifts as a Friend of Heifer, Fungaimudoti and Kudakwashe have been able to join not just one, but two Heifer projects in their community — and it has made a world of difference in all their lives.
For many years, they never had enough money for the family to eat well. Poor nutrition stunted the children’s growth and made them ill. The family made frequent trips to the health clinic. “We had a lot of problems,” Kudakwashe recalled. “We didn’t have any livestock. We didn’t have any milk or meat.”
Things started to change when they received five goats from Heifer. Those five goats produced 21 more. The family gave five goats to neighbors to fulfill their Passing on the Gift® commitment and still had several for their family. Their diet improved in both quantity and quality.
A few years later, we gave them a heifer, which also produced offspring. The family that once had no livestock of their own now had 14 goats, five cows and 15 chickens — and that’s after Passing on the Gift. Things were definitely looking up.
Heifer also gave the Mafutas lots of training. They learned about livestock management, gender equality and Heifer’s 12 Cornerstones for Just and Sustainable Development. Fungaimudoti trained as a community animal health care worker and received a bicycle, veterinary medicines and equipment to help him make his rounds among more than 100 neighboring families. “I can now diagnose diseases,” he said. “We are no longer losing any animals.”
Fungaimudoti and Kudakwashe now sell milk, eggs, goats, chickens, maize, groundnuts and vegetables. Goat manure makes terrific fertilizer, they’ve learned, and it’s not only environmentally sound, but also considerably more affordable. In fact, they’ve just about tripled their output of crops on the same plot of land.
“We are no longer hungry,” Fungaimudoti said. “We are getting good harvests every year since the beginning of this project.”
Most important, they can now afford school fees for all the children, including the girls — Tendai, the oldest, and Divine. This affirms the family’s commitment to gender equality, which was not the norm before Heifer came along. “Life is very unfair,” said Fungaimudoti, who wants to be sure his girls are never at a disadvantage.
Fungaimudoti and Kudakwashe are model farmers. In fact, Heifer singled out Fungaimudoti for the coveted Golden Talent Award out of all the farmers in his region of Africa. They feel more united as a couple and are positive role models for their children, whom they include in big decisions.
The couple credits the 12 Cornerstones for much of their success. Kudakwashe’s favorite is Gender and Family Focus, because “it gives equal opportunities to both husband and wife.” Passing on the Gift is a close second. Fungaimudoti, on the other hand, can’t choose a favorite; he loves all 12 so much that he wrote a song to help him remember.
With your continued support, Heifer can help more families like the Mafutas build thriving enterprises to sustain themselves and improve their communities, as we did here, thanks to you.
