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Community Development in the Punjab Province, Pakistan
Background: We started our partnership with Messiah Ministries in Pakistan in 2022. We focused on programs to train young women in sewing and to support a persecuted Christian village that had been attacked and had their homes burnt to the ground. Both programs were successful, and our second class of young women in our sewing program just started last week! The reporting, photos, and stories we have received have been exceptional. We are now working together to serve communities in the Punjab Province at a deeper level, starting in Youngsonabad. Our goal is to support Christians who live in a dangerous environment where persecution is common, as well as reach unbelievers for Christ through sharing the Gospel.
The 10/40 Window is home to the majority of the world's unevangelized countries. The "unevangelized" are people who have a minimal knowledge of the gospel, but have no valid opportunity to respond to it. While it constitutes only one-third of earth's total land area, nearly two-thirds of the world's people reside in the 10/40 Window. - Joshua Project
According to a 2024 report by Open Doors Ministry, Pakistan is the 7th most dangerous country in the world to be a Christian. Pakistan is right in the middle of the 10/40 window, the least evangelized countries.
Current: We are excited to share that we are part-way through our first-ever asset-based community development (ABCD) assessment. Our partners in Pakistan have started an assessment in Yougsonabad, and as we raise funds, we will continue in neighboring villages as well. The goal is to focus on community assets and strengths instead of just the needs and problems. The goal is to use these strengths in the community to assist in solving the problems that they are faced with. Once this first assessment is completed, we will move into a more detailed approach to serve the community to support their goals through public health and development initiatives. Below are some photos from the community interviews so far. Our partners have met with people who rank at the top of the village, such as elders and village chiefs, to those surviving on the least (such as the Christian brick makers pictured here), and many in between. We were able to fund the first ABCD assessment in Youngsonabad, but we also hope to add surrounding villages to the assessment.
Cost: There are currently two initiatives for which we need funds. The first is to continue our community assessments. We are currently formulating the initial projects and programs to pursue in response to our first assessment. We will serve with our partners to support persecuted Christians in the region and share the Gospel with Muslims.
$3,000 future community assessments to determine specific programs
$4,000 to start our fund for public health and community improvement initiatives by summer, 2024
Asset Based Community Development
Our partners at Messiah Ministries are currently completing the first Asset-Based Community Development Assessment. Photos show meetings with villagers from various roles in the community. Meetings with the village chief, key informants such as the Pastor of the local church and school principal, daily wage laborers, brick makers, and women in the community. The strengths and assets found in the surveys and interviewed will be put together in a report that will guide how we work at a deeper level in the community of Youngsonabad.
