Matagalpa

We packed up the van on Saturday morning and headed to Matagalpa.  Notice all the water and the food.  Whenever CEPAD takes a group out into a community they will supply the food and water for the group.  This helps to ensure the group has access to good potable water for the duration of the visit.  Visitors usually don't have the immunities built up in their systems to handle some of the bacteria in the water.  Unfortunately, some of the local water isn't even good for the locals.

 



I think the trip from Managua to Matagalpa was at least a 2 hour trip.  We stopped off at the CEPAD office in Matagalpa to talk with Juan Carlos Palma, who oversaw that office.  Juan talked to us about how CEPAD works.  It is something they've done for quite a while and, in my opinion, it sounds like they have gotten very good at it.  It's not about going around to see who needs a hand-out but about going around to see who wants a hand-up.  CEPAD will go into a region and go around to different communities trying to find ones that are interested in trying to improve their situation.  After finding 6 or 7 willing communities, CEPAD then works through organized processes to try to find out about those particular communities and how they function.  They get to know those communities.  CEPAD then spends the next 5 years working with those communities, teaching them better ways to farm and ways to market their products, facilitating credit and skills training, and teaching youth and women about their rights.

 

This is at the CEPAD office in Matagalpa.  Standing here are Inocente (I think that was his name - he is one of the Matasano community leaders), Juan Carlos Palma, and Doug Orbaker.

I found this organization to be a great model on how to the communities to help themselves.  It made me start thinking of communities back home in WV and changes we could make.

My prayer is that God will richly bless CEPAD with caring workers and communities that are willing to be part of their program.