Overview
Programs
Land & Lives
From the beginning, land has been at the heart of COH work. For a family living in poverty, the opportunity to own land is a game changer. Families who were once day laborers, squatters, or renters become owners—and with that transformation, a world of opportunity is opened to them.
With our first community of Matara, we started with 30 extremely hopeless families. They didn’t know what was in store for them, but having nothing to lose, anything would be better than the modern slavery they’d endured for generations.
From day one, we partnered with the families to define a vision for their new community. They elected leaders and agreed to work together on communal and individual basic infrastructure to strengthen the community for the future and set them up for a lasting, generational transformation. Ten years later, a model (now know as COH Model) merged, a holistic approach to community development.
Health Care & Nutrition
For a family to move from poverty to prosperity, the opportunity to own land and farm it profitably must take place in a context where basic human needs are being met. COH works with families to improve health and nutrition throughout the village. We provide support in maternal and child health and promote good sanitation and hygiene. We ensure access to clean water, to schools and clinics for all our communities. And in every case, we are working to strengthen leadership and self-governance among the members of the community itself. This social infrastructure is critical to ensure families reach lasting prosperity and sustainable self-reliance.
Market Led Agriculture
Having land is not enough to escape poverty if a family doesn’t also know how to farm that land profitably. Market-led agriculture is not about trying to sell what you plant; rather it’s about planting what will sell. We help farmers learn about and invest in modern farming technologies that yield better quality crops, in greater volumes, with more frequent harvests per year, on less overall land. The goal is to increase families’ income, helping them move toward sustainability and prosperity.
Financial Empowerment
COH helps families learn how to manage money and build skills around budgeting, savings, and investing. Communal savings groups—typically women-led—are formed in COH villages and provide a context for families to support one another in planning for financial growth. COH additionally provides credit for agricultural supplies and equipment, and we organize farming associations so that farming families can grow their businesses.
Initiatives
KWIZERA ACADEMY
The school’s mission is to ‘Motivate and Raise up a generation of community transformers. We believe that the best way to break the back of despair and crack open the possibilities of a new kind of life in rural Burundi hinges on the prospects of each child.
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KWIZERA TRADE SCHOOL
Our Trade Schools mission statement is ‘Promoting Self-Reliance and Economic growth’.
The trade skills to be taught are all potential Income Generating Activities within the community and surrounding marketplaces. They are taught to beneficiaries who are willing and ready to work hard to learn.
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LAURA SHOOK HEALTH CENTER
This is our health initiative in honor of Laura Shook – her passionate care for children and, as a nurse, her concern for their health as they grow. This center focuses on the first 1000 days in the life of every child in the community.
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ONE CUP A DAY FEEDING COMPAIGN
Burundi’s malnutrition numbers are alarming and we have been addressing this challenge for the last four years.
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KAZOZA FINANCE
We provide access to financial solutions empowering thousands who are unbanked to transform their lives, their children’s future and their Communities.
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BURUNDI FORTIFIIED FOODS
Burundi Fortified Foods (BFF) is our initiative that seeks to help people maximize their potential through improved nutrition with affordable, high quality, locally produced foods.
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KAZOZA RADIO & TV
Communities of Hope uses Kazoza TV & Radio as a platform to deliver local and practical resources to young entrepreneurs across Burundi & beyond.
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