What is Tools For Hope?

Tools For Hope is a nonprofit founded by Joram Kimenyi and Richard Trevillian, aimed at facilitating growth and development for subsistence farmers in East and Central Africa. Tools may be manual farming tools such as farming hoes, hammers, screwdrivers etc. Tools could also be services like education and exposure to Micro-Finance opportunities.

Why Tools For Hope?

Tools for Hope, Inc. (TFH), founded in 2015, is a TN corporation.  Its objective is to help East Central African (e.g. Rwandan) subsistence farmers rise from poverty and for that rise from poverty to be permanent and self-sustaining.  The TFH process involves training small groups of farmers (~20) in effective, basic agricultural and business techniques, aligning TFH goals with those of national and local governments, bringing basic mechanization to the farms, and developing farmer group credit-worthiness.  That process has proven itself to work well in Rwanda. 

Once the farmers understand and begin seeing the benefits of utilizing the modern farming techniques that they have learned from the agri-business mentoring provided by TFH their basic standard of living rises dramatically. Next, TFH collaborates with the local governments to assist the farmer co-op in buying mechanized farm equipment such as irrigation systems.  From there, the farmers are able to purchase farm livestock and other needs.  During the training process, expected to last two years, the farmers learn and practice basic business activities such as banking, decision-making, building creditworthiness, bartering, etc.

A cornerstone value of TFH is that charity is corrosive to the basic social fabric.  Therefore, TFH loans funds to the farmers for investments in livestock and machinery normally at a zero interest rate.   That approach has proven to be very successful.  Additionally, TFH believes that all solutions must be fully acceptable and understood by the farmers before implementation begins.  TFH collaborates with local and national governments as well as universities, and other NGOs.  TFH seeks and values diverse ideas from a wide range of experts on issues facing the subsistence farmers.

Jeremiah 29:11

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Together, we can change the world.  With your support Tools for Hope continues to show successful solutions to the poverty affecting sub-Saharan subsistence farmers. 

Over 90 percent of your support goes directly to helping the farmers achieve a sustainable, dignified lifestyle.  Three primary causes of poverty sickness / disease, inadequate knowledge / information, and lack of capital result in a poverty trap.  Tools for Hope (TFH) mentoring focuses on improving health (better nutrition, hygiene, sanitation, medical insurance), business and agriculture training, and supplying small loans (no interest, no recourse).

The poverty problem is worsened by well intentioned ‘aid.’ For example, giving material support (e.g., clothing, food, mosquito netting, etc.) drives local businesses away.  When those businesses close unemployment and poverty increase.  Local businesses cannot compete with ‘free.’ 

Tools for Hope, Inc. (TFH), founded in 2015, is a Tennessee non-profit corporation with 501 c 3 status.  In 2016 we started mentoring 15 Rwandan subsistence farmers.  Today, we mentor two groups of Rwandan small-holder farmers totaling 100+ individuals.

Our strategy is to have a continuing presence in the subsistence farming communities we serve.  Our local employees are degreed nationals.  They collaborate with the farmers to find and categorize problems.  Together, we develop and implement solutions which are acceptable socially, culturally, technically, economically, and align with local governmental policies and goals.

Examples of Tools for Hope successes.

• The farmers can now afford to send their children to school and can afford to buy all their schools’ materials.  All school age children of the farmers families with which we work now attend school regularly,
• All families can afford to pay for Mituelle de Sante (Health insurance).
• The families have opened bank accounts.
• Some families have received commercial loans for the purchase of pigs and goats.
• We negotiated with the Rwanda Agriculture Board, and they approved giving the farmers a new, disease resistant cassava (like our white potato) variety.  This was a significant addition to their food supply.
• Farmers have received training on how to record their farming activities.  They are now able to calculate their costs and their profits, simply by calculating and recording planned activities.   In doing so they have adopted the culture of sitting down and planning together what they are going to plant and to start calculating all necessary costs per each agricultural activity from preparing the land, plowing, planting, fertilization, irrigation activities, weeding, spraying of pesticides, harvesting, and  storage up to transportation of the yield to the market.    
• The farmers now know when to use pesticides before it is too late.
• They use their small spaces to grow vegetables and fruits to fight malnutrition in their families especially for their children and pregnant women, through kitchen gardens.
• They are still using the irrigation equipment that TFH helped them buy in agriculture production.  In a small piece of land such as 0.4 hectare the farmers used to get approximately 100 kg of vegetables and fruits.  After getting the irrigation equipment and technical support from TFH staff, they now get 500+ kg of vegetables.
• They may borrow from their group's revolving fund (an informal ‘credit union’ type) and repay loans at an affordable interest rate.
• They started to save small amounts of money e.g., five hundred Rwandan Franc ($0.5).  It helps them in developing ownership of their future i.e., to be able eventually to solve some of their issues themselves.
• After getting training about business plans now they can do a business plan themselves.
• Through their own savings, some families were able to buy pigs and plant bananas as an income generating activity.
• TFH mentor trains the farmers in using no-till farming saving time, energy, and money in farming activities.  It also enhances soil quality.  
• TFH mentoring helps them avoid post harvesting loss and to help them to link with better markets.

Without your support none of that would have been possible!