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.

Currently:

We are also making changes to the way that our loans are made. The funds that we have for the goat purchase will be provided to the local Micro Finance bank as collateral. The micro finance bank will then require our group of farmers to go through the normal rigors of applying for a business loan.

We also continue to provide mentoring and training through our Rwanda Employee, Deo Niyomugabo. For the last 2 years, Deo has been training farmers on modern farming practices and on how to improve efficiency.

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 an interest rate that is equal or less than inflation.  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.

 Immediate needs

We have received an offer to match all donations made towards the Basic utility vehicle for up to $5500.00. Please consider making a donation to help us get this vehicle to Rwanda by Dec 2017! Please see our other immediate needs below:

Employee Salary in Rwanda: $4000.00

Addition of Goats: $950.00

Basic Utility vehicle: $5500.00

Travel for 2 weeks in Rwanda: $8000.00

Find more information on Rwanda here