Program areas at Amigos for Christ
Healthcare: (a) preventative care: through modeling the behaviors of the healthiest families in each community, we create a plan for family hygiene that will decrease the instance of preventable illness such as kidney disease, anemia, and respiratory disease; (b) restorative care: working alongside the nicaraguan ministry of health, we support the existing infrastructure to increase access to medical attention and prescribed medicines for the underserved; (c) surgical care: working alongside the nicaraguan ministry of health and local hospitals, we provide surgical services to those who are suffering and have no alternatives.
Education & nutrition: working alongside the community and the nicaraguan ministry of education, we create an infrastructure to increase the percentage of children who complete primary and secondary school. We achieve this by building schools and cafeterias, offering scholarships, and encouraging extracurricular activities, such as after-school and theatre programs.
Program support: afc-nica owns, operates, and maintains a mission complex in nicaragua to house visiting mission trip participants. This complex is our nicaraguan headquaters which includes office space, warehouses, and a fleet of vehicles, all of which are necessary to support our daily operations. In the communities we serve, our goal is for communities to lead, own, and operate every approved project.rural community leadership: developing community leaders to change their own community is at the very core of what we do. We bring leaders together to share ideas, learn strategies, and to inspire hope in the future of their community. The ultimate goal of our work and programs is sustained development in rural communities, led by thier own community leadership.
Missions outreach: each year we host on average 1,000 volunteers from the united states on one week mission trips to chinandega, nicaragua. During the week, articipants have the opportunity to serve our nicaraguan brothers and sisters through the programs and projects of Amigos for Christ, as well as participate in experiences to grow deeper in their faith journey.
Water & sanitation: there are over 100,000 people in the department of chinandega (which consists of the city of chinandega and surrounding cities and other rural areas) that still lack access to clean water and sanitation. Clean water is the first step to changing lives. We drill wells and build water and sanitation systems. Working alongside the community we are serving, we create an infrastructure to produce 100 gallons of water each day at every home. In addition, our modern bathroom model promotes sanitary living conditions by utlilzing a flush-toilet and shower.
Economic development: for families within the communities we serve, we create and provide training, and access to resources which enables those we serve to establish theor own small businesses, with the goal of increasing their income level. We do this through agricultural loans, farming animals ownership and reproduction programs, and community-based cooperative businesses.