Paola knows that her family's hard work will pay off in the future. She hopes that she and all her brothers and sisters will now be able to finish school.
"As a family, we can dream, but we must also work hard to reach our goals. How much or how little we do at this moment will pay off in the future," says Paola, 13, from Reitoca in Honduras.
Paola, her five brothers and sisters, their father Juan and aunt Miriam are working alongside five other families to prove this statement true.
With training from World Vision in animal husbandry and business management, their communal farm has grown to a stock of 1000 chickens and 30 pigs.
As it continues to thrive, the business will help the families overcome many of the issues of poverty that their community faces.
Honduras is one of Central America’s poorest countries, and in Reitoca unemployment is high. Around 61% of children in the area suffer from malnutrition. The roads are poor and in winter the district is often completely cut off, meaning that communities must grow their own food to survive.
But things are slowly improving for the people of Reitoca. Since World Vision began working in Reitoca in 2002, dozens of families have received the support they need to start tackling the causes of poverty in their community.
Paola helps her aunt and her father to feed the freshly hatched chicks.
Boosting local economy Through kick-starting small agricultural businesses, World Vision is helping reactivate the local economy, creating jobs and giving the community purpose and a sense of achievement. Dozens of families and hundreds of children have benefited directly.
Among the projects supported are chicken, pig and fish farms, wheat fields and market gardens. Irrigation and tree planting projects have helped boost farm output and prevent erosion, and a small business loan scheme has been set up, designed especially for women.
Home orchards and milk goats have been provided to help ensure the most vulnerable children have a more reliable source of nutritious food.
Juan, who has been trained through World Vision, knows how to breed, vaccinate and care for the animals. He is proud of his family's enthusiasm and involvement.
"All the family are working hard for the good of everyone," he says.
The children love the animals, and are more than happy to help with the farm.
"I hope this project will earn my dad enough money so that all of us children can finish our studies," says Paola.
"I’m very excited because our life is so different now from what it was a few years ago," adds Paola’s sister Fanny, 15. "Since we started farming and selling animals, we have never been short of food in our house."
