Latest News

A New Irrigation System

Much of southern Africa has been hit by a devastating drought over the past year. Zambia, like several other countries, has declared a state of emergency. At the farm belonging to the Falconer Home, last year's maize crop failed, resulting in enormous difficulties providing the nshima which is the staple diet on Zambians.

To combat this, Simon and his team are planning to install an irrigation system at the farm, which would mean that crops could be grown despite the drought - possibly two crops per year. This would mean that food can be grown to feed the children, and also to sell and generate an income.

Thanks to amazingly generous donors, work is already almost complete. The equipment, including a solar river pump and solar panels, has already been purchased. The plan is that water would be pumped from the river to water towers in three locations - a field where maize is grown, another field for other crops (soya, sorghum, ground nuts, sunflowers, chillies), and an area where livestock will be kept.

We praise God for making this possible, and thank our wonderful donors who have given so generously.

An irony is that this year's maize crop has had to be harvested early, because unseasonal rains have threatened to ruin the crop. The heavy rains at this time of year are very unusual, and underline the challenges brought about by climate change.

Find out more on our page 'The Farm'

Visit to the Falconer Home

This year's visit to the Falconer Home will be from 28th May to 11th June. Neil and Dennis will be accompanied by a young man called Noah, who is looking forward to his great adventure! Noah is a keen footballer, so will no doubt be very popular with the children!

One of the most important tasks on the visit will be to assess progress on the irrigation project at the farm, along with the various building projects such as the girls' dormitory and the ablution block.