Farms International Curbing Child Slave Trade

Farms International, a Christian ministry which equips impoverished families with the means of self-support, is helping to curb the child slave trade by helping families become self-sustaining.

The charity is currently helping Christian families in 12 countries work their way out of poverty by providing small loans to help them start up their own family businesses.

The loans are provided with the aim of making the families self-sustaining and in turn able to support the local church by tithing the profits of their new businesses to support ministry.

Farms International president, Joe Richter, told Mission Network News that the programme is having an impact on the family.

"In many countries of the world, family breakdown is a serious problem," says Richter. "Usually it's caused by lack of finances for the family. For example, in Northern Thailand, many families will sell their children into prostitution and the slave labour market because they can't afford to feed their children."

According to Richter, fathers are forced to leave the family and head to the cities to try and make money, "and then the family is in jeopardy," he said. Richter said that many times the husband simply runs off or does something else "and the family really isn't helped that much".

Richter said the lack of income is also responsible for many of the children found in orphanages. "A lot of what we call orphans are just there because a family can't afford to provide for that kid and they think that's the best way to really help that child. But, families grieve over that."

Even Christian families have considered sending their children to the orphanages out of the misplaced belief that it will give their children a chance of a better life.

A loan of just US$300 to US$600 can change families forever, he said. "Our goal is to strengthen the families in local villages and towns so that more of this type of tracking doesn't have to take place."

Richter is calling for Christians to support the work of Farms International so that churches can support families who can then support themselves and in turn support the church.

"Through the tithing we're able to see outreach evangelism funded, church building funded, pastoral support, as well as missions. We've coined the phrase 'doing good that's good'."