From small landholder farmer to preschool teacher
Central African Republic

Lucien is a 56-year old woman living in Cattine village located on the outskirts of Bangui, the capital of Central African Republic. A widow, she has eight grown children who have all moved away.

Lucien has a small piece of farmland that produced enough crops to help her feed and support her family when her children were at home. Over time, her own health issues and age made working the land extremely difficult. Her fields are often looted as well. Now, living alone, she is barely able to sustain herself.

DMI sisters came to her parish encouraging women to join a self-help group. Lucien quickly joined and was eager to attend education courses on leadership, agriculture, and entrepreneurship.  In time, she was elected the leader of her group and her training enabled her to recruit other women to the group. As members of the self-help group, the women receive mentoring from DMI staff. All members reported an increase of household income because of the training they received. DMI also provided seeds and farming tools improving the village’s agriculture practices while reducing food insecurity. Food is now available throughout the year.

With renewed confidence and hope, Lucien completed six months of teacher’s training through DMI. She is now a preschool teacher and is thankful she can be a role model to other women. She continues to be a community leader and mentor to many of the women in her region.