A huge part of the overall vision of The Agape Group is to obtain some land concessions from the Cambodian government and develop them in a manner completely different than current privately held land concessions. To get state held private land from the Cambodian government and then use the land for the purpose of aiding and reinvesting in the Cambodian poor rather than to put profits into the hands of a few private investors will not only bring jobs, but economic, food, education, and health security to the people that most desperately need it. There is money to be made in eco-friendly sustainable development of the land, but even more importantly, that development can help to provide, not only jobs, but food, homes, medical clinics, and free education for the Cambodian poor. It is not a matter of Economic Land Concessions in of themselves being bad. It is more of a problem with the implementation of these land concessions and what they are used for. Use the land for the poor people of Cambodia at large and not to line the pockets of a few super rich plutocrats and then you will see real change in Cambodia. The Agape Group wants to obtain these land concessions to be good stewards of the money and resources entrusted to us by God, to use whatever timber is sustainably harvested to process into lumber to build homes, and for setting up businesses to create marketable products such as flooring, furniture, cabinets, and much more. This will create jobs for many Cambodians as well as multiply the profits from these valuable natural resources. Additional jobs will be created in nurseries to reproduce valuable timber tree saplings such as for oil palms, teak, mahogany, and other very valuable timber trees. More jobs will be created by replanting these trees into sustainable plantations, then more jobs to trim, thin, and maintain these plantations. Plantations may be planted in sustainable agroforestry projects where multiple species of trees and other agricultural products are grown together in an eco-friendly sustainable fashion rather than in typical industrial monoculture fashion. This helps not only maintain the areas biodiversity, but also increases yields and agricultural production. As many areas as possible will be used in sustainable organic food production to provide food for the poor people that we serve including those working on the farms, but also for restaurants and to be sold for profit at markets and for export to help finance reinvestment into the farms and other ministry purposes. The land concessions will also be used to develop small communities and build homes for those involved with the ministry and the poor that we serve. It will provide each family with a modest but well built home with a parcel of land set aside for each family to be able to use to raise their own crops, trees, animals, or a combination of these. One benefit that the government may receive for this besides the poor families themselves is to provide a place to offer as an option to poor families that are being relocated from areas such as the slums around urban and suburban centers. This post is just offering a glimpse at a tip of the iceberg of the vision that we have received for ministering to the poor of Cambodia. But, I think that it is a valuable one that will not simply give a hand out to the poor, but rather, give them a hand up and empower them to make a monumental difference in their own lives, to help them to recognize the plan that God has for their lives, a plan and a vision for real lasting change and security for their future, as much as is possible in this life.
Posted on: Tue, 04 Nov 2014 14:05:44 +0000
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