Why Chickens?
We are seeing lives transformed when people receive a gift of chickens. It’s not a handout that will run out, it’s hand up for a family that wants to pull themselves out of poverty.
Giving a family a flock of chickens has the power to change their lives through:
NUTRITION
Eggs and chicken are a great source of protein
INCOME
Selling eggs and offspring provides the family with an ongoing source of revenue
EDUCATION
Extra income allows families to pay for things like their children’s schooling
*GIVING BACK
This is SO exciting. Everybody who gets chickens gives some of the offspring to another family in need...so the impact is exponential!
Rose's son holds one of the family's chicks!
100% of your donation goes to Bugiri, Uganda
Rose and her husband, Simon, are farmers in Bugiri. However, they could never make enough to meet all their needs and pay for their children to go to school.
But when they received 10 chickens, it was just the boost they needed to break free from the abject poverty they’d been living in.
As Rose and Simon’s chickens multiplied, they started selling eggs and chickens to pay school fees for their children, and buy other things their family needed.
They now have goats, 25 chickens and lots of chicks!
Because of recent flooding and COVID-19 lockdowns in Bugiri, many families are in desperate situations.
However, Rose and Simon are not suffering like others in their community. They don't even need life-saving food aid at this time--all because of some $6 chickens.
“We count ourselves lucky to have such a blessing,” Rose said.
Shafiq
Ugandan father of 11 children in Bugiri
“We have named our chickens ‘dream launchers.’ They have helped us launch our dream of educating our children.
How does the chicken project work?
We know you may have some questions, so here are the answers to some of your FAQs.
Currently Uganda and Zambia—though we might be expanding to other countries soon!
5 or 10 chickens (see * note at the bottom of the page)
Our partner churches choose families that are the most destitute, but who are also willing to invest time and effort into an income-generating venture like raising chickens.
The chickens are free-range chickens. That means they are free to roam during the day and just need a coop to keep them safe at night. Each family is free to construct the shelter however they want—sometimes it will be made of wood, while other times it may be made of mud.
Because these are free-range chickens, they roam and find their own food. However, some families grow corn and when it’s ground to flour, the husks are used as chicken feed to supplement what the chickens are finding on their own.
The chickens are usually between four and five months old, and they are a breed that can be used both for laying eggs and being raised for meat.
Yes. Our in-country partners give farmers training on how to take care of their chickens. Additionally, they are also encouraged to form groups to share their experiences so they can learn and gain more knowledge from each other.
Yes, they do, and each family is responsible for vaccinating their own chickens. Having the families invest in their flock instills a sense of pride, ownership and responsibility as they are growing their flock, pulling themselves out of poverty and starting to live a better life!
Yes. There are committees that are in charge of following up with the families. (And sometimes we even send our awesome reporter and photographer, Julius, to visit the families and capture the amazing transformation happening in their lives!)
The answers in this FAQ apply to how the program is run in Uganda, however there are some variances country to country.
Ready to change a life?
These are the faces of people who have already been helped through chickens and other life-changing programs--but so there's so much more to be done.
Let's work together to transform Bugiri!
Give one chicken for $6.*
Give a small starter flock of 5 for $30, or a full flock of 10 for $60.
A Partner You Can Trust
One of Bright Hope’s highest values is integrity. We understand the value of every dollar we receive and the difference every dollar can make in the life of someone in extreme poverty. We value the trust you have given us to effectively and efficiently deliver help to those in need.
Bright Hope is a Christian organization made up of allies (donors) who want to bless and help the poorest people in the world. We build relationships with Bible believing churches in remote villages and city slums that want to minister to their poor neighbors. Then we help those churches bring “Hope for Today, Tomorrow and Eternity” to their neighborhood. We’ve been doing this for 50 years, in 5 counties and have thousands of allies, but we need your help.
*Chickens are changing life for families in Bugiri. However, if you all jump on board with us and we give as many chickens as are needed in Bugiri, then we will use your gift to give families other important farm animals or agricultural assistance!