Henan Province, China

In China, eighty percent of the citizens live in rural areas, especially in Henan Province. Life is difficult there: most people farm to support their families, and many peasant farmers struggle to pay leases on their land and their homes. In the mid-1990s, a large number of people in the area made money by selling their blood to private companies, who, in turn, sold it to clinics. Unfortunately, many contracted HIV/AIDS through repeated use of contaminated needles when giving blood to these private blood collectors.  This area is one of the poorest areas in China, with the annual income amounting to about $80 U.S. dollars a year per family. 

Since 2004 Global Ministries is working in this area with a small humanitarian non-governmental organization, Zhecheng Succor Society, in providing support for the AIDS orphans, medical care for those living with HIV and AIDS, and small loans to farmers to reinforce their income-generation through agriculture and livestock.  Global Ministries also has provided support to some of the local schools where the orphans and other children whose families are affected by HIV/AIDS study.

Reverend Dr. Xiaoling Zhu, Global Ministries Area Executive for East Asia and the Pacific, reports that many houses were damaged from torrential rains that fell in December 2005.  The people in the area were unable to repair or rebuild their damaged homes due to a lack of funds and a lack of physical ability because of the effects of HIV/AIDS.  Global Ministries assisted in the rebuilding of 25 homes in 2005-2006 by committing funds for materials.  Each house requires between $500 and $2,000 for materials and transport of them to the building site.  Neighbors from the villages provided the labor.  They felt that if people from the United States were so kind to help their neighbors so far away, they could do something for their neighbors close to home. 

Global Ministries continues to help rebuild and repair homes from this area, with the help of people from the villages providing the labor and Global Ministries providing the funds for materials. 

• A gift of $2000 could help rebuild a severely damaged house.
• A gift of $500 could provide materials to repair a moderately damaged home.
• A gift of $35 could help pay for transporting the construction materials to the site