WILLS POINT, TX — A global humanitarian organization is helping combat the world’s “stinkiest” health emergency — people defecating in the open — a new report reveals. Gospel for Asia (GFA World) is installing thousands of toilets in some of the world’s remotest and least developed areas — places where people typically relieve themselves in the…
STAFFORD, TX – Living Water International was founded in 1990 to “demonstrate the love of God by helping communities acquire desperately needed clean water and experience ‘living water’ – the gospel of Jesus Christ.” In 2014, Living Water did what far too many faith-based organizations fail to do. They developed a world-class, 25-year vision and…
WILLS POINT, TX – The United Nations has designated November 19 as the annual observation of World Toilet Day. The point of the day is to draw attention to the global sanitation crisis. Sanitation crisis? How bad is it? Some 4.2 billion people – over half of the world’s population – do not have access…
GENEVA – Despite the overwhelmingly good news from the World Health Organization (WHO) that two of the three wild polio virus strains have been eradicated, healthcare workers have been unable to eliminate the disease in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Recent outbreaks of polio in the Philippines is also under investigation. However, the continuing presence of the…
NEW YORK – On my first trip to a big city (several decades ago), I saw a sign in the front window of a home. The sign had two lines of large print. The first line said, “Rooms.” The second said, “to let.” In the naivety of my youth, I thought someone had either forgotten…
toiletNEW DELHI – The widespread practice of open defecation in the developing countries in Asia and Africa has long been a focus of Missions Box News, numerous FBOs, NGOs, and the United Nations. The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for 2030 include bringing the entire world to that status of being Open Defecation Free (ODF)….
NEW YORK – Clean water. America has it in abundance. And we have all the benefits that come along with immediate access to it. But do we understand what those benefits are and what the impact of living with them is? The issue goes far beyond thirst. UNICEF published the first volume of a new…
RAJASTHAN – Organized by the Center for Science and Environment (CSE) in India and the School of Water and Waste, over 100 national and international leaders are meeting in Rajasthan from April 2 through April 5 to study the Sustainable Water and Sanitation Program. It is the first meeting of its kind in India during…
NEW YORK – Commenting on World Water Day (March 22), the Secretary-General of the United Nations said, “2.1 billion people live without safe water . . . By 2030, an estimated 700 million people worldwide could be displaced by intense water scarcity.” It is insightful, if not interesting, that we can infer from the Secretary-General’s…
KUMBH MELA – The Swacch Bharat Abhiyan or Clean India Mission was launched on October 2nd, 2014 as a major government initiative with the goal of making India ‘clean’ by the same date in 2019. When Prime Minister Modi initiated the campaign, he declared that, “A clean India would be the best tribute India could…
MANAGUA – Chosen Children Ministries is a faith-based, non-profit organization focused on reaching families and communities in Nicaragua. Its methodology is unique in that the organization has field staff in two locations within the country through which it utilizes teams of volunteers from evangelical churches, schools, universities, and businesses to expand its outreach. Because Nicaragua…
NAIROBI – A joint report released last year by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United National Children’s Fund (UNICEF) indicated that the sub-Saharan nation of Kenya is one of the countries facing an urgent need to overcome the problem of open defecation. Nearly 30% of the people in Kenya defecate in the open,…
WILLS POINT, TEXAS – World Toilet Day was November 19, and the chances that you celebrated the day are probably quite slim. Neither is it likely that you even discussed the matter at the dinner table that day or three days later on Thanksgiving—even though having functioning toilets is something that the Western world should…
Oh, to be a child again, Oh, to dance with glee Oh, to have no worries, and live a life carefree To see fun in the shadows, A rainbow in the rain A light amongst the darkness, and not to feel the pain. To live with total innocence and not know how to lie To…
The first step in any advance in any realm of our human experience begins with an awakened awareness. Psychologists tell us that we can’t help someone until they realize that they need help. That is why it is difficult to help an addict who says, “I don’t have a problem.” They have yet to come…
SHANGHAI – Channel NewsAsia has reported that African swine fever has spread rapidly to more than half of China’s provinces despite measures to contain it. A joint statement was issued by the ministries of agriculture, transport, and public security on Wednesday, November 14, 2018, stating that: The African swine fever prevention and control situation is…
![Manual scavenging refers to the practice of manually cleaning, carrying, disposing or handling in any manner, human excreta from dry latrines and sewers. It often involves using the most basic of tools such as buckets, brooms, and baskets . . . Manual scavengers are amongst the poorest and most disadvantaged [people].](https://missionsbox.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/The-Scandal-of-Manual-Scavengers-230x300.jpg)
DELHI – If “manual scavenging” sounds like it might be a fun game like a scavenger hunt, think again. Manual scavenging is a scandalous practice prevalent in South Asia even though it is illegal. According to the United Nations in India, Manual scavenging refers to the practice of manually cleaning, carrying, disposing or handling in…
Global focus brings attention to Gospel for Asia’s efforts to improve health and well-being by helping provide simple essentials, sanitation facilitiesWILLS POINT, Texas — Ribbon-cutting ceremonies typically mark the opening of a grand new building, but in Asia they can even celebrate a more modest, but life-changing construction—of a simple outhouse. The enthusiastically attended formal…
WILLS POINT, TEXAS – There is nothing scary about the bricks in Will Point, Texas. The main street has been lined with them since the 1920s. But every year, as it nears Halloween, the brick streets turn into a small community event called BOO on the Bricks, where children—and adults—can dress, get candy and learn…
gosNEW YORK – The Asian and Pacific regions are home to more than 50 percent of the world’s undernourished children. According to a new report issued this week by four separate United Nations agencies, the two regions will suffer “colossal human loss” if the countries there “do not recommit themselves to ending all forms of…
NEW DELHI – The Swachh Bharat Mission has been receiving kudos from media outlets for being “The world’s biggest toilet-building spree” in the UN-affiliated global effort to eliminate open defecation. There is little debate over the progress that has been made in India. More than 80 million household toilets have been constructed since 2014 as…
In 2017, Gospel for Asia (GFA) and its worldwide affiliates working in 18 Asian nations addressed women’s issues by empowering more than 350,000 women through various ministry efforts and installed 4,673 clean-water wells. Wills Point, Texas, Discussing Women’s Issues in Asia — This month, 39 years ago, Dr. KP Yohannan founded the organization Gospel for…
MUMBAI – India Spend recently inteview Naina Lal Kidwai. Kidwai was the former head of HSBC in India, the first woman in India to become the head of a foreign bank in the country. She is the current vice-chair of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Water. She was instrumental in founding the…
GFA (Gospel for Asia) highlights need for more toilets to cut avoidable death toll, in first of challenging series looking at major social issues. WILLS POINT, Texas—Missionary organization Gospel for Asia (GFA) is calling attention to a usually ignored, delicate subject at the heart of much of its caring work—a lack of toilets. In the…
NEW DELHI – Indian Prime Minister Modi launched the Swachh Bharat Mission in 2014 to overcome “the poor sanitation and related health concerns [that] have remained a major problem in India since the country’s independence 70 years ago.” and move India toward sustainable ODF. One of the essential and fundamental elements of the Swachh Bharat…
The Scandal of Entrenched Paradigms Open defecation describes the practice of people eliminate their fecal waste in on the ground or in water or at any other place than a toilet or latrine facility designed for that purpose. No one has an accurate count of people who practice open defecation, but most authoritative sources agree…
Diarrhea. Just say the word out loud and watch people cringe. It is so sickening that no one wants to hear about it, let alone have it. One of America’s most trusted healthcare websites, WebMD, says, When you have diarrhea, your bowel movements (or stools) are loose and watery. It’s very common and usually not…
NAIROBI – Officials in Kenya are serious about cleaning up the country to make it a healthier place. This is especially true in the case of their campaign to become an Open Defecation Free (ODF)region. There are many ways to approach providing more sanitary conditions, but Kenya may be taking a couple of approaches that…
MOTIHARI – Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the featured speaker at the celebration of the close of the centennial celebration of Champaran Satyagraha on April 10 in Motihari. 20,000 Sanitation Ambassadors (Swachhagrahis) are expected to attend. Half of the ambassadors will be from Bihar. The other 10,000 will come as representatives of other states….
NEW YORK – April 4th is the United Nations’ International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action, which provides an opportunity for the world to reflect on both the progress made and the challenges that remain in clearing landmines and unexploded ordnance. The vision of the United Nations is a world free of…
Gospel for Asia (GFA World) Special Report on the Open Defecation Sanitation Crisis Written By Karen Burton Mains For much of my adult life, it has been my privilege to hang out with the “renegades” of Christian missions, that relief-and-development crowd that rushes to help during natural disasters, struggles to alleviate the suffering and abasement…
Gospel for Asia (GFA) highlights need for more toilets to cut avoidable death toll, in the first of challenging series looking at major social issues affecting people in Asia. WILLS POINT, Texas—Missionary organization GFA (Gospel for Asia) is calling attention to a usually ignored, delicate subject at the heart of much of its caring work—a…
On Super Bowl Sunday, in a commercial by an alcohol beverage company, Matt Damon promised that if people purchased a chalice, $3 of the $13 purchase would go to benefit communities in need with clean water for five years. Stella Artois is doing this in partnership with Water.org. NPR released an article on February 2…
Texas-based nonprofit GFA (Gospel for Asia) constructs more than 10,000 toilets and sanitation facilities throughout Asia. Open defecation, though rarely addressed, is still a pressing issue for those living below the poverty line in Asia. According to the World Health Organization, over 650 million people in India alone do not have access to a toilet….
Mon Nov. 13, 2017 – Gospel for Asia Thrilled to be part of Boo on the Bricks in Wills Point, Texas, Gospel for Asia makes a good impression on the community it knows and loves. Creating a reason to enjoy the season together, community members in Wills Point, Texas gathered on Saturday, October 28th for…
Prise par Zouzou Wizman In early July, Lagos, Nigeria was hit by torrential rains and thunderstorms. This caused flooding in the city. Per CNN, “Lagos, one of Africa’s most populous cities, has been hit by torrential downpour and thunderstorms over the weekend that has left many parts of the city flooded.” The thing that caused…
Kunwar Bai Yadav is 105-year-old women. She wanted to give a gift that would benefit her community after learning about the benefits of having a toilet at a local school. The BBC explains, “‘The district collector was visiting the local school to give a speech. I also went along and there he talked about building…
With an estimated 3 million people facing starvation in Malawi following floods and droughts, the world’s poorest nation now faces an additional challenge — cholera. Not since 2006, when an estimated 1,000 people died, has Malawi faced this level of cholera threat. “People living along the lakeshore areas seem to have forgotten the dangers of the…
