What do you give a child who has nothing?

Giving the right gift means something quite different in Mozambique, one of the poorest nations on earth. And as wonderful as a toy would be to a child with nothing, the gift of a brighter future must surely be a better option.

Camila Gordinho struggles to raise her 3 children in a rural village in central Mozambique. Home is a mud hut with a reed roof. She sleeps on a bamboo mat with her children and cooks simple meals made from corn and dried fish on a charcoal stove. Every day, she has to walk almost 1km to fetch water from the river.

United Nations statistics paint a stark picture of the contrast between everyday life for children in Mozambique compared with Aussie kids. While Australia is ranked number 2 out of 177 countries on the Human Development Index (measuring life expectancy, educational attainment and income), Mozambique is ranked 172.

Imagine what it's like just managing to survive each day — having to cope without safe drinking water, proper sanitation or electricity. Few children can attend school even if their families want to send them, because most have to work to help make ends meet. Nearly half a million children live in families where one or more parents have died from AIDS.

Where do you even begin the search for the ideal gift when the extent of the need is so overwhelming?

And as precious as God's Word would be, in Mozambique it would be of little value, because so few people can read it. Mozambique has a national literacy rate of just 44% — and this figure is even lower in rural areas. (By comparison, Australia's literacy rate is 99%.) If a person can't read, the gift of a Bible doesn't have meaning. Bibles that cannot be read might instead be used to start the family fire or sold for cash.

What if you could give the gift of literacy?

You could open the way for a person to be able to read God's Word for themselves and they could engage with the Scriptures. Then the gift of a Bible gains significant meaning and has great impact.

The Bible Society's Bible Based Literacy Project is offering the ultimate gift to some of the poorest people in the world. It's a program that enjoys tax deductibility showing the importance of this work.

This life-changing partnership with Mission Educate is equipping rural village students with basic literacy skills to be able to read the Bible, improve their life choices and break the poverty cycle. The Rural Literacy Project is already underway, using Bible-based materials to reach deep into the heart of Mozambique.

"This program is such a blessing to the rural villages. When pastors cannot read their Bibles, they are spiritually malnourished. They need this program to extend the Kingdom of God," says Onorio, a literacy trainer working in Maputo Province. "As the people learn, they are being touched by the Gospel, and many are coming to the Lord."

In 2010, 800 people have encountered Jesus for the first time as they learned to read and write. The project was at work in 46 villages in 5 provinces during this period, including 10 new villages in far northern Mozambique.

Classes are not only offered to children, but to adults too. In many places, whole families are studying together. Those who have already graduated from the course tell of changed lives and lifestyles.

"I love the Bible now that I can read it," says Teresa — a student from Milhanguleni. "My whole world has changed since I started to read and write," says Alberto. "In church, I was a person who just listened to the preacher because I didn't know how to open my Bible and read. But now I open my Bible and study it so I am challenged and can't be deceived."

With so much to be gained from the ability to read and write, which would you prefer to give... a gift just for today, or for a lifetime?

Yours in Christ,



Daniel Willis
Bible Society NSW CEO
November 2010