Story number 3 for 5 Jun 2003

(Philippines)–Rebel activity throughout the Philippines appears to be on the rise. Violence can be problematic for ministries working there, like FARMS International. However, FARMS’ Joseph Richter says since their program is more centrally located, they haven’t felt a direct impact. “They are a concern in certain areas in the Philippines and make travel and outreach much more difficult and we are always concerned about that and look for ways to avoid those types of problems.” Richter explains that this newest program motivates their teams because of what it means for the future of the ministry. “What I think is exciting about it is the training for that program was done by our existing nationals that manage other programs in the Philippines. They came together to do the training. This is one method that we’ll be using in the future to multiply micro-credit programs.”