Since 1992, ServLife International has been working in India and Nepal educating children and empowering families to help loosen the clutches of systemic and generational poverty. Throughout India and Nepal, poverty exists in both rural and urban environments, but in villages in the most mountainous and rural regions, this poverty is rampant.

The 2021 Multidimensional Poverty Index as reported by the UN and UNICEF explains, “The Multidimensional Poverty Index examines poverty from more than an income perspective – it includes nutrition, child mortality, years of schooling, housing, and assets.” This measure gives a clearer understanding of poverty and how extreme poverty affects each part of a person’s daily life. In India and Nepal, the monetary standard of poverty is making less than $1.90 a day per person.

There are areas that take many hours by car and foot to reach, and families are leaving these villages where they’ve lived for generations to find more opportunities in the cities. This shift out of villages has been gradual and is in response to the rise of technology worldwide. Young people are finding their way out of poverty, but now these villages are mostly made up of the very young and the elderly.

With these changes, the overall poverty outlook in India and Nepal is improving. This puts ServLife in a unique position to minister in response to these changes. For the villages and their rapidly changing population, pastors are given a unique opportunity to minister to those who might feel forgotten. Microfinance loans in these villages are bringing communities together. ServLife loans are given in groups to help provide support in the varied businesses and in repaying the loan. In the cities, education scholarships are providing quality education, housing, and nutrition to students as they observe these advancements around them. This education also gives them a leg up for the future. They’re gaining experience with technology and are going to be more competitive when they enter the workforce.

Click here to join ServLife in providing opportunities throughout these changing times.