Campaign coincides with International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, Oct. 17;
focuses on millions living on less than $2 per day

STONEY CREEK, ON — Faith-based mission agency GFA World (Formerly: Gospel for Asia, www.gfa.ca) has revealed its top tips for those who want to help end global poverty, marking International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17.

Extreme poverty – earning $1.90 or less per day – impacts 736 million people around the world, double the population of the U.S. and Canada combined. The United Nations established Oct.17 each year as International Day for the Eradication of Poverty as a campaign to end abject poverty.

“Poverty is the tip of a Titanic-like iceberg,” said GFA founder Dr. K.P. Yohannan who has spent his life helping the poor in Asia. Poverty’s hidden impacts include almost three billion people without a toilet, and one billion people without safe drinking water.

No ‘Silver Bullet’

“There’s no single ‘silver bullet’ to end poverty completely, but every person is able to help one person, or one family climb out of extreme poverty,” said Yohannan, citing five simple steps everyone can take to join the fight to eradicate cycles of poverty.

GFA’s “top five” global poverty-fighting tips are:

• Give up $5 lattes for a month and donate the savings to a respected charity that helps and empowers the poor
• Learn more about the issues – economic, political, cultural and others – that feed poverty and inequality
• ‘Adopt’ a specific country, learn about your chosen country, and speak up for that nation on social media, highlighting poverty-related issues
• Pray for world leaders to have wisdom on how to change systems that perpetuate poverty and inequality
• Consider making one change in your life – perhaps a less expensive phone plan – that could free up money to donate to poverty-fighting causes 

“Small actions like these may seem insignificant in the face of global poverty, but they are not small to God,” said Yohannan, whose faith-based organization was launched in 1979 with a gift of $10 and now serves millions of impoverished people in 14 nations. (Revolution in World Missions, pg. 68)

Americans Transform Lives

Every year, thousands of GFA donors worldwide give life-transforming gifts to empower the poor. So far, almost two million families from different faith backgrounds have received practical gifts – such as goats or sewing machines – to help generate income or improve their quality of life.

Bhrithi, a young widow with two boys, was evicted from the roadside where she sold vegetables. Through the GFA Gift Catalogue, a donor provided a pull cart – turning Bhrithi into a “mobile market” and boosting her income overnight. Because she knew the gift came from Christians, she started going to church to learn about God.

“Our passion is to see these precious people come to know they have incredible value in God’s eyes, and that he loves them deeply,” said Yohannan. “The problem of global poverty is huge, but if we each do our part, we can change the world.”

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Celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2019, GFA World, www.gfa.ca is a leading faith-based mission agency, bringing vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions, especially to those who have yet to hear the “good news” of Jesus Christ. In GFA’s latest yearly report, this included more than 70,000 sponsored children, free medical camps conducted in more than 1,200 villages and remote communities, over 4,700 clean water wells drilled, over 11,400 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 240,000 needy families, and spiritual teaching available in 110 languages in 14 nations through radio ministry. For all the latest news, visit our Press Room at https://press.gfa.org/news.

PHOTO CUTLINE: SAVE JUST ONE: Everyone can help save just one person from extreme poverty, says faith-based mission agency GFA World, www.gfa.ca, marking International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17.