Donate A Live Goat: Feed Someone Forever

by Arsalan Iftikhar

Everyone has heard the famous saying: “Give a man a fish…Feed him for a day….Teach a man to fish…Feed him for a lifetime…

During this Hajj pilgrimage season, the vast majority of the world’s 1.7 billion Muslims will donate Qurbani meat to hungry families all over the world so that they can feed their families for the Eid Al-Adha holiday.

You should know that there are non-profit development organizations like [Penny Appeal USA](https://pennyappealusa.org ” target=”_blank) who are working every day to help alleviate systemic poverty through sustainable programs like Penny Appeal USA’s [“income generation program”](https://https://secure.pausa.org//checkout/donation?eid=139974 ” target=”_blank) which will help poor people long after the Hajj pilgrimage season is over.

Because delivering fresh meat one time might feed a family for one meal, there are groups like Penny Appeal USA who actually provide poor farmers with healthy livestock of goats so they can farm them & provide their families with future income generation for years to come.

Donating actual livestock like goats allows them to be bred to provide milk and even sold when needed to help families put food on the table, provide critical income during emergencies, and pay for their children’s education beyond a one-time food donation.

By helping families develop a herd of livestock, you are helping these families ensure their long-term economic stability and help create stronger communities by generating future income for these needy families trying to get out of systemic poverty.

For example, [your generous $190 donation gift today will provide a poor family with 2 adult goats](https://https://secure.pausa.org//checkout/donation?eid=139974 ” target=”_blank) and one kid goat which will help sustain a family while building a brighter, more economically-secure future for them tomorrow.

The United Nations has found that “livestock income generation” is a successful method to raise people out of systemic poverty. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, they [have found](https://http://www.fao.org/home/en/ ” target=”_blank) that there are approximately 1.3 billion people around the world who currently survive on less than $1 per day.

Since approximately 50-75% percent of these extremely poor families depend on agriculture as part of their livelihood; sustainable agricultural development programs like [Penny Appeal USA’s livestock program](https://https://secure.pausa.org//checkout/donation?eid=139974 ” target=”_blank) can make a major contribution to reducing systemic poverty worldwide.

The UN has also found that livestock products (like goats and cows) help to cultivate high-value agricultural produce, with roughly 3 out of 4 agricultural households already keeping livestock, and therefore already representing an important means for poverty reduction.

Furthermore, it has been found that livestock have a variety of characteristics that make them important contributors to sustainable rural development. They provide marketable products that can be produced by small-scale, household production systems, and are generally of higher value and less vulnerable to critical harvest timing than many crops.

Since many poor farmers live in rural areas around the world, [your sustainable gift of livestock](https://https://secure.pausa.org//checkout/donation?eid=139974 ” target=”_blank) will immediately help rural households to participate in urban-based economic growth. Livestock are also productive assets, which contribute directly to farm output through animal traction and indirectly as a store of wealth for future investment. Finally, they can contribute to soil fertility and recycling of agricultural waste as well.

UN experts have found that demand growth rates of 3% for certain crops are less than half the demand growth for high value livestock commodities, demand for which is increasing by 6-8% annually. Furthermore, the poor can also benefit from the fact that livestock development creates demand for labor, supports economic linkages with the feed and processing industries, sustains trade balances, encourages food security through stronger supply and can lead to lower prices for food of animal origin.

The United Nations has concluded that the potential contribution of livestock sector development to the livelihood of the poor is thus very significant. This is why its important to support initiatives like the [“Income Generation Program” from Penny Appeal USA which gives someone a goat today](https://https://secure.pausa.org//checkout/donation?eid=139974 ” target=”_blank) to hopefully help feed their family forever.

Arsalan Iftikhar is founder of [TheMuslimGuy.com](https://https://secure.pausa.org//checkout/donation?eid=139974 ” target=”_blank) and brand ambassador for Penny Appeal USA.