Ononna, from Bangladesh, has been able to go to school with the support of sponsors. The eighth grader is happy about this, because the family’s income would not have been enough for her education.

Aarne and Pirjo-Riitta Törmänen, who do missionary work with the Hungarian Roma, know that it can sometimes take decades for a vision to become reality.

Although there is a downward trend in annual missionary statistics, missions work has more impact than ever, says Harri Hakola, CEO of Fida.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), it is shameful to have a disabled child and they are often seen as a curse. Children with disabilities are hidden at home and don’t go to school. Fida and its partners endeavor to influence people’s attitudes so that the rights of children with disabilities are realized.

Fida, the Finnish Mission Society, and Abilis Foundation are involved in a campaign to end violence against women and girls with disabilities in Tanzania. The campaign is timely, as girls and women with disabilities face ten times more violence than others.

As a result of the volcanic eruption in May, hundreds of thousands of people in the Congo are now homeless and without access to food or schooling. A Fida sponsored school also collapsed in the eruption. Fida, with the support of the Finnish foreign ministry, is now providing humanitarian assistance to more than 12,000 people.

There is an imminent threat that the raging armed conflict in northern Ethiopia will reach the capital city. As a precautionary measure, Fida evacuated its four Finnish employees and their families.

The online training at Fida and the Northern European Business Academy prepares Burundians for entrepreneurship. It has already given rise to a wide range of new businesses.