Funding our work

We are not very good at getting people to donate funds to us. Yes, OK, when we have a specific need, like buying shoes for all the kids at the Mercy Gate Home, we managed it by collecting old mobile phones in the UK and selling them in Kenya. It was very successful and surpassed our best expectations.

But, raising funds to build River Cottage Kenya is a different matter. So, assuming that we are not going to get external funding, I have sunk some capital into starting up a business in Kenya, an Internet café to be precise. Vincent, Mercy Gate's director will manage it and draw a weekly or monthly salary. The rest (assuming there is any) will be put in the bank, and I will use it to start the River Cottage project when I next go over, probably in September. The income will also support two of the kids at Mercy Gate, Jojo and Benta, as I have already said that I will pay for their upkeep.

The actual shamba project itself doesn't need a lot of funding. What I really need is a vehicle to cart the materials to the plot, as well as so get between our three main sites, Kisii, Nairobi and Malindi.

We did have a little Toyota which wasn't best suited to our needs, but it was better than nothing. Unfortunately, someone turned it into a bonfire in January and we haven't been able to replace it.

So, the café has got to work, so that I can get our projects off the ground.

I don't know what an old 4x4 would cost, but it is more than I have.