In the steep, erosion-prone terrain of the Gota watershed in Ethiopia, economic survival for a family of five used to feel as fragile as the vulnerable topsoil. For Misganaw, his wife Almaz, and their three children, relying solely on unpredictable summer rains offered little security.
Their turning point came in 2022, when they joined a Purpose Group. Through Plant With Purpose’s training, the Purpose Group became the launching pad for a profound livelihood and ecological transformation that Misganaw confesses he could have never previously imagined.
Through intensive financial training, Misganaw launched a shared irrigation group business (controlling the amount of water to the land to help grow crops). This collective enterprise served as a living classroom where members mastered high-yield vegetable production techniques.
Equipped with these skills, Misganaw took a loan of 4,000 ETB (≈$25 USD) from his Purpose Group. Motivated by the group’s success, he scaled up the model on his own land, purchasing a personal water pump to irrigate his fields twice a year. By breaking his dependence on seasonal rainfall and cultivating high-value crops like garlic, onions, potatoes, and wheat, he generated a remarkable net income of 508,000 ETB (≈$3,100 USD) over the next three years!
This breakthrough quickly translated into security for Misganaw and his family. He reinvested his earnings to buy additional farm oxen, expand his family’s home, secure a plot of land in a nearby urban center for his children's future, and establish a resilient financial cushion.
Beyond the fields, their backyard became a thriving engine of biodiversity. Using compost training, Misganaw produced rich organic fertilizer that boosted his backyard yields, where he planted over a thousand diverse seedlings—including coffee, mango, orange, and different tree species.
The dedication of Misganaw has reached far beyond finances and has deeply reshaped his family’s health, as well as the social fabric of his community. His wife, Almaz, joyfully explains that the surge in income has allowed her to feed her family completely free of worry, making nutrition a daily reality with fresh vegetables and meat regularly on the table. Socially, the regular Purpose Group meetings have fostered deep communal harmony, uniting men and women to manage finances and resolve broader community issues together as one.
Misganaw’s land is now a resilient ecosystem. His environmental stewardship even extended into the public sphere, as he actively worked alongside fellow community members to conserve the native biodiversity surrounding their local church.
"Had Plant With Purpose not catalyzed my deep understanding of collective savings, I would never have successfully leveraged potential or achieved the profound socioeconomic advancement and sustainable livelihood transformation my family proudly enjoys today."
