The residents of Khargi village in Laos have to travel to Phonxay village for health care and to buy and sell goods. Children in grades 6 through 9 in Khargi also travel to Phonxay as this is where the nearest middle school is located. Getting back and forth from Khargi to Phonxay has not always been easy as the journey involves crossing a river.

One resident of Khargi shares, “Sometimes when the river was very high, during periods of heavy rains, the only option was to turn around and go home.” He says, “… sometimes the river would become so high that there was danger of flowing away, and we had no choice but to spend several nights sleeping in Phonsay waiting for the water to recede before we could return home.”

Middle school students from Khargi live in temporary shelters in Phonxay from Sunday afternoons to Friday afternoons and return home for the weekends. At times when the river was swollen, they were left stranded. And pregnant women were not always able to receive medical care in a timely manner when crossing the river was too dangerous.

These struggles ended recently. With the support of World Renew, the community of Khargi built a bridge across the river. In partnership with the Mai District transportation department and the village development committee, World Renew worked to survey for the best place to build the bridge. After the survey, the villagers gathered gravel, sand, and wood to assist in the construction. The village head, Mr. Laoler Laoli, 28, says, “The new bridge opens new opportunities, bringing education, development, and health care closer to our lives.”

By Ruairidh Waddell

• As the population in India continues to soar, women are finding it increasingly difficult to find employment; pray for justice for women and girls who are denied education and opportunities to thrive.
• The conditions for Rohingya refugees living in camps in Bangladesh are growing increasingly difficult and many are risking their lives crossing the sea to go in search of new opportunities. Pray for God’s provision for all refugee families.
• Pray for God’s continued guidance and protection for World Renew staff in Asia as they work to share his love and abundance with vulnerable communities.