Stoving Nicaraguan style

This week the kids of La Cruz celebrated Independence Day in Nicaragua and had a few days off school. GVI staff members and volunteers took advantage of this to build two more stoves in the community.





Since GVI started working with the community five months ago we have built a stove every month and our Australian volunteers, Karl and Kylie, have added two more.

La Cruz is a very rural community and majority of the houses where GVI has built the stoves are situated towards the end of the community. Unfortunately, this means transporting the materials initially proved problematic.

However, members of the community pitched in, either carrying materials or using donkeys to do the heavy lifting. As well, the families helped out with the actual construction of the stoves.

Furthermore GVI has been training Lucio and Maria Castellón´s to be the local masons so that with the help of the volunteers they are able to continue with the stove building project in the community.

They were more than eager to lend a hand with the stove that GVI made in their house, and even got the kids helping out with some brick laying!

The large majority of houses in La Cruz use some kind of open fire to cook. With the stoves that GVI helps to build the families are able to cook multiple items at once and reduces smoke inhilation, which is beneficial to all the family.

The stoves consume approximately 75% less wood then an open fire, and are much safer for the children in the house. Essentially it means less work for the mothers of the community.

Stoving Nicaraguan style