GEMS Development Foundation

GEMS Development Foundation has been working in South Sudan, Africa, since just after it gained its independence from Sudan in 2011. We began as "Goats for the Old Goat", a charity created by Ellen Ratkin, former White House Correspondent and talk radio personality. She started with a goats program, providing a Nubian she-goat to slaves being returned from the north (Sudan). A goat could provide a family with both nutrition from the milk, and also a chance at more economic security in a culture where livestock is key to one's success. She-goats provide a litter each year that can be sold in the market, or used to create goat-milk food products to sell. Our name was later changed to GEMS Development Foundation to reflect our involvement in other aspects of humanitarian work in South Sudan. GEMS stands for Goats, Education, Medicine and Sustainability. Our goal is to provide opportunity through clean water projects, educational scholarships (particularly in healthcare), medical programs and farm projects for food security. Our latest project involves building a medical clinic in the village of Majok Goi. It will be the only medical facility within a 25 mile square radius, and it will serve approximately 20,000 people.