Ulster rugby star Rob Herring has become Self Help Africa’s first Northern Ireland ambassador.
The South Africa-born hooker is backing the recently launched Give2Grow campaign, which will double every donation made from the North (and the rest of the UK) until 15th May 2019 will be matched by the UK government.
“Give2Grow is a campaign that is supporting 1,000 families in Teso, Uganda, where farmers are still rebuilding their lives after years of conflict. Public donations will help to provide farmers with training, seeds and livestock, so they can produce more on their land and become self-sufficient,” he said.
The Cape Town-born hooker said he feels a deep connection to the continent and its people, so when approached by Self Help Africa, a charity aiming to end poverty in rural Africa, he was moved to personally help raise the profile of the charity in Northern Ireland – supporting the volunteers and shops here in their efforts to help improve the lives of vulnerable and marginalised communities in rural Africa.
“As someone who grew up in South Africa, I have a warm affection to the African continent and I am inspired by the work of Self Help Africa, which provides practical support to millions of small farmers in Africa. I’m really excited to be linking up with Self Help Africa and to support them in giving a hand up to the millions of people in Africa who still struggle to feed their families.”
Frankie McClure of Self Help Africa welcomed Rob as its first Northern Ireland ambassador and said: “It’s an honour to welcome Rob Herring into the Self Help Africa family to assist us to raise awareness about the work that we do in sub-Saharan Africa. We are looking forward to taking Rob to one of the areas we work in later this year so he can see first-hand the incredible impact that Self Help Africa is having on rural communities across the region.”
To donate to Self Help Africa’s Give2Grow campaign, all you need to do is text GIVE2GROW 3 to 70085 and your donation of £3 will be matched by the UK Government between now and 15th May next. You can also donate online.