Taiwan Church News 3362 Edition August 1 - 7, 2016 Church Ministry Aboriginal Wang-shiang Church Endeavors In Direct-Marketing Of Tribal Produces As A Ministry For Their Own Tribal People Reported by Simon Lin Though the aboriginal Wan-shiang church, a congregation of central Bunun Presbytery, has only a populationaround 700 people living at Hsin-yi village of Nan-tou county, this church plays not only a spiritual hub connecting everyone in the tribe but also acting as an economic engine feeding most families of the church efficiently. Almost all members of Wang-shiang church get involved and dispatched into two most distinctive associations in the tribe: Communal Development Association and Wan-mei Cooperative. The former is in charge of the construction, development, maintenance and security of the tribal community, while the latter endeavors in economic and agricultural development. There are three main services provided by Wan-mei Cooperative: guide services for high mountain hiking,recreational tourism and direct-marketing of tribal produces like beef tomato, sweet pepper and etc. Wan-mei Cooperative also offers short loan services for tribal farmers with financial difficulties, helps purchase seeds and sprouts, and gives concise counsel to apply for government's compensation after natural disasters. Mr Tien Jin-cheng, managing director of Wan-mei Cooperative, frankly admits that it's very hard to compete withnon-aboriginal agricultural cooperative as they have already possessed strong market shares and unrivaled sales channels for years. "But, we would never give up to find a way out for our tribal people!", says Mr Tien. As many aboriginal cooperatives failed, due to a shortage of support and recognition from their own tribalpeople, Mr Tien encourages those survived aboriginal cooperatives keep going without fears! Translated by Peter Wolfe |