An effort of the Southern Baptist Convention, the World Hunger Fund is not aimed to discriminate between ethnicity, beliefs, or geographic location. Instead, volunteers and missionaries seek to primarily feed the soul and body of those in need, and secondarily open their eyes to the faith in God.

This fund thrives on the conviction to Christ; any and all donations proceed directly to feeding the hungry, with no administrative/promotional charges necessary or occurring.

In about a decade’s time, donations to the hunger cause by the Convention have seen a drop (from $6.3 million in 2000 to 4.6 million in 2011.) However, it is still a considerable contribution, as a meal at a Southern Baptist hunger ministry averages at only about $0.30 per portion. Thus, over five million North Americans alone were fed in 2011. The crusade continues year after year despite the relatively low “conversion rate”: out of those five million people, about 30,000 were reported to have professed their newly found faith as a follow-up.

Several hunger projects are currently active through the Southern Baptist fund, including a clean water initiative, focusing particularly on China, and the Bread for Life for Syrian Refugees program.

In 2009, a factory was started in China to manufacture water filters. In one year, its capacity was to produce 7,000 exemplars; with heavy demand, all 7,000 sold out rather quickly. In the coming years, the factory is expected to expand and double, even triple production of the filters. Through a partnership with local churches, food tickets were handed out to victims of the Syrian crisis, improving the availability of essential food supply.

Other projects stretch largely across North America and focus on working with struggling schoolchildren and elderly people.

The World Hunger Fund has recently been renamed to Global Hunger Relief, a broader working title that emphasizes the resourcefulness of the fund.

– Natalia Isaeva

Sources: ERLC, World Hunger Fund
Photo: Great Commission Kentucky