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Freedom from Hunger: Alleviating Poverty in Mexico

freedom from hunger
As the Mexican economy continues to recover from the most recent recession, social concerns still remain.

Specifically, low wages, underemployment and inequitable income distribution are the causes of suffering in the impoverished southern states.

According to the Ministry of Social Development, 54% of all Mexicans live in poverty. Poverty standards in Mexico equate to $4 per day. However, 32% of the population lives on $2.50, and 24% live on less than $2.00. Characteristics of poverty include the lack of access to basic human needs such as nutrition, clean

Characteristics of poverty include the lack of access to basic human needs such as nutrition, clean water and shelter.

In 2005, nonprofit organization, Freedom from Hunger created Alcance. The organization’s principal focus is to assist financial institutions to integrate education and health protection services that specifically address women and their families.

Alcance works in conjunction with the Mexican government to coordinate microfinance networks. The purpose of these networks is to provide financial education and to equip financial institutions to disseminate funds.

As of 2014, Alcance launched a Saving for Change programs in two Mexican states where traditional microfinance has not reached the rural communities of the chronically poor.

The aim is to help institutions successfully manage social objectives and increase their ability to provide high quality, client-responsive services.

Organizations such as Mastercard also help create programs as global partners. The current program they fund will develop, test and document innovations in the integration of financial services. In addition, education will be provided for youth between the ages of 13 and 24 in Mali and Ecuador.

The program’s focus is to build a range of microfinance providers to offer products and services for youth living in poverty. The goal is to utilize these services to guide youth financially, in order to increase options for their future.

Youth participants’ parents and community leaders will be educated on how to be supportive of youth in ascertaining financial education building.

Programs to address education, health care, social security, quality of basic services in the household and income and social cohesion are necessities in helping to address the nation’s poverty.

– Erika Wright

Sources: Freedom from Hunger, The Mastercard Foundation
Photo: ChildFund.org

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How Fortified Ingredients Can Stop Hidden Hunger


With one in three affected by malnutrition globally, hidden hunger is a prevalent but treatable epidemic. Africa is currently home to the highest levels of hidden hunger.

The UN stated in a report that, “of the 34 countries that account for 90% of the global burden of malnutrition, 22 are in Africa,” with 56 million children suffering stunted growth as a result.

But the good news is that an affordable solution appears to be on the horizon.

Marie Konaté, founder of Protein Kissèe-La (PKL), has created a key vitamin and mineral fortified cereal for children. Sourced locally from Côte d’Ivoire, the children’s cereal is targeted at the group most susceptible to hidden hunger: children under the age of 5.

As 46% of the African staple-based diet is composed of cereals, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Marie’s cereal is an affordable and delicious way to fight micro-malnutrition.

The Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) has teamed up with PKL to provide the powdered supplements that are added to the cereal, thus keeping the costs even lower to consumers.

The fortification of food staples has already been implemented in a variety of products, from Nestlé’s bouillon cubes with added iron and iodine in Western and Central Africa to cooking oil with iron and vitamin A in Senegal.

Yet, one of the simplest ingredients used globally could be one of the most effective in fighting hidden hunger: iodized salt.

Commonly used in developed nations, iodized salt looks, smells and tastes the same as non-iodized, costing only 5 to 10 cents per person per year, reports Aljazeera America.

Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDDs), including goiter, hypothyroidism, reproductive problems in adults and mental and structural defects in infants, can all be combated through the simple consumption of iodized salt.

GAIN estimates that the number of children dying under the age of 5 could be halved if they received better nutrition.

Given that a whole host of staple ingredients, including salt, grain and oil are able to be fortified without compromising the taste and appearance of the product, it’s only a matter of funding to drastically reduce the numbers of micronutrient deficient people globally.

At the 2015 Future Fortified summit in Tanzania, GAIN, the African Union, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the World Food Program and USAID hashed out a viable global plan to put an end to hidden hunger.

They estimated that for every dollar spent on ending malnutrition, $138 would be saved on healthcare and previously lost productivity.

Since then, the African Union has requested $150 million in donations to fund food fortification and progress analytics in 25 nations.

Going forward, as more countries commit to mandating fortification, hidden hunger is closer than ever to being a problem of the past.

– Claire Colby

Sources: Aljazeera America, Associated Press, EurActive, Food and Agriculture Organization, GAIN, Global Post, New York Times, UN, UNICEF
Photo: LinkedIn

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5 Things to Expect from the Post-2015 Development Agenda

agendapost2015
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are set to expire at the end of 2015, and a new proposal of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will be discussed in September. MDGs have helped alleviate poverty and hunger, reduce fatality rates for children under 5, improve maternal health and help prevent HIV/AIDS from spreading.

For the last 15 years, the MDGs have been the most important global humanitarian effort to help improve living conditions in developing countries. The SDGs have an even more ambitious agenda and will involve all member states instead of just developing countries.

Here are 5 things you can expect from the Post-2015 Development Agenda

  1. Goal 1 is to end all forms of poverty–and achieving this goal is realistic. The MDGs halved the number of people living on less than $1.25 per day. From 1990 to 2008, the extreme poverty rate fell from 47 percent to 24 percent. To eradicate extreme poverty by 2030, it would cost about $66 billion a year.
  2. Goal 2 focuses on ending hunger and improving nutrition. About 800 million people still live in hunger, and many children are underweight. Despite population growth, the number of hungry people has declined by 200 million since 1990, and it will cost $30 billion per year in order to end world hunger. By 2025, it would cost $300 billion, which is less than 1 percent of the world’s combined GDP.
  3. Goal 4 builds off of the MDG to achieve universal primary education and calls for member states to ensure children have free quality primary and secondary education that results in effective learning outcomes. This means ensuring that gender disparities are eliminated. By 2009, 43 million children were enrolled in primary education worldwide, but there are still about 60 million children not enrolled, mostly in Sub-Saharan Africa. This will involve tackling child labor, building more classrooms and training more teachers.
  4. Goal 9 promotes sustainable industrialization and the building of resilient infrastructure, including an increase in access to the Internet. About 66 percent of people globally do not have access to the Internet. The SDGs call for infrastructure developments in order to improve economic sustainability. Innovation will revolve around increased scientific research, enhanced technology and clean technologies and investments for the Internet and technology in developing countries.
  5. Goal 13 calls to take action on the impacts of climate change and may be one of the most challenging goals to reach. Climate change impacts poverty, economic growth and sustainability, but countries cannot work alone to reduce the impact of climate change. Individual cities will have to change climate policies because they generate 70 percent of carbon emissions. Partnerships between local governments, civil society and the private sector will help make this goal achievable.

If the commitment to the MDGs is a sign of things to come, then there will be many success stories involving the new SDGs.

– Donald Gering

Sources: End Poverty 2015, Global Education, Green Biz, The Guardian, Huffington Post, Internet.org, LA Times, UN
Photo: concorditalia

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Folate-Rich Rice for Malnourishment

Golden Rice grain compared to white rice
Recently, scientists at the Ghent University have successfully engineered a new folate-rich rice strain. The most notable achievement of this experiment has been the stabilization of the bio-engineered nutrition richness.

Biofortification is a relatively new venture into the field of agricultural biotechnology. It involves modifying the genetic makeup of an agricultural plant to yield a more nutrient-rich product. The results of biofortification of plants have been tested for nutritional value and bio-availability for the consumers, with promising results.

In addition to increasing the nutrition value of food products, scientists are also focusing on making the products more sustainable. New research in this area is committed to not only increasing the dietary value of the crops, but also providing for practical answers for food shortage problems globally. For instance, crops that are more resistant to droughts and natural adversities are being manufactured. Food staples such as grains are being engineered to comprise nutrients from more expensive and inaccessible vegetables.

A significant issue in the provision of sufficient food for the whole world is the problem of food wastage and storage. The world today produces more food per person than ever before; however, food insecurity continues to be an issue with the improper handling and storage of food.

Crops such as rice, wheat and other grains are generally easier to store than most foodstuffs. However, the long-term storage of food deprives them of much of their nutritional value. Micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals are likely to be degraded as a result of long-term storage, as well as the methods of storage.

Folate, or Vitamin B9 as it is popularly known, is one such nutrient. It is found in abundance in leafy green vegetables such as spinach; such vegetables are, however, difficult to store for extended periods of time. Folate is a water-soluble vitamin; consequently, it cannot be stored in the body, and needs to be replenished constantly. Folate deficiency can lead to abnormally large blood cells, and ultimately anemia, which is particularly dangerous for pregnant women.

To tackle this problem, the researchers at Ghent University took a two-pronged approach: making the rice folate-rich, as well as stabilizing the folate to ensure its availability after long periods of storage. They used a folate-binding protein- found originally in animals- to stabilize the folate molecules. The resulting molecule was found to be more resistant to degradation after storage.

The rice strain manufactured has not been introduced commercially as of yet; the public use of the strain remains subject to testing and approval by appropriate authorities. This research is, nevertheless, an innovative step in the quest for engineering more nutritious and healthier crops for ending hunger and malnourishment.

– Atifah Safi

Sources: Ugent, NIH
Photo: cbnnews

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The Poorest City in the World

The Poorest City in the World

A poor city in a wealthy country: Monrovia, Liberia.

In examination of the ten poorest cities in the world, all ten of them are in Africa. In a Western African country on the coast lies a city full of slums. Theorists suggest the poorest city in the world is in Monrovia, the capital city of Liberia. The population of Liberia is currently 4,294,000 and is one of the least populated countries in Africa. It is considered the fifth poorest country, despite being the oldest independent country.

The population suffers from poverty and hunger despite numerous political administrations and new policies being introduced. According to the United Nations’ The Food and Agriculture Organization, Liberia is a low-income and food-deficit country. Over half of the country’s population is food-insecure or highly vulnerable to food insecurity.

Twenty-nine percent of the population of the country live in Monrovia, for a total of 1,010,970 residents. At the turn of the century, 80 percent of the people living in the city were living in poverty. The gross national income is estimated at $790 USD annually. However, eighty-five percent of the population lives on less than one USD per day.

Conflict with q neighboring country, Sierra Leone, has had a major impact on the city. Despite the civil war that ended twelve years ago, the city still endures the effects. The constant turmoil between the two countries has caused the educational system to be broken down, abject poverty and inadequate educational access in these slums. The children of Monrovia continue to be subjected to the cycle of both poverty and illiteracy.

On the outskirts of the city, the agricultural sectors have major challenges that compound its poverty. There are low yields as a result of technological disadvantages. Inadequate roads and little to no access to markets limit the possible value chains. A majority of the people who live in these rural areas suffer from poverty.

In Monrovia, basic necessities are rarely available. Electricity and water resources are scarce and at best unreliable. Both the health care and social services are lacking. The GDP, the health expenditures is ten percent and the amount of health expenditures per capita is eight dollars USD annually. Slums are rampant with disease due to the flooding that has occurred. The streets of Monrovia are filthy, dangerous and unfinished, making it very unsafe to drive on them. The city lacks infrastructure and public transportation despite being the capital city. In Monrovia, the crime index is 82.81 and has a safety index of 17.19. Over the last three years, the crime rate has increased in the city.

Liberia is a country that is the home of many precious gem and diamond mines. Violent acts and war crimes are ongoing for power struggles over their control. This has left the city war-torn and vulnerable as a result of the exploitation of no true supply chain. The resource-rich country suffers from the pandemic of poverty and hunger. Monrovia is a city that depicts global poverty’s existence even in a naturally wealthy country.

– Erika Wright

Sources: AllAfrica, Nations Encyclopedia, NUMBEO, Rural Poverty Portal, The Richest, WHO
Photo: Flickr

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Partners in Food Solutions

Partners in Food Solutions
One of the most common topics that arise when discussing world hunger and food insecurity is that there are actually more than enough resources to feed all of the people of the world.

The problem isn’t that there is not enough food for everyone, but rather that there is not an efficient way of distributing it. Or, oftentimes, on-location farms do not have the resources to grow enough food for the people in the area who need it.

Partners in Food Solutions (PFS) is a nonprofit organization that works to connect big food companies (such as General Mills, Cargill, Royal DSM and Bühler) with smaller food processors in the developing world to reduce food insecurity.

These large, experienced companies are able to provide small and growing businesses (SGBs) with information on how to increase productivity, improve quality and create all-around safer and more nutrient-rich food for surrounding populations.

In addition, PFS and its partners also help African food companies to develop business and finance skills and make areas such as distribution and packaging as efficient as possible. By supplying technological resources and training, there can be a consistent and reliable sharing of knowledge to help companies keep growing.

Jeff Dykstra, the CEO of PFS, says that “food insecurity in Africa has been often addressed in a reactionary way, and the opportunity that’s there now is to address it in a proactive way.”

At its heart, the organization just wants to create a more efficient and valuable food chain. One of its strengths is that it recognizes the importance of partnerships.

PFS is funded by corporations and private donors and also supported by a devoted base of volunteers. USAID TechnoServe is a PFS partner involved with implementing programs and strategies on the ground in Africa. So, while PFS manages volunteers and designs programs, Technoserve implements the relationships with SGBs.

By working with TechnoServe, PFS is able to evaluate which food companies are the most in need of help and look to be the most successful. The partnership has grown to assist over 700 SGBs in Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia.

Almost 829,000 local farm holders were impacted through projects that are designed to bring expertise to small African food companies. Kykstra said that the money is generating a return into local economies at double the rate of taxpayer investment.

These partnerships are valuable and effective in the fight against global food insecurity. As President Obama himself said on a July 28 visit to the Faffa Food Share Company in Ethiopia, “Having strong corporate partners alongside local businesses can really make a big difference.”

Faffa Food Share is a client of PFS, and also the primary supplier of food for children over 6 months old in the country.

Although the chain of technologies, innovations and partnerships involved in the PFS organization is complicated, the core idea is simple.

The organization’s goal is to help small farms bring their crops to local marketplaces, making them sustainable contributors to their economies, cutting back on unnecessary food transportation expenses and helping entire countries to become self-sufficient when it comes to food.

All of this can be done by sharing knowledge and resources already available to the first world. Stephen Tanda, the managing board member of Royal DSM, calls PFS “the missing link in connecting the need to address malnutrition on the ground and working with companies in Africa to make these safe and high-quality nutritious foods that benefit the local population.”

Partners in Food Solutions is a great example of a lot of moving parts, of all different sizes and spheres of influence, working together to make a better world.

– Emily Dieckman

Sources: General Mills, Partners in Food Solutions, YouTube 1, YouTube 2
Photo: Flickr

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Addressing Guatemala’s Food Emergency

Guatemalan Drought Creates Food Emergency
Over the last three years, Guatemala has experienced a drought that has taken a hungry nation and made conditions even more severe.

Before the drought, the nation experienced some of the highest levels of “inequality, poverty, chronic malnutrition and mother-child mortality in the region.” Almost 50 percent of children under the age of five suffer from chronic undernutrition; that is the highest number in their region and fourth highest in the world.

The drought has now taken what little bit of food supply the region can supply on their own and caused the crops to be stunted or not grow. Also, any food reserves have been depleted. Nearly one million hungry people are growing even hungrier with the drought.

The food emergency was an issue last year as well. On August 26, 2014, a state of emergency was declared in Guatemala after a particularly brutal drought was affecting the nation. The state of emergency was issued in 16 of the 22 provinces and at that time was affecting 236,000 families.

Currently, much of the nation’s population is relying on the government and U.N. handouts to feed their families.

Part of the reason that the drought is so devastating is the lack of improvements to the water infrastructure. The inefficiencies in collecting, storing and then irrigating the rainwater that does come expounds the problems that are associated with the drought.

Organizations are working to help those suffering most from the ravaging drought. The World Food Programme has created programs “geared towards reducing food insecurity, improving the nutritional status of mothers and children under 5 and living conditions of vulnerable groups by increasing agricultural productivity and farmer’s marketing practices.”

They cite two main programs they are conducting in Guatemala:

  1. Country Programme: 45,500 people will be given supplementary food in order to combat the chronic undernutrition, 12,000 subsistence farmers will be assisted and the program will help 3,000 farmers gain access to markets.
  2. Purchase for Progress: This program is working to link a much broader base of farmers and markets together. Also, guidance on best farming practices will be given to help grain quantity and quality.

While these programs may not directly stop the widespread hunger, it is putting food in the mouths of many who need it and creating an infrastructure to ensure that severe food shortages do not happen in the future.

They are also not the only programs that the World Food Programme is working on in Guatemala. There are long-term plans to help the country through future droughts and streamline food voucher distribution to help those hungry right now.

Guatemala has a long way to go. During this drought, so many people are suffering from worsening hunger. Unfortunately, this is not a new revelation or situation. The first area that has been addressed is the immediate need to feed the hungry.

But long-term action needs to be enacted. Thankfully, the Guatemalan government understands this and the World Food Programme has programs in place. Hopefully, in the future, a drought will not cause such widespread hunger again.

– Megan Ivy

Sources: Guatemala: WFP Country Brief, NBC, Trust, WFP
Photo: Flickr

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Eva Longoria and LG Raise Money For No Kid Hungry

eva_longoria
Last week, Eva Longoria hosted an LG Electronics USA product launch in Hollywood for the company’s new ranges with ProBake Convection technology to benefit the No Kid Hungry Campaign.

A-list celebrities and VIP guests like actress Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting, chef Angel Estrada and actor Jesse Metcalfe, gathered for a family oriented event sponsored by LG. The occasion featured cooking activities and games, as well as interactive culinary demonstrations highlighting the new cooking technology.

The fun-filled afternoon also served to raise awareness and support for the No Kid Hungry campaign that is sponsored by Share Our Strength, an organization that helps to provide food for children and families in need. Fittingly, the charity also empowers families to cook healthy meals together.

The Desperate Housewives star said that she really values the importance of family and passing down recipes to loved ones.

“I come from a tight-knit family where we value the importance of gathering for meals and celebrations, and I’m thrilled to join LG to encourage families to do the same, all while benefitting such a fantastic cause,” Longoria said.

Longoria supports a worthy cause — malnutrition is a continuing problem. According to Action Against Hunger, 3.5 million children die each year from malnutrition.

To help eradicate this problem, the No Kid Hungry campaign asks for donations for hungry children and lists ways for people to improve the lives of the impoverished. The campaign’s website focuses on using food as a tool to create a better value of life, stating that “another kid falls behind and never catches up” without proper nourishment.

The campaign also seeks to provide parents the tools to create and offer nutritious meals to their children. Supporting No Kid Hungry, LG encouraged the community to start their own “PostBake sales” in their neighborhoods using kits gifted by the event to all attendees.

Longoria hosted her own bake sale at the LG event. The award-winning cookbook author and co-restaurateur shared her cooking expertise during her live demonstrations. Her culinary creations were all recipes from her New York Times bestselling cookbook, “Eva’s Kitchen: Cooking with Love for Family and Friends.”

In addition, she helped organize pizza and flatbread baking, cake and cookie decorating, a themed photo booth and more.

Since the event, LG and Longoria have helped connect struggling kids with more than 345 million meals. The benefit also helped to launch school breakfast programs, recruit summer meals sites, and helped to provide grants to the most effective hunger-fighting organizations to help end child hunger in their communities, according to the No Kid Hungry website.

Not only is the campaign feeding kids, but it is also making their dreams come true.
Straight-A students and sisters, Jeane and Jahnique love to run, dance and cheerlead, and with the help of No Kid Hungry, they are able to do these activities with more energy.

“When I eat, it makes me run faster,” one sister said.

No Kid Hungry has helped many more kids in different areas. The operation’s website shows several more stories like this one. To read these stories and to learn how to support these kids, visit the No Kid Hungry website.

– Fallon Lineberger

Sources: Action Against Hunger, Look to the Stars, No Kid Hungry 1, No Kid Hungry 2, Vimeo
Photo: Homemade Mimi

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Michael Kors: World Food Programme Ambassador

Michael Kors: World Food Programme Ambassador
World-renowned fashion designer Michael Kors is helping feed hungry people around the world. Through his Watch Hunger Stop campaign, which launched in 2013, he has delivered 10 million meals to hungry children.

Kors’ brand partnered with the United Nations World Food Programme in 2013. Together, they have sought to create a world with zero hunger.

After first partnering with World Food Programme (WFP), Kors said, “Millions of people all over the world are struggling to feed themselves, and their families, every day. I want to lend my voice and my efforts to this international cause.”

Since then, Kors has been involved in Watch Hunger Stop, where each sale of a Michael Kors 100 Series watch enabled 100 children in need to receive a nutritious meal through WFP.

Additionally, Kors donated 100 meals for every “selfless selfie” which featured fans posing in Michael Kors Watch Hunger Stop t-shirts.

Kors says, “We couldn’t have done this without the compassion and efforts of our fans and customers whose support of this important cause is inspiring.”

In 2014, actress Halle Berry worked alongside Kors for Watch Hunger Stop. This year, actress Kate Hudson will partner with Kors and WFP.

Hudson says, “As a mother, I can’t think of anything more important than raising a healthy and educated generation of children and WFP’s School Meals Program is committed to exactly that. This is a cause that I’m eager to be a part of because I believe we can all make a real and significant difference.”

In October 2015, Hudson and Kors will launch two limited-edition styles of the Bradshaw watch. With every sale of the Bradshaw 100. 100 children will be given a meal through WFP School Meals program. In addition, customers and visitors to Michael Kors retail stores can make a donation to World Food Programme at the register.

In July 2015, Kors was recognized for his efforts to end world hunger; he was named a Global Ambassador Against Hunger for the United Nations World Food Programme.

“It’s an honor to be named a Global Ambassador Against Hunger, and a further inspiration to me to continue the important work of ending world hunger hand in hand with WFP.”

To encourage others to contribute to the battle with hunger, he says, “We’re making real progress toward our goal of zero hunger. You can see a visible reaction, a positive reaction, when you hand someone a plate of food. Whether you get involved on a local level, a national level or a global level, you really make a difference in people’s lives. We have enough food in the world for everyone. The challenge is to get people to realize this and to work to change.”

To find out more about Kors’ Watch Hunger Stop campaign, visit their website or Michael Kors’ website.

– Kelsey Parrotte

Sources: Michael Kors 1, Michael Kors 2, World Food Programme 1, World Food Programme 2, Look to the Stars
Photo: Flickr

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UN Report Focused on Ending Global Hunger by 2030

ending_global_hunger
A recent U.N. report focused on ending global hunger highlighted the additional international financing needed to do so.

According to the report, “Achieving Zero Hunger,” countries need to invest an extra $267 billion per year to make the goal of eliminating hunger a reality within the next 15 years.

This is an average of $160 a year for each poor person until 2030.

While that may not seem like a lot, it still gives people living in extreme poverty access to more food and better living.

The report emphasizes the need for a new approach to achieving zero hunger, such as the public and private sectors teaming up and combining investments and efforts. The hope is that, in doing so, those living in extreme poverty will see increases in productivity, which will in turn lead to rises in income.

There are currently 836 million people living in extreme poverty worldwide, half of what the number was in the 1990s. This year, it is estimated that 175 million people will break free of extreme poverty.

Specifically, Asia and Africa are home to some of the world’s poorest people. In the Asia Pacific region, 490 million people are suffering from hunger, around two-thirds of the total number of people globally who don’t have access to enough food.

Extreme poverty is defined as living on less than $1.25 a year. While that amount may be enough to cover the essentials, it doesn’t allow for any savings, meaning it is not sustainable in the long run.

– Matt Wotus

Sources: Rappler 1, Rappler 2
Photo: Al Jazeera