Roxilla

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As part of my World Food Day blog focus, I’ve been thinking more and more about hunger, and how much we take food for granted. Recently in Mozambique, 13 people died and hundreds were injured in food riots – desperately protesting against fuel and bread price increases that are crippling the farming communities.

In the rural farming province of Nampula, 1 in 3 children die before the age of 5. Without access to fuel and supplies and basic crops, these farming communities are not able to produce or sell their produce – this in turn affects the greater Mozambique as the rest of the country then is not able to rely on the farm produce from the rural areas. With lack of sanitation, over-grazing and countless other problems however, these rural areas are struggling to survive.

Save the Children believes that it starts with the rural farming areas – if these communities are able to grow and sell their crops, the rest of the country is able to benefit, the rural communities are able to survive, and ultimately, a difference can be made across the country. This applies for Mozambique, and it also applies to South Africa and many other places too – by supporting the World Food Day initiatives and helping rural communities with permaculture gardens, we are slowly changing the cycle of poverty and hunger.

If that isn’t food for thought, then I don’t know what is…

Look out for more World Food Day updates over these next two days – and to learn more about how you can help, click here!