International Save the Children Alliance
Above: People gather outside the Save the Children supplementary feeding centre in Dumma, South Darfur.
Above: (Niger) Save the Children volunteer checks babies for signs of malnutrition by measuring the circumference of their upper arms.
Across the globe soaring food prices - the highest since the mid-1970s - are forcing more and more of the world's poor and disadvantaged children to go hungry. The World Food Program predicts that 30 countries will face particular pressure to feed their people this year. Riots have been reported in 34 countries around the globe over the cost and scarcity of food.
This is not a short-term problem. Food crop prices are expected to remain at extraordinary levels through 2010, and remain high for at least a decade.
The rising cost of food will force many families to make difficult decisions on how to spend their money. Parents may have to cut back on what and how much food they can provide to their families, remove their children from school because they cannot afford both food and school fees, reduce spending on health, or sell key productive assets in order to cope with dire economic circumstances. Moreover, children may be diverted from education to raise income engaging in dangerous and exploitative activities such as commercial sex work, begging, or domestic work.
Younger children, especially those under the age of 2, are the most vulnerable to the impacts of prolonged hunger including weight loss and high susceptibility to illness. Over time, hunger and undernutrition results in permanent negative effects on physical and cognitive growth, from which children never recover. At worst, malnutrition is a major contributor to about half of all deaths of children under 5 years old around the world.
Save the Children's food distribution programs provide carefully targeted relief in emergency contexts. The reduced availability of food aid, needs to be fully addressed as the number of at risk populations increases. Save the Children's long-term programs also play a critical role in mitigating the food crisis. Two key programs--Food Security and Hunger and Malnutrition--aim to ensure that children live in food-secure households and are well-nourished.
Your support enables us to continue making a significant difference to the lives of children around the world. Visit your national Save the Children organisation website and donate today.
Read more about our programs
Hunger and Malnutrition Programs
Food Security Programs
Emergency Programs
Country Surveys: Global Food Crisis
Ethiopia
Middle East-Eurasia
Latin America-Caribbean
Asia
Press Releases
G8 to drop Africa aid pledge as rising food prices put children's lives at risk (4 July 2008)
Emergency $20 million appeal for the children of Ethiopia (June 2008)
Children at greater risk because of global food crisis (June 2008)
Global crisis in food prices increases vulnerability of children (April 2008)
