The statistics are horrifying – the United Nations estimates that 300 million children are chronically hungry. Of these, 170 million of attend school hungry and 130 million, mostly girls, do not attend school at all.
Research has shown that even a basic education can help to lift people out of poverty.
IAMCO, a Caymanian charity that works toward the alleviation of poverty solely within the Caribbean region, has joined with Scottish International Relief to provide meals for children in Haiti.
The programme, called Mary’s Meals, will distribute daily food to children at school, said a IAMCO press release.
According to SIR, ‘Feeding needy children in school nourishes vulnerable children and at the same time encourages school attendance and improves school performance.’
IAMCO has agreed to two significant grants that will help provide 135 school children with two daily meals in the rural district of Hinche and a similar project will feed 4,500 children in Cite Soleil for one year. The cooking and serving of the food will be carried out by local volunteers.
The director of IAMCO, Graeme C. Thomson, said, ‘We, as a charity, are thrilled to be involved in this project. Together with SIR we will continue to assist with poverty alleviation, particularly in Haiti, a country on our doorstep, yet a world, economically, so far removed from our own as to be almost unimaginable.
‘We will, with others, continue our work to improve the dignity of all throughout the Caribbean. We look forward to a closer association with Scottish International Relief and any other organisations with similar goals.’
Related Videos
