Providing a daily meal is a real challenge for many households. This is particularly the case for the orphan families supported by ShareAfrica Zambia. Their situation has always been difficult but this has been made worse by the economic downturn and the effects of the Coronavirus lock down.
Malnutrition has a serious effect on the children and hungry children do not do well at school. Malnourishment is a major problem for the Zambian healthcare system. Nationally, 40 percent of children under 5 years are stunted. Analysis by age groups shows that 54% of children from 18 months to 2 years have stunted growth.
In response to this situation, SHARE Africa Zambia has launched a Family Feeding Programme (FFP) to provide help for the neediest families. The programme will be targeted at households looking after orphans and vulnerable children on SHAREAfrica’s sponsorship programme. In addition, we are extending the FFP to include the elderly, widows, and people with special needs. We have committed to run the programme for 12 months during which time we will monitor the progress and examine the feedback from the beneficiaries.
Although the need is massive, there is a limit to what we can do, therefore the programme will be limited to the 140 families caring for the orphans plus 60 more families or recipients mainly from the assemblies where the orphans attend.