Stop child hunger this World Hunger Day

Since 2011, people across the globe have marked World Hunger Day to raise awareness of world hunger and solutions to stop hunger in its midst. 

This World Hunger Day (28 May), the end of world hunger is in our hands. Set by The Hunger Project, this year’s theme highlights that hunger is not inevitable, and the contributions we all can make to end world hunger. 

Mary’s Meals is a simple solution to world hunger, that works. We provide life-changing school meals to children living in some of the world’s poorest communities. The promise of a good meal brings hungry children into the classroom, where they can gain an education and better opportunities for the future. 

Our impact

We started by feeding just 200 children in Malawi in 2002; today, we provide a daily meal in a place of education to more than three million children in 16 countries around the world, including Ethiopia, Lebanon, India, Zambia and Malawi. Our nutritious school meals give hungry children the energy to learn and stay in school so that they can become the men and women that will help to lift their communities out of poverty and hunger in later life.

Every day, we see that Mary’s Meals stops hunger in the schools we work in. Our latest impact report shows that:

• Before Mary’s Meals began serving in schools in South Sudan, 83% of children felt hungry every school day. This dropped to 5% after they began receiving Mary’s Meals.
• In schools in Mozambique, once they started receiving Mary’s Meals, 92% of children said they never worry about hunger at school.
• In Kenya, Liberia and Malawi, only 35% of children felt they could concentrate well before eating their school meal. This increased to 98% after they had eaten their serving of Mary’s Meals.

Watch this video to hear from children and staff in the countries where we work, about the impact of Mary’s Meals in their communities.

A global movement

Working in partnership with the communities we serve, and with supporters in 20 countries around the world, Mary’s Meals is truly a global movement. Everyone in the Mary’s Meals family, from those who volunteer in the UK, to those who rise early every day to cook the meals in the countries where we work, to those who offer their money, goods, skills, and time and prayer to help us feed hungry children, all have a hand in stopping hunger. 

By supporting Mary’s Meals this World Hunger Day, you’re joining with local people in some of the world’s poorest communities who want to make a difference. Our school feeding programme is owned and run by the communities who benefit from it. Across our programme countries, tens of thousands of volunteers give their time every school day to prepare and serve meals to children from their own community.

Ikhlas is a Mary’s Meals volunteer cook in Lebanon. She says: “Hope gives children the courage to dream and imagine a life beyond hardship. It motivates them to stay in school and believe they can achieve something meaningful. Being a part of this programme makes me feel like I’m contributing to something meaningful. I’m not just serving meals; I’m helping build a better future for these children.”

The end of hunger is in our hands

Today, Mary’s Meals reaches three million hungry children every school day with a nutritious school meal that fills their stomachs and gives them the energy to learn. But there is so much work still to do. There are still 78 million primary school-age children out of school around the world, and millions more for whom daily hunger affects their ability to learn.  

In a passionate speech at the World Leaders Summit on Children’s Rights at the Vatican last year, our founder, Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow, said: “I believe that every child has a right to a daily meal in their place of education. And I believe that there is no good reason why we cannot make – and keep – this promise to the world’s poorest children. We have in the human family more than enough resources to do this.” 

The end of hunger is in our hands and with your support, we can help stop child hunger, one meal at a time. Our low-cost model means it costs just 10p a day to feed a child with Mary’s Meals, or £19.15 to feed a child for a school year. If you can, please join our global movement and take action against hunger today with a gift to Mary’s Meals.

Donate today.