Tag: sustainable development goals

A child’s right to nutritious food

UN rights of the child states in article 24 that children have the right to nutritious food. Please read today’s blog and help us if you can.

Sarah’s blog 15/4/25

The United Nations Rights of the Child states in article 24 that children have the right to the best health care possible, safe water to drink, nutritious food, a clean & safe environment and information to help them stay well.

The Sustainable Development Goals number 2 is working towards zero hunger.

As many of you know, we help to support a feeding programme that runs once a week. It’s nowhere near enough, but all we can afford as we help the community to set up sustainable projects.

500 orphans and other vulnerable children access this feeding programme. Some walk as far as 15km-20km to have this one proper meal each week. Some young people carry their younger siblings. There are NO children being fed in primary schools in rural northern Malawi. All are hungry and many are malnourished. Some girls, despite it being illegal, are married off at age 11 or 12 as their families cannot afford to feed them.

Thankfully, because they have sponsors to help support their secondary education, all students at Bright Futures Secondary School have a nutritious free school lunch each day. In the video below, Ethel explains how none of the students have any food at home.

One of the big challenges, apart from sourcing food for so many people, is that prices continue to rise and currently the price of maize, where they are, has doubled from last year, and last year’s price was double the previous year. How are people supposed to feed their families? Most are really struggling and the situation is getting worse.

There is a holiday study school running this week and next for all students at Bright Futures Secondary School and p8 at Chambo Primary School to prepare them all for upcoming exams. There are teachers to pay, notebooks & pens to buy for the students at Chambo who have none, and food for all of them each lunchtime. Please will you help us? https://donorsee.com/project/26846?share=1

Having a nutritious meal at lunchtime is a huge treat for the students in p8 at Chambo Primary School. They don’t eat during their school day normally and their biggest meal is usually at the weekly feeding programme. We could not expect these young people to do extra studying and not feed them. Will you help us please? https://donorsee.com/project/26846?share=1 or you can email contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com for other ways to donate or give through the link on our website. Donate money and gifts to Changing Lives Malawi We look forward to bringing you photos and videos from this week’s study school. Thank you for your continued help and support, Sarah x

The price of maize has quadrupled in the last two years. Families cannot afford to feed their children and we cannot afford to buy as much food with the same amount of money.
Some of the children lining up to receive food at the weekly feeding programme. They are all hungry. Many are malnourished.

Christmas Parties

Well over 500 hungry children turned up to be fed at the Christmas Party yesterday. http://www.changinglivesmalawi.com

Sarah’s blog 26/12/24

Wishing all our supporters a very Happy Christmas and Happy & Healthy New Year.

This week has been extremely busy for Levison and his team with organising two Christmas parties in addition to the usual daily chores.

Despite the rains having started, it has been dry for a few days so the tree planting has been delayed until the ground is wet and the saplings will have a better chance of survival. Hopefully, we can bring photos of this in the next couple of weeks. This was probably good that it will take place at a later date because of how busy it has been.

Firstly, there was a party for the students at Bright Futures Secondary School to celebrate their exams finishing and it being the end of term. After helping care for the animals, the students shared a meal and played some games. All the students at BFSS were given a sports top to wear at home. Then, yesterday, on Christmas Day, there was a party for all the children.

Because it had not been raining for a few days, the water levels in the rivers and streams were low so children came from miles around – even children who do not usually use the feeding programme. News had spread that there would be food and, because they are so hungry, children were prepared to walk a long way to take part – some walking from up to 20km away.

THE NUMBER OF CHILDREN FAR EXCEEDED 500. Food prices have almost doubled and most children are malnourished and families are really struggling to feed the children each day. We are going to have to try to do more to ensure children have more to eat as there are no porridge programmes in primary schools that far north. We need more help to make things better. So yesterday was a real treat for all the children who attended.

All children received a nourishing and filling meal. The youngest children are fed first and it takes several sittings to feed them all. After that, there were games to play. Many children, were very interested in looking at the pigs. Because of religious reasons, lots of the children hadn’t ever seen pigs before as they are scarce in that area. The pigs found themselves the centre of attention!

We want to take this opportunity of thanking the supporters who gave money to help provide food for the Christmas parties and also to thank Levison and his team for all their hard work and enthusiasm for making this happen. If it wasn’t for them giving up their free time, none of these children would have had a proper meal on Christmas Day.

We are trying to help this community towards self-sufficiency. So here are some ways that you could help us please if you are able to make a small donation;

This is the link to buy some more piglets https://donorsee.com/project/25707?share=1

If you’d like to help provide notebooks and pencils for the students at Chambo Primary then here is the link https://donorsee.com/project/25617?share=1

To help the students at Bright Futures Secondary School grow there own crops then please donate here https://donorsee.com/project/24114?share=1 or you could contact me for bank details contact_us@changinglivesmalawi.com

I think, next year, we need to have someone dedicated to taking photos as Levison was far too busy helping with feeding the children and organising everything to take lots of photos this time. We hope you enjoy these photos and videos of the children and thank you for helping to make a difference. Sarah x