POVERTY
Poverty is the leading cause of childhood hunger as poor children often go to bed hungry for days, sometimes surviving on drinking water alone. When children are left in hunger for too long, they become too sick and too weak to do anything.
Poverty and hunger go hand-in-hand, and addressing the problem of childhood hunger requires addressing the crisis of poverty. One billion children live in abject poverty, with their families lacking the means to meet their basic needs.
What causes poverty?
For most families in extreme need, it is not a lack of motivation or desire that keeps them below the poverty line. It’s a lack of opportunity.
Stories from the countries about hunger are filled with fathers who take any job they can find, no matter how dangerous or how little the effort pays. They are filled with mothers who care for their children, stretch their food supply to the limit and walk miles for clean water. And they are filled with children who — despite the hard life they have been born into — smile proudly when their parents are able to provide for them.
If people find better ways to earn a living, they will move out of poverty. That is why we include income generation approach to defeating childhood hunger. When we help people find ways to earn a living, they can meet their immediate needs for food, shelter and water, and take a step toward ending their family’s poverty cycle. This is an essential weapon against hunger. You can help make that prospect possible.