THE POWER OF SCHOOL MEALS
THE SCANDAL OF HUNGER AND MALNUTRITION
Up to 783 million people still suffer from chronic hunger around the world – that’s one in every 10 of us. Of this number, 149 million young children are estimated to be so acutely undernourished that their growth and development has been irreversibly stunted.
Asia is the continent with the greatest number of hungry people and India is the nation with the highest rate of child wasting in the world. And the problem is not restricted to developing countries – in the UK, the National Health Service is clear that food poverty and malnutrition affects millions of British people.
EDUCATION IS A HUMAN RIGHT
Every child deserves enough good food to eat. They also deserve access to an education, which is a well-evidenced route out of poverty in the longer term.
People who have gone to school are most likely to find work, contribute to the economy, look after the health and wellbeing of themselves and their families, and further the peace, stability and prosperity of their communities and countries. And yet, around the world today, 250 million children are still out of school because of poverty, conflict, and hunger.
THE SCHOOL MEALS SOLUTION
The tyranny of an empty stomach either ensures that a disadvantaged child will not step foot in a classroom, because they must desperately find something to eat elsewhere, or they will wearily sit in school with hunger pangs unable to concentrate on their learning.
School meals programmes are a proven solution to this terrible reality. They attract children into the classroom; they contribute to improving children’s education, nutrition and health; they support the whole community as an important social safety net; and they help strengthen food systems and aid economic development. And yet, 73 million vulnerable children around the world do not have access to the school meals they need to learn to the best of their ability.
OUR WORK IS JUST BEGINNING
Today, Akshaya Patra is feeding more than 2 million children every day in schools across India and reaching thousands of children in the UK through our initiatives at holiday hunger and after-school clubs.
After more than two decades of Akshaya Patra’s existence, our Indian school meals programme – delivered in close collaboration with the central and state governments – has made an incredible difference.
We now operate the largest single-country mid-day school meals scheme anywhere in the world and we have served four billion nutritious meals to hungry children in their places of education. We now see many Akshaya Patra alumni who, having enjoyed and relied upon our meals as children, have grown up to become active citizens and accomplished professionals who are building brighter futures for their families and their communities.
But, with so many children continuing to suffer the ill effects of poor nutrition and educational inequality in India, the UK, and beyond, our work is still only just beginning.