Food support and education

My kids, like millions of others across Canada, are heading back to school today. They’re going to have a chance to learn, play, and thrive.

Sadly, this is not the case for the approximately 250 million children who are not attending school, including one-third of children in lower income countries. There are multiple reasons for this. Many countries chronically underinvest in education. But for many children, hunger is keeping them from the classroom.

I have seen this many times in my work managing humanitarian food programming with Canadian Foodgrains Bank.

In some cases, children are kept from school to work or find food. Recently, a partner organization in Zimbabwe reported that children were being pulled from school to forage for wild foods as their families coped with drought. A partner in Yemen talked about how children had to spend their mornings begging for food in the market instead of going to school. Girls, in particular, are kept home to look for food or care for other children while their parents try to find work and food.

In many countries, parents have to pay school fees and purchase school uniforms and supplies. When families struggle to make ends meet, they simply cannot afford both school and food. In a recent project in the Democratic Republic of Congo, for example, households were provided food and were able to save the money that they would have spent on food to pay for their children’s education.

Hunger and malnutrition also contribute to illnesses which keep children from the classroom — or make it difficult to focus and learn when they get there. As one mother in Burundi shared, “my children were very sickly and often absent from school because of the lack of strength.” You simply cannot learn on an empty stomach. Talk to any educator in Canada and the linkage between hunger and healthy participation in school is clear.

In the emergency food assistance projects we support, we frequently hear that parents are eager to get their kids back in school.

Anakovatae, a mother in Madagascar who participated in a project supported by our member World Renew and their partner SAF-FJKM, was living through a prolonged drought. Her crops failed, leaving the family to survive on cactus fruit and collecting firewood to sell. She wanted to send her kids to school, but couldn’t afford it. The food assistance that Anakovatae’s family received put food on the table.

Now, she said, her kids are back in school, they are growing stronger and healthier, and are better able to focus.

Foodgrains Bank also supports families to improve their livelihoods and agricultural production. This helps reduce hunger in the long-term and also helps children return to the classroom.

Emant, a father in Artibonite, Haiti, only finished third grade himself and knew the experience of going to school hungry. As an adult, he worked hard to support his family, but his farm was unproductive. With the support of Konbit Peyizan, a partner of MCC Canada, Emane improved his agricultural techniques and saved money and accessed credit to invest in his farm. His income and the family’s diet have improved. While he was not able to go to school for long himself, “I am now proud that I can pay for schooling for my sons. I’m going to put into practice everything that I have learned so that they can be useful for (our) future.”

No parent wants their children to experience the pain of hunger. Just like me, everyone wants their children to thrive. This desire is universal. Addressing hunger is a critical first step to achieving this. In turn, education can help break intergenerational cycles of poverty, reduce inequalities, and increase incomes.

Canada can play a key role in supporting our global neighbours to achieve these ambitions, and we know Canadians remain generous in supporting people near and far.

Unfortunately, the Canadian government recently made significant cuts to international assistance as part of the federal budget. These cuts will make it harder for parents like Anakovatae and Emant to recover from crisis and invest in their children’s future.

This is not the time to walk away from compassion. Canadian assistance will — if we invest appropriately — create a healthier, educated, and less hungry future.

Stefan Epp‑Koop is senior humanitarian manager with the Canadian Foodgrains Bank and a Winnipeg resident.