
Life is never easy in Zambia, but over the past year or so, the situation has become more dire. We regularly communicate with the kids through Facebook Messenger, and at least half-a-dozen have shared they are experiencing severe hunger. Some do not eat for several days at a time. This situation, in addition to the dire nature of living a healthy life, is affecting the ability for some to go to school.
Why is this happening? There are several reasons, including:
Inflation is sky-high. The kwacha has experienced severe pressures due to a high demand for foreign exchange. This currency depreciation has led to increased costs for imports, exacerbating inflation and living costs for ordinary Zambians. Moreover, the country is grappling with a high debt burden, with debt levels above 104% of GDP. Although there have been successful debt restructuring agreements and investments in key sectors such as mining, the economic benefits have yet to significantly alleviate widespread poverty and unemployment. Over 60% of the population lives below the international poverty line, and formal employment remains limited. The bottom line: Food prices especially are soaring.
Zambia is suffering from a severe drought, which affects the growth of maize—the main supplemental income for many, as well as their main food source. This exerts upward pressure on food prices.
The war in Ukraine has contributed to world-wide food shortages, which also exerts upward pressure on world food prices.
Bernard Lumene, the former orphanage director who was reassigned to Lusaka, recently visited Zambezi to assess the situation. “The social-economic ravages caused by drought in our country have given a rise to an environment that can be best described as unfriendly,” he shares. “In rural Zambezi, the majority of household have no income to spend on food. Some families that rely on small-scale maize production to feed themselves are now finding it increasingly difficult because of drought that the whole country sadly experienced this year with no harvest at all.”
He goes on to say: “Today, the hunger situation has negatively impacted the school life of LMO kids as some of them are now finding it difficult to go to school with an empty stomach. Misheck Njamba was the first child to come to see me Sunday afternoon [when I arrived]. He shared his side of the story, and I almost dropped tears when he said to me, ‘There are days if our neighbor's mum doesn't give us food then we stay hungry all day long and go to school hungry.’ But the goodness is that a number of children have understood the importance of education as a solution to combat poverty, therefore they resist hunger to give themselves to education.”
What can we do? The LMO Education Board has created an emergency gift fund that provides supplemental funds for each child—500 kwacha (about $20) every two months. It’s not much, but hopefully it’s something to help them get through this difficult period. In addition, LMO graduates Jane C. and Brudas M. will be in touch with each child at least once a month to check on their situation, assess their needs, and recommend assistance.
If you would like to donate, please give directly through the website. Just $50—or $25—goes a long way to help these beloved kids.
Thank you!
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