“Look at those round cheeks, beautiful smiles,” remarked Florence from the Ministry of Education who joined ONE’s site visit. “The children are happy because they have taken their porridge.” At this school feeding program, run by the World Food Programme, the 777 students at Mawango are guaranteed a bowl of porridge made from a corn-soya blend, sweetened with sugar and fortified with essential nutrients.

Girls and orphaned boys also get a monthly take-home ration conditioned on 80 percent attendance. Some of this food is grown by Malawian farmers and delivered by the WFP through their Purchase for Progress program. So the WFP is helping to feed the undernourished, helping to keep kids -– especially girls -– in school, and improve the livelihoods of Malawian small-scale maize farmers.

Photos by Morgana Wingard

According to the Consortium for Street Children there are 10,000 street children in Uganda. “Underlying causes of children’s problems in Uganda include armed conflicts, diseases (HIV/AIDS), lack of education, inadequate services and entrenched poverty.”

From Katherine:

“Today was my favorite day yet – our last stop was to the Tigers Club project which works with street kids in Kampala, Uganda to leave street life behind and transition into a caring family environment. They engage the kids through football (American soccer), and through that experience teach and counsel them to get off the streets. The results are overwhelming – 87 percent of the kids transition back into family homes. What most amazed me was the kids themselves – their smart, quick humor, their courage to turn their lives around, and their energy. The children reminded us how and why we can help – that difference is made one child at a time and that these community-level programs change lives every day.

-Katherine Jollon”