All funds raised as part of the "Fight hunger. Eat out" campaign go directly towards Action Against Hunger’s programmes in 43 countries worldwide. For over 25 years, Action Against Hunger has been at the forefront of the fight against hunger and malnutrition worldwide. In the most affected countries, our teams do their utmost day after day to ensure that people are given access to the most basic of human rights- the right to food.
Action Against Hunger's life-saving programmes integrate activities in nutrition, water and sanitation, food security, health care and sanitation.
Nutrition:
Our nutritionists treat severely malnourished children through therapeutic feeding programmes and ensure that food reaches the most vulnerable families. Action Against Hunger also operates supplementary feeding centres, distributing nutritionally balanced food supplies to treat acute malnutrition before it becomes life threatening.
Access to food:
Fighting hunger is much more than just distributing food. Action Against Hunger combines emergency relief with programmes that help develop dependable sources of food and income, thus helping people to produce their own food. A few tools and seeds, fruit and vegetable gardens, cattle - all really simple, basic things, can make a huge difference, not just for a few days but for years to come.
Water and sanitation:
Nearly one sixth of the globe - 1.1 billion people- lack access to clean water. Every year, 2.2 million people, most of them children, die from diseases associated with unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene. Action Against Hunger provides access to safe drinking water by tapping springs, drilling wells and installing water systems. We also teach the importance of water and sanitation in preventing disease and train loca lteams to maintain water and sanitation equipment.
Health:
A vicious cycle exists between disease and malnutrition. Action Against Hunger's staff includes experts on the medical aspects of malnutrition, tailoring treatment to ensure that malnourished children and their families not only receive the food they need to regain their health but also medical treatment for malnutrition associated to disease.
OUR PROGRAMMES
INDONESIA
Our teams are currently working hard to help people affected by the recent earthquake in Java, Indonesia, last May and those struck by the tsunami that ravaged Indonesia on 17th July.
Java earthquake
On 27 May 2006 an earthquake measuring 6.2 on the Richter scale, struck central Java in Indonesia, killing nearly 6,000 people and leaving hundreds of thousands homeless and displaced.
Already present on the ground, Action Against Hunger dispatched teams of emergency specialists immediately on the day of the tragedy. Additional staff joined them shortly thereafter and initiated food, water and sanitation programmes to respond to the needs of the most vulnerable populations.
Within the first two weeks following the disaster, Action Against Hunger had started the distribution of 17 tons of protein rations for children and lactating women, installed 12 water tanks in different villages and distributed more than 15,000 water tablets to provide clean water for families. In addition, wells and latrines are being cleaned to limit health risks.
Indonesia tsunami - yet another disaster
On 18th July, a tsunami hit Indonesia’s Java Island following strong underground earthquakes. More than 500 people were killed, and 50,700 people have been displaced. Action Against Hunger is implementing programmes in three villages in the Ciamis district, where more than 1,000 houses have been destroyed and 4,100 people are without shelter. Problems related to water access remain: in some villages, wells were contaminated with sea water. Action Against Hunger is installing water tanks in three villages, cleaning wells and monitoring the quality of water.
LEBANON
Action Against Hunger teams are working to prevent epidemics by distributing hygiene kits to 1,000 displaced families in the North of Beirut (Mount Lebanon) and in Saida. Action Against Hunger is also setting up water systems to ensure water supply of adequate quality in areas where displaced persons are teking shelter. The organisation also calls for a ceasefire in orde rthat vital humanitarian assistance can be provided to people affected by the conflict.
GAZA
One month after the upsurge in the conflict in the Gaza Strip, the humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate. Action Against Hunger is implementing water and sanitation programmes in the north and north-east of the Gaza Strip, where water networks and irrigated land were destroyed. Action Against Hunger is also carrying out an assessment in the south of Lebanon to implement an emergency programme.
NIGER
Action Against Hunger, present in Niger since 1997, will continue to implement its life-saving programmes in the country. Since June 2005, our teams have treated more than 35,000 malnourished children and distributed food to 293,000 families. In the short term, we will continue to treat cases of malnutrition in children under five years old. In the medium and long term, we work with communities to restore their livelihoods and self-sufficiency.
CONGO
Action Against Hunger has been working in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) throughout the chaos and war of the past decade. Our nutritionists are treating severely malnourished children are treated in our Therapeutic Feeding Centres while our programmes in water and sanitation, food security, nutrition and health care ensure that families regain their self-sufficiency over the long-term.
To find out more about our Action Against Hunger's programmes in 43 countries worldwide, please visit www.aahuk.org.
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