POVERTY
“Overcoming poverty is not a
gesture of charity. It is an act of justice. It is the protection of a
fundamental human right, the right to dignity and a decent life.” — Nelson
Mandela
MCO’s first Sustainable Development Goals is
to “End poverty in all its forms everywhere” to address discrepancies between
access to food and other resources. Hundreds of millions of people living in
developing countries survive on $1.90
a day or less.
Poverty, food prices and hunger are inextricably linked. Poverty causes hunger.
Not every person living in poverty faces chronic hunger, but almost all people
facing chronic hunger are also living in poverty.
Millions
live with hunger and malnourishment because they simply cannot afford to buy
enough food, cannot afford nutritious foods or cannot afford the farming
supplies they need to grow enough good food of their own. Hunger can be viewed
as a dimension of extreme poverty. It is often called the most severe and
critical manifestation of poverty.
Rural households are the most heavily burdened
by the consequences of poverty and hunger. In addition to causing hunger, poverty
limits a rural community’s ability to invest in its own development. Often,
rural girls living in poverty will be kept out of school to save money. This
contributes to the disparity in the education of rural and urban girls. Studies
have shown that lack of general education leads to higher adolescent birth
rates; births that in turn over-burden an already economically strained
community, perpetuating a cycle of gender inequality, poverty and hunger.
We believe in a holistic
approach to hunger, which means addressing its root causes – including
poverty. In
our Program
Countries,
we build the capacity of women and men to move beyond poverty, training them in
the skills, methods, knowledge and leadership needed to take self-reliant
actions so they can meet their own basic needs, improve their communities and
build better futures for themselves and their children.
WHAT WE DO
·
Boost women’s economic impact. At our epicenters across Uganda,
thousands of women food farmers are increasing their incomes through training
and credit, and strengthening their clout in the marketplace.
·
Help implement Microfinance Programs. The ultimate objective of our
Microfinance Program is to gain government recognition and operate as a
licensed saving and credit cooperative (SACCO) or Rural Bank. Owned entirely by
community members, the Rural Bank then provides the entire epicenter community
with sustainable access to savings and loan facilities.
·
Introduce income-generating activities. Trained partners implement
income-generating activities, often joining together in self-help groups: from
sewing projects in Iganga to cow-fattening projects in Mayuge and Luuka.
Thousands of our partners also participate in workshops throughout Uganda to
learn new and innovative methods of increasing household income.
·
Facilitate self-reliant food banks. In Uganda, our goal is to
empower people to create, stock and manage their own food banks at the
community level, which helps stabilize day-to-day food prices in local markets
during times of crisis.
·
Provide agricultural support. Through agricultural
training and increased access to farming inputs, small farmers in communities
are able to increase their crop yields, enabling them to grow enough food to
feed their families, diversify their crop yields and even sell surpluses at
market.
