PERU: Vulnerable people receive food aid through partnership
Vulnerable populations struggling with insecurity receive food aid thanks to partnership between Feed My Starving Children and Salesian Missions
PERU
(MissionNewswire) Vulnerable populations in Peru who are struggling with food insecurity due to the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns received food aid in 2020 thanks to a partnership between Feed My Starving Children, a nonprofit Christian organization committed to “feeding God’s children hungry in body and spirit” and Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. With the support of the Flexport.org Fund, Salesian Missions received fully-funded logistics services to ship this food aid to Peru and another shipment to Guatemala.
Don Bosco Foundation in Lima was the main recipient of the food aid, which was then distributed to other Salesian programs serving vulnerable youth and adults, including migrant families and women and children living in conditions of poverty. The majority of the distribution went to Salesian programs that host community kitchens that feed local communities.
Don Bosco Foundation found that requests for aid increased dramatically after the quarantine. The aid shipped by Salesian Missions provided significant support to help families who were no longer able to work and put food on the table. Don Bosco Foundation has helped to support more than 6,000 people during the pandemic with a variety of services.
“We appreciate Feed My Starving Children and the Flexport.org Fund for supporting vulnerable children and adults during this difficult time,” said Father Gus Baek, director of Salesian Missions. “Don Bosco Foundation supports local initiatives to feed families and ensure they have their basic needs met. In the face of the pandemic, the Salesian response continues to be vigorous and tireless.”
In the early days of the pandemic, Don Bosco Foundation launched an awareness campaign to help educate people about COVID-19 and prevention efforts. They have made and distributed masks, sanitary kits and food to people in need while supporting local efforts like community kitchens.
Peru faces high levels of income inequality and has more than a quarter of its population living in poverty, according to the World Bank. Poverty levels are significantly higher in rural areas but urban areas struggle most with inequality, most notably metropolitan Lima. Poverty in the country is made worse by a shortage of productive farmland and a lack of job skills among women entering the workforce, as well as a lack of adequate housing, nutrition and education.
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Sources:
Photo courtesy of Salesian Missions (contact for usage permissions)
Salesian Missions – Peru
World Bank – Peru
