Relief Efforts Support Children’s Nutrition and Education in Crisis-Stricken Burkina Faso, Burundi, Niger and Zambia

on June 16, 2025

Every year on June 16, people and organizations worldwide recognize Day of the African Child, an international holiday focused on bringing awareness to the importance of improving the quality of and access to education for all African children.

Quality education is inextricably linked to food security; when a child doesn’t have enough food to live a healthy life, their school attendance can suffer due to illness or necessity to help bring home income to their family. Hunger often makes it challenging to focus in class, and learning becomes more difficult. Rise Against Hunger is addressing this issue. A large percentage of Rise Against Hunger meals are distributed to children through school feeding programs in Africa and other regions across the globe. The meals not only support a child’s health and nutrition, but they also support their education. Studies have shown that when children receive adequate nutrition through school feeding programs, school attendance, enrollment and academic performance soar.

But in times of crisis, like political conflicts, droughts and more, wages and market systems are often disrupted, leading to breakdowns in access to food. This can further exacerbate challenges, heightening the critical need to support education and food security in affected communities. This has been the case in Burkina Faso, Burundi, Niger and Zambia.

As we shared in a blog a few months ago, we’re currently responding to emergencies in these four African countries by providing food and aid. And part of our response has included providing meals for school feeding programs, helping ensure that children can receive vital nutrition and quality education even during times of crisis. Keep reading to learn more about our emergency response efforts in these four countries, and how you can help.

Students at Eben Ezer Primary School in Burkina Faso eat Rise Against Hunger meals every day for lunch.

Burkina Faso

Political conflict, climate change and droughts have caused mass displacement and food insecurity in Burkina Faso. Millions are displaced, and 2.7 million people face hunger. Rise Against Hunger is working with in-country partner Hope for Burkina Futures to support communities near the capital city of Ouagadougou. There, 1,250 children receive Rise Against Hunger meals daily through feeding programs at schools, supporting children’s health and education. Academic performance has improved among the children served, and their education serves as a stepping stone toward more opportunities and bright futures. Families also receive weekly food assistance.

Burundi

Severe floods led to higher rates of poverty and food insecurity in Burundi last year. Working with partner Salesian Missions, Rise Against Hunger provides meals for school feeding programs to support 1,600 students in the country. With regular access to nutritious food, the students’ health and well-being have improved, and they can more easily focus on their education and extracurricular activities.

Niger

Political instability and climate change are major contributors to food insecurity in Niger, and this crisis has led to millions of people facing hunger. Rise Against Hunger works with KARMA to provide urgent food for vulnerable populations. Rise Against Hunger meals are distributed to internally displaced Nigeriens, Nigerian refugees and schoolchildren in regions affected by conflict and displacement. The meals provide critical nutrition for families and support access to education. Children can go to school knowing they’ll receive a hot, nutritious meal each day.

Students at Bauleni Legacy Academy, one of the schools in Zambia served by a school feeding program implemented by Rise Against Hunger and Family Legacy Missions.

Zambia

Severe drought in Zambia has led to higher rates of food insecurity across the country. Rise Against Hunger is addressing immediate needs by supporting school feeding programs, focusing especially on rural areas where food insecurity is widespread. Working with in-country partner Family Legacy Missions, nutritious meals are distributed to over 350 kindergarten to grade 7 students. Since the feeding programs began, the schools have reported increased attendance, improved academic performance and healthier students.

During times of crisis, food is a critical need for communities on the path to recovery. In honor of International Day of the African Child, will you help Rise Against Hunger continue responding to emergencies, nourishing lives and supporting education — both in Africa and around the world? Donate to our Global Emergency Relief Fund today.

Strength, Stability And Hope

The gift that filled Nelly’s table.

“We were yielding very little, and the crops could not sustain us the whole year,” Nelly remembers. As a mother of seven and a farmer with two decades of experience, the stress of inconsistent yields was all-consuming. A poor harvest not only strained her family financially, but also limited their own meals to just two a day. Their story reflects that of many in their fishing and farming village near a lake in the Karonga district of northern Malawi. Here, heavy rainfall makes conventional farming methods nearly impossible. The entire village is, quite literally, saturated in food insecurity — a reality that leaves families struggling to survive season after season without a dependable source of nourishment.

In 2019, Nelly began participating in Harvesting Prosperity and Resilience, a sustainable agriculture project implemented by Rise Against Hunger in partnership with the Foundation for Community Support Services (FOCUS). The project works with 3,100 smallholder farmers in Malawi’s Karonga and Mzimba districts to strengthen food and nutrition security by improving production methods, nutrition practices and household income.

Just one year later, Nelly was ready to expand the variety of crops on her farm. What land once only produced maize began to flourish with sesame, cowpeas, rice and groundnuts during the rainy season (summer), as well as maize and vegetables during the dry season (winter). Through climate-smart agriculture training, she learned new techniques like manure making, pit planting and mulching, crop rotation and intercropping. Equipped with these tools, Nelly’s farm began to thrive.

After the 2023–2024 growing season, she sold enough produce to purchase an ox cart. Her harvests in 2024-2025 season yielded over 500 pounds of crops, including 22 bags of groundnuts, seven bags of maize, 12 tins of sesame and three bags of rice. With this surplus, she was able to invest in a motorbike, which she now uses to transport African doughnuts (mandasi) that she cooks and sells — creating yet another source of income for her family.

The transformation reaches far beyond her finances. Nelly now has the stability to provide for her husband and children. “I am able to eat different food types, pay school fees for my children and fulfill the visions that I have made with my family,” she beams. “I am now sleeping peacefully without any fears of food or paying school fees for the children.”

Her leadership has also grown. Today, Nelly serves as a leader in the Harvesting Prosperity and Resilience project, teaching other farmers in her district to adopt climate-resilient, labor-saving practices. By sharing her knowledge, she is multiplying her impact — empowering her neighbors to experience the same transformation she has achieved.

Across Nelly’s community, food and economic security are on the rise. Lombani, a government extension officer for the region, explains, “I can see the community is being transformed in the sense that in the area, there is food, income and nutrition security. Development is also happening at the household level.”

Nelly reflects on what it means to invest in holistic programs that address the root causes of hunger: “We are now healthy people. Children are going to school after eating their breakfast, having high yields and different types of crops due to conservation agriculture practices. With the support from the project, we have food, and we can access other food items from the market after selling our produce.”

This is the gift that fills: a future full of stability, strength and hope. It fills tables with food, families with security and communities with the resources to thrive. It’s an investment in futures rooted in resilience and hope.