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Let's Celebrate International Literacy Day

on  September 8, 2020

Happy International Literacy Day!At Rise Against Hunger, we work to support the United Nations Sustainable Goal #2 of Zero Hunger. We are working to eliminate  hunger in communities across the world, and we also believe access to nutritious food and education are equally important, which is why we are celebrating International Literacy Day!International Literacy Day began in 1966 by UNESCO. This day was created to highlight the importance of literacy across the globe. Literacy makes a difference in not only an individual’s life, but it also improves the overall quality of communities and countries. The issue of International Literacy is highlighted in the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.International Literacy Day gives us the opportunity to analyze the systems and policies in place to support our educators and students. At Rise Against Hunger we believe that educational success begins when hunger ends. Rise Against Hunger actively participates in school meal programs across the globe.Students enrolled in the meal program through their school have reportedly seen an increase in health and grades, like Edith, a twelve year old girl in Zambia. Edith is enrolled at Bauleni Legacy Academy in the seventh grade. She and her family struggled to get enough nutrition from their daily meals. Edith was reportedly less motivated and confident in her studies until she began receiving three meals a day from our partner, Family Legacy Missions. Edith’s teachers describe her as a “joyful and intelligent young lady” and she aspires to be an educator when she grows up.Telma, a 47 year old mother of five, living in a rural community in Belize reportedly struggled with the effects of hunger. She and her five children were surviving on two meals a day that mainly consisted of tortillas and beans. When her children entered school, they were enrolled in the Rise Against Hunger school meal program, Kids Konnect 4 Jesus. The family has reported to be in better health and experiencing hunger less frequently since entering school and participating in the school meal program. The effects of hunger are far reaching. Hunger is not only a hindrance to daily life but it also has long-term effects that do not only impede one’s health. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, hunger perpetuates poverty by hindering productivity. Hunger also lowers attendance for girls and boys in school, the lack of education inhibits their ability to earn higher wages which puts individuals in danger of experiencing hunger throughout their life.International Literacy Day is a day to not only shine a light on the importance of education to breaking the cycle of poverty, but to analyze how we can all better support children and adults in receiving education. A quality education supports quality of life. It is difficult to achieve either when you are experiencing hunger. To support learning and ending hunger, please donate now.

About the Author

Paige Anderson is the Individual Giving Specialist for Rise Against Hunger. She focuses on donor recognition and marketing. She is passionate about contributing to the common good.

More Posts by Paige Anderson

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.