Food Banks Help Mothers Facing Famine

By Tony Cece
Operation Blessing International

NIGER – As a single mother, raising three children is tough job—but for mothers, like Mary, it is even harder.

You see, Mary lives in the West African Country of Niger - one of the worst countries for a mother to raise children according to recent reports. They are overworked, under-educated, have poor health, lack financial resources, and struggle to provide for their children.

As if that isn’t enough, drought during the rainy season can create a food shortage that puts a heavy burden on Mary as she tries to care for her 3 little girls.

“At times, my daughters have come to me crying because they were hungry and I didn't have any food to give them,” Mary said. “I walked 20 miles to the next village in search of food and if they didn’t have any, I would have to continue to the next village until I could find food to feed my children.”

This year, Mary worked hard in her field to grow millet for her family to eat and sell, but the rain never came.

“This year none of my crops survived and I have no food to feed my children,” she said.

Thanks to help from Operation Blessing, Mary and her children will have enough food to last until the next harvest. But thankfully there is help for Mary. CBN’s Operation Blessing built and stocked a food bank in her village that is providing critical relief for families like Mary’s, so she won’t have to walk countless miles looking for food to feed her children.

The concept is simple and effective: Families sell a portion of their millet crops to the banks during harvest season. Then, during times of drought and famine when food is scarce and unaffordable, they’re able to use the income they received to purchase millet from the bank at a lower than market price—enough to sustain them until the next harvest.

It’s working and lives are being saved.

“Without this food bank, I don’t know where I would find food for my children,” Mary said. “Thank you Operation Blessing, for providing food for me and my family.”

HOW YOU CAN HELP
You can help by making an online donation toward CBN’s Operation Blessing International’s disaster relief efforts. With your support, we can continue to provide emergency relief and recovery. Please make an on-line donation today.