Growing Healthy Food & Healthy Children in Ghana

On January 19th, 2016, for the first time, six year old Fatima experienced her first day of school in a small village in the Ashanti region of Ghana called Fankamawe. Like most kindergarteners, Fatima initially did not like the idea of going to school. According to her teacher, Zuwera, Fatima had “become used to staying at home and playing all day.” Fatima’s parents were originally unable to send her or her siblings to school due to their financial situation. But after participating in our agricultural training program, their parents now have enough money to provide Fatima and her siblings a proper education.

Within only a short period of time, Fatima grew to enjoy her classes. Her parents excitedly shared with us, “Fatima loves the care and attention she receives from Zuwera.”  Even Fatima’s teacher, Zuwera has seen a drastic change. She also describes Fatima’s eagerness to learn, telling Self-Help staff, “Fatima feels at home when she is in the classroom, and is among the few children who come to school early.”

For Fatima, going to school also means getting a healthy breakfast each morning through the school feeding program Self-Help offers in partnership with the local primary school. Like the others students in her class, Fatima's weight and height have been measured regularly to track her progress. Shortly after she started attending school and joined the school feeding program, she was severely underweight and just under 3 feet tall. Though discouraged with the numbers, Fatima’s mother never lost hope that her daughter would one day grow to be a happy and healthy girl.

Less than a year later, thanks to the school feeding program, Fatima’s weight and height have improved significantly. Since she started her first day of kindergarten, Fatima has gained 4 1/2 pounds and grown 3 inches. With joy in her smile, her mother told us, “Fatima is such a big fan of the QPM porridge, she even wants to go to school on weekends for it.”  

Every child deserves the chance to have an education free of hunger pains. Thanks to your support, Fatima is no longer hungry for food; she is now hungry to learn.

PS: We're working to bring 50 - 100 more children on board the school feeding program by April! The community of Timeabu, where we've started a new Teen Girls Club, has requested to join - and we need your help to grant their request! Would you make a monthly recurring donation of $10 or more so more children like Fatima have a healthy start to each day?