True hunger is something that I have never experienced. I
have never wondered when I would eat next, or if I would eat again. It’s hard
to imagine what actual hunger is, or how it feels. Food is not something I have
had to fear of not having. I have been blessed in excess, which overwhelms me
with guilt and sadness when so much suffering exists in a place I keep so close
to my heart.
After two sequential crop failures from drought, 725,000
Basotho have been left fighting hunger. The United Nations World Food Programme
(WFP) reported that maize production is down 77%, and wheat harvest is down 52%
from last year causing a crisis within the mountain kingdom of Lesotho. Food
prices have escalated 33% for both maize and wheat, limiting much of the population
which includes the 48% of Basotho children suffering from chronic malnutrition (WFP).
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| Rose Masaba, with peaches she grew and stored in the summer months. With a depleted garden, these peaches have become her family's main source of food. |
It is not as simple as creating a budget for a grocery
list, or occasionally abstaining from a meal to cut back on spending. Luxuries
like that are not fathomable for an abundance of people living in Lesotho. Many
Basotho rely on their own food supply to care for their family, and lack the
resources to do otherwise. Countless people
living solely on their own food production are also lacking resources to feed
livestock, causing even more of a devastation among those left without options.
It is difficult to not feel discouraged by such
circumstances, especially when I have so much. How can I fight this injustice,
and find an end to hunger in Lesotho? Even small changes can make a difference.
Everyone can choose to be a thoughtful consumer, think about what you are
purchasing, don't overeat, and be grateful for what you have. Raising awareness
is fundamental. Visit the Bloom Africa webpage, get involved, become educated,
and speak up.
-Willie
Willie is serving as an intern for Bloom Africa.
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