Hunger

Malawi President of Malawi, Joyce Banda says that her country has no boundary of urban and rural as far as poverty is concerned, one of the reasons why she has directed the Mudzi Transformation Trust to renovate and construct new houses for the needy in both areas.

Banda believes that, "…I am well informed that there are also people living in poverty in urban areas according to what I have seen at Chikanda," further wishing that her administration could make sure that people are sleeping in houses that do not leak when it rains.

She reminds Malawians that when her party took over government two years ago, there were fuel shortages, forex scarcity, media repressive laws and police search in individual houses without warrant which she has reversed.

To read the article titled, “Malawi: Mudzi Transformation Trust to target the urban poor - JB,” click here.

The United States (US) government has launched a five-year, US$100 million programme to assist more than a half-million hungry Zimbabweans.
 
US Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Bruce Wharton, states that his country remains committed to the welfare of Zimbabweans.
 
Nonprofit international development organisations, World Vision and CNFA, will implement the five-year programme in Zimbabwe's most drought-prone provinces.
 
To read the article titled, “USAID targets Zimbabwe food shortages, malnutrition,” click here.

More Zimbabweans face serious hunger, following the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) cutting the number of people it assists with aid.
 
The WFP states that it has cut rations to a million Zimbabweans, and more cuts could be coming this year.
 
The agency announced in 2013 that one in four of Zimbabwe's rural population is expected to need food assistance in 2014, recognising this as the highest since early 2009 when more than half the population required food support.
 
To read the article titled, “Nation faces hunger as UN cuts food aid,” click here.

ONE’s You Choose survey, conducted from January to June 2013, connected 100 000 South African Voices with United Nations Panel to influences the Post-2015 Development Agenda

South African citizens want the government to prioritise development programmes that will create more jobs, quality education, ahead of the protection against crime and providing support for people who do not work.
 
This is according to a new report published by the ONE Campaign on 30 October 2013. The report outlines the findings of ONE’s You Choose, a technology-focused campaign that asked African citizens to tell the United Nations (UN) and their governments their top priorities post-2015 to overcome poverty.
 
The campaign was supported by celebrities including Winiko and Dan Lu from Malawi, HHP, Hugh Masekela and Lira from South Africa, Slap Dee and Chris Katongo from Zambia as well as D’banj from Nigeria, all who played a leading role in mobilising citizens’ participation.
 
A total of 196 337 citizens participated in ‘You Choose’, from January to June 2013 in Malawi, South Africa and Zambia. In South Africa, 108 815 responses were analysed of which 43 344 were via the online social network, Mxit and 65471 were via SMS / Text message.
 
The top five South African priorities were: better job opportunities (31.75 percentage), good education (20.20 percentage), Protection against crime and violence (6.4 percentage), an honest and responsive government (5.77 percentage) and support for people who cannot work (4.74 percentage).
 
The survey aimed to complement the UN’s My World global survey. Preliminary findings from the three countries have been incorporated in the Post 2015 UN High Level Panel’s report to the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on proposed post 2015 UN development goals.
 
On 30 October 2013, ONE released the final Report to the South African public, press, government and UN at an event held in Rosebank, Johannesburg. Speaking at the event, ONE’s Africa Director, Dr. Sipho S. Moyo noted that the needs and desires of the world’s poorest, many of whom live in Africa, must be placed at the heart of a new development agenda.
 
“Efforts such as ‘You Choose’ in conjunction with the UN’s My World survey will ensure that the post-2015 development objectives reflect the people’s will and not just those of world leaders and technocrats gathered around a table in New York and Geneva. As our world leaders debate and define the post-2015 development agenda, we must convince our governments to take the views and the voices of their citizens to the agenda-setting table. By so doing, the world’s new development goals will reflect what its citizens need and in turn citizens will be better able to hold their governments accountable for actionable programmes that will achieve enduring socio-economic transformation and virtually end extreme poverty by 2030,” she said.
 
To view report, refer to www.ngopulse.org/resource/one-you-choose-report-2013
 
Notes to editors:
 
1.    Social media played a leading role in data collection:

• 91 075 citizens submitted SMS actions in South Africa, Malawi and Zambia;
• 84 232 citizens submitted their priorities on social media channels that included biNu, Mxit and Facebook. Most respondents on biNu were Nigerians, while Mxit was dominated by South African participants. Facebook garnered responses mostly from Malawi and Zambia.

2. Top issues across all markets and channels were:

• Better job opportunities (25 percent);
• A good education (17 percent);
• An honest and responsive government (6 percent);
• Protection against crime and violence (7 percent); and
• Better healthcare (6 percent).

3.  Top five priorities in each of the participating countries were:

• Malawian - An honest and responsible government (14 percent), affordable and nutritious food (11 percent), better healthcare (10 percent), good education (10 percent) and better job opportunities (10 percent);
• South African - better job opportunities (32 percent), good education (20 percent), and protection against crime and violence (6 percent), an honest and responsive government (6 percent) and support for people who cannot work (5 percent);
• Zambia - good education (26 percent), better job opportunities (25 percent), better healthcare (6 percent), better transport and roads (5 percent) and an honest and responsible government (3 percent).

4.   As part of the campaign, ONE worked with more than 20 partners:

• ONE’s lead non-governmental organization (NGO) and faith partners included the Council for NGOs in Malawi (CONGOMA), South Africa’s Economic Justice Network (EJN), as well as Zambia’s Civil Society for Poverty  Reduction (CSPR) and Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia (EFZ);
• ONE’s corporate partners included the Malawi Savings Bank (MSB), the UN Information Systems and Standard Chartered Bank in Zambia all who supported the campaign with their growing SMS customer databases.

About ONE
 
ONE is a campaigning and advocacy organisation of more than 3.5 million people taking action to end extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa. Co-founded by Bono and strictly nonpartisan, we raise public awareness and work with political leaders to combat AIDS and preventable diseases, increase investments in agriculture and nutrition, and demand greater transparency in poverty-fighting programmes.
 
ONE is not a grant-making organisation and does not solicit funding from the public or receive government funding. ONE is funded almost entirely by a handful of philanthropists and foundations. We achieve change through advocacy. Our teams in Washington, D.C., London, Johannesburg, Brussels, Berlin, and Paris educate and lobby governments to shape policy solutions that save and improve millions of lives.
 
For more about ONE, refer to www.one.org.