East Africa Child Hunger and Famine Relief Fund

In many ways, four-year-old Jacob is just like any other little boy his age. He likes playing with his friends, enjoys stories from his mother and is never happier than when eating!

Yet Jacob has more reason than most to look forward to his next meal. In rural Kenya where he lives, there’s very little food to go round.

His mother, Alice, told us more. “It is because of the drought that we are hungry,” she explained, “Because our livestock has died.” Losing their three goats was a bitter blow to the family and left them struggling desperately for survival.

With no milk or meat to live on, it’s no wonder that little Jacob grew sick – painfully thin, weak and wracked with diarrhea. But thankfully, Save the Children has set up an outreach health center not far from his home. And there, he was diagnosed with malnutrition and given a nutrient-rich peanut paste to save his life. It took eight long months to nurse Jacob back to health, but he was lucky enough to make a full recovery.

“His condition is now better,” says his relieved mother. “I can’t see any problems with him any more.” Now expecting another baby, she too has received help from our health center – including bags of special flour that she can turn into nutritious porridge. She’s also been taught about the importance of hygiene and given a bucket, bars of soap and a towel to encourage regular hand-washing.

“I am grateful, having the Save the Children center close at hand has changed everything for the family – and given everyone hope for the future for children’s in this area,” she says, as she watches Jacob play with his brother. Having our health.

In Jacob’s mother Alice’s own words: “During the drought Save the Children provided a lot of support, especially to my family. An outreach site had been established about 4km from here, and I was able to receive Corn Soya Bean, which is flour used to make porridge, medical care, a lot of check-ups just to find out if am okay. At the same outreach site they screened my son and provided him with Plumpy’Nut for 8 consecutive months. He is now healthier than before. They educated us on the importance of hygiene to reduce cases of diseases. Save the Children team provided us with a bucket which had bars of soap, and a towel for use after thorough hand washing. I am grateful for Save the Children’s work in this area.”

Thank you for your continued support!