Hunger Relief Africa is contributing towards a priority to ending hunger in our African continent and nations through Research & Innovations. Establish a research unit responsible for Hunger and Food Security, Nutrition and Health that builds, assesses, and understands hunger. This is vital to mapping an effective course to solve the hunger crisis over the long term. By learning more about the people who seek food assistance, where it exists, and how it is manifested in communities, we can ensure that we are reaching those at risk of hunger in the most effective ways possible. Hunger Relief Africa yearly planning conducts in the 4th quarter a study “The Map the Meal Gap Study” to learn about the face of hunger at the local level.

Statistics show that approximately 2.4 million children under age five years of age in Uganda suffer from acute malnutrition. Furthermore, the percentage of children within the same age bracket who are stunted is alarmingly close to 30 percent. This equates to almost 3 in every 10 children being stunted. In addition to this, 3.5 percent face body wasting. An analysis by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification(IPC) predicts an unsettling future of children and pregnant women in Karamoja region of Uganda. The report suggests that over 89,000 children aged 6 to 59 months, along with 10,000 pregnant or lactating women (PLW), will likely suffer from acute malnutrition between February 2023 and January 2024. It’s important to note that stunting is not a temporary condition but one can only be prevented beforehand. Likewise, early childhood malnutrition contributes significantly to perpetuating low productivity in adulthood. For instance, a child born in a Sub-Saharan African country is expected to achieve only 40 percent of his/ her future productivity if he/she were to enjoy full health and complete education. Hence, it's imperative that we pay more attention to nutritional needs and health care provisions in these regions to prevent long-term damage.

Hunger Relief Africa position its expertise in preventing and treating undernutrition in operational areas of Africa where hunger is most severe and entrenched. We are building a revolutionary nutrition product directly from field based practice and testing of treatment protocols that is envisage to become Africa’s own best practice. We are ambitious to prevent and treat undernutrition in more than 10 African countries in the next 10 years in isolated rural communities to overcrowded urban slums. We work in both urban and rural community contexts to improve the health and survival of the most vulnerable orphanage children under the age of five, as well as pregnant women and nursing mothers. Our focus remains nutrition, health, mental health, and care programs on our top priority targets for our programs across African countries.

Hunger Relief Africa apply research methodology that analyzes both indirect and direct factors by conducting rigorous assessments needed to guide an effective and relevant response. Data is shared to determine the prevalence and the root causes of undernutrition in each local context.

Orphanage Children are referred when they show signs of complications from acute malnourishment for inpatient treatment. Hunger Relief Africa do provide local, accessible, easy-to-reach outpatient treatment for acutely malnourished orphanage children without medical complications through a well-designed approach.

Hunger Relief Africa nutrition programs are focused on preventing acute undernutrition. This approach is integrated, addressing both direct and underlying causes of undernutrition. In the communities of Uganda, both urban and rural, we are working towards building a stronger network of community health teams and nutritionists. Our goal is to ensure that vulnerable groups, specifically, children under five, pregnant women, and nursing mothers have access to supplementary food. This helps meet their nutritional needs and prevent them from becoming undernourished. A key highlights of our work is the designed and implementation nutrition education programs. These programs are aimed at training and supporting young mothers on the importance of exclusive breastfeeding for the first 180 days after birth. This initiative ensures that health care and feeding practices of children from 180 to 1,800 days are centered around receiving adequate micronutrients and macronutrients for healthy development. Our work doesn't stop at education, we facilitated peer support community groups, where young pregnant mothers are guided by professional health workers. This guidance encourages and promotes good nutrition, hygiene, sanitation in target groups. Through our combined efforts in Uganda, we hope to significantly reduce the rates of acute undernutrition and foster healthier communities.

Hunger Relief Africa program design allow strengthening of the local health systems through training local health care workers and community health partners to screen and treat undernutrition. When needs arise in case of an emergencies, we directly deliver emergency nutrition programs to provide lifesaving treatment to acutely undernourished orphanages. However, we are leveraging on already existing community model to transfer our knowledge through community’s local health care services to ensure sustainability, as well as we are building communities' resilience to hunger and mitigate the causes and consequences of undernutrition.

Nutrition Facts in Africa

• More than one third of stunted children under the age of five lived in Africa
• The prevalence of stunting in children under the age of five varies by region. Sub-Saharan Africa shows a higher prevalence (33.9%) in comparison with North Africa.
• Africa loses $25 billion per year to costs attributed to child illnesses and deaths, impaired cognitive development and physical under-development caused by malnutrition.
• Investing in nutrition is cost-effective, and critical for Africa’s economic and human capital development. For every $1 invested in nutrition, there is a $16 return on investment in health, education and productivity outcomes.

Hunger Relief Africa is working towards influencing the legislators to protect and strengthen National nutrition programs and Social Assistance Grants for Empowerment in each year’s budget review and national debate and the reauthorization of the 2015 Agricultural interventions that has the potential to improve food and nutrition security. Intervention programs that promotes the production and consumption of vitamin A–rich orange-fleshed sweet potatoes among rural farm households in Uganda; agricultural and nutritional training, as well as strategies for marketing the crops and large-scale agricultural extension program that is providing smallholder women farmers with improved access to seeds for high-yielding varieties and training in agricultural methods.

Hunger Relief Africa’s Department of marketing and communications is using a well- thoughts designed cause-marketing programs to raise awareness about the hunger crisis and engage the public to make a donation to support hunger-relief in Africa. In our community, this means that more people shall be aware of the hunger problem and adding their actions to the movement.