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Exkl.: Fotoreportage bei Projekten der Welthungerhilfe in Madagaskar
Madagascar

Prominent Support for Welthungerhilfe

Main sector
Nutrition

Barren landscapes, parched riverbeds, red dirt: This is how southwestern Madagascar looks. Michaela May travelled here to visit Tuléar, a Welthungerhilfe project region. The beloved actress has already been active with Welthungerhilfe for several years. She is excited by the successful projects in Madagascar:

“Rather than just giving handouts, they are offering meaningful help for beginning a life of dignity and autonomy.”

Exkl.: Fotoreportage bei Projekten der Welthungerhilfe in Madagaskar
Welthungerhilfe’s projects offer help for self-help. They enable people to provide for themselves in the future. © Welthungerhilfe

Welthungerhilfe's work in Madagascar

Hunger and Poverty in Holiday Paradise

Madagascar is well-known as a holiday paradise. However, reality on the island off the east coast of Africa is far less appealing: Approximately 92% of the almost 30 million Malagasy live below the poverty line. Hunger is especially great in the country’s south and southwest. 55,000 children die here from under- and malnutrition every year. The effects of climate change exacerbate the situation. Madagascar is one of the hardest-hit countries.

In order to fight hunger and poverty, Welthungerhilfe is supporting smallholders in Madagascar, since approximately 80% of the population farms for a living. In the village of Ambatolily in the commune of Millenaka, Welthungerhilfe is supporting smallholder families in the direct vicinity of nature reserves. Illegal logging is a big problem here. Comprehensive workshops educate the smallholders on how to better protect their land and increase crop yields. In addition, women are offered more independence and autonomy through an educational and professional training programme.

Many women in the Tuléar region live in difficult family circumstances and are the sole providers for themselves and several children. Madame Véronique’s women’s cooperative "Force de Légumes” particularly impressed Michaela May. During her visit, the actress helped shell beans and corn, expressing her admiration for the women: “It is nice to see them blossoming and becoming independent businesswomen thanks to Welthungerhilfe’s help!”

“A Little Help Goes a Long Way”

At the end of her trip, Michaela May is impressed by Welthungerhilfe’s successful efforts: “It is clear that enough food is available to eliminate hunger,” she says. “A little help goes a long way. Even 15 euros are enough to provide a family with seeds, spades and shovels for planting a vegetable garden. Please do your part to help; everyone has a right to food!

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