Agenda: A beacon of hope for the children of South Sudan

Children in South Sudan receiving Mary’s Meals (marysmeals.org.uk)

By Karen Gray

I AM sure, like me, you are feeling greatly moved and disturbed by the terrible conflict in Ukraine.

Too many children in this world^[1] are living in countries where fighting has become part of everyday life. This includes South Sudan, one of the 20 countries where Mary’s Meals serves our nutritious school meals.

More than 70 per cent of children in South Sudan are sadly missing out on an education^[2] – the highest rate in the world.

It’s little wonder that survival often takes priority over attending school. These children have grown up knowing nothing but war. Years of violence, chronic food shortages, and upheaval have drastically hindered their learning.

In the midst of this deep despair and devastation, there is a beacon of hope. And that hope comes in the form of a colourful bowl full of maize and beans that we serve in 114 schools across the country.

Our life-changing meals are giving children the energy to learn, hope for a better future and some respite from the immense difficulty of everyday life.

Mary’s Meals is one of few organisations delivering food to schools in South Sudan. We are already feeding around 70,000 children there every school day and are determined to reach even more desperately hungry little ones with Mary’s Meals. That’s why we launched an appeal for South Sudan earlier this year.

We’re humbled by stories of children who eat Mary’s Meals showing such hope in the face of adversity. It makes us more determined to reach the next hungry child waiting for our meals.

Despite the conflict in South Sudan, Justine, 12, is one of those children who won’t give up.

My heart goes out to innocent children like Justine – and all those suffering in the world today – who are often among the most vulnerable victims of conflict.

Justine was tending her goats in the morning sunshine when she heard voices screaming in terror. Confused and scared, she ran home to find her mother and sister already gone. With soldiers fast approaching, there was no time to waste. She ran.

She escaped from shooting soldiers, hiding in a remote forest with her neighbour where they stayed for three days.

By some miracle, Justine was later reunited with her family, and they found a place to start rebuilding their lives. Our partner helped to establish essential services near their new home, including a school, where we now serve Mary’s Meals.

With the promise of a daily school meal, Justine hopes for a better tomorrow for her country.

“Now we have food in the school, and I am so happy to be there,” she says.

“When I grow up, I do not want to fight. I want to become a teacher and tell the children fighting is not good.”

Like Justine, we have hope for a better tomorrow, one where all children can go to school, have enough to eat, and live in peace.

To donate to the Mary’s Meals South Sudan Appeal, visit marysmeals.org.uk/campaigns/south-sudan-appeal^[3] or phone 0800 698 1212.

Karen Gray is director of communications for Mary’s Meals

References

1. ^{^} world (www.heraldscotland.com)
2. ^{^} education (www.heraldscotland.com)
3. ^{^} marysmeals.org.uk/campaigns/south-sudan-appeal (www.marysmeals.org.uk)