Sorghum Distributions Helps Vulnerable Families In South Sudan
A nursing mother waits for sorghum from GEMS Development Foundation
Through generous donations from our donors and a grant from LDS Charities, GEMS Development Foundation is continuing our monthly sorghum distribution program in multiple villages in South Sudan. Due to catastrophic flooding and grain shortages caused by the war in Ukraine, many South Sudanese families have been left without enough food. Pregnant and nursing mothers, people with disabilities and the elderly are particularly at high risk to suffer from acute malnutrition.
Each month, sorghum is bought from local vendors and those registered with the program come to the distribution site to get 10 Malwa (approximately 20 kg) of sorghum. While sorghum cannot provide complete nutrition, it provides much needed caloric intake and helps to stave off starvation in this vulnerable population.
Families have been so grateful to receive grain! We’ve already begun to see a difference in their faces, as they become healthier from their food needs being met consistently. Malnutrition leaves people at a much higher risk of dying from other health concerns such as dysentery, typhoid, or other communicable disease. When your body is weak, it is much more difficult to fight off these types of deadly infections.
Your donations help GEMS continue to meet the emergency survival needs of the people in South Sudan.