40 Hour Famine on this weekend

NZ youth have gone without to support communities in Malawi this 40 Hour Famine.

In all 90,000 New Zealand youth took part and raise much-needed funds for the people of Malawi who are experiencing the chaos caused by extreme weather events, like droughts, cyclones and floods, that are resulting in food shortages, hunger and malnutrition.

This year marked the 45^th edition of the 40 hour famine.

This year, five Kiwi Youth Ambassadors – Izaac Wilson, Jess McLennan, Alyssa Wilson, Daniel Rickman and Hayley Gotlieb travelled to Malawi in 2019. They have been spreading the news of the famine over the last 6 months.

World Vision New Zealand National Director Grant Bayldon says the 40 Hour Famine is a calendar item he looks forward to each year, adding that this year it seems all the more crucial for the charity organisation to provide a platform for NZ youth to rally together and make change.

More on the 40 Hour Famine

Since it started, in 1975, the New Zealand 40 Hour Famine has raised more than $80 million and brought hope to thousands of children living in poverty in more than 40 countries.

More than three million New Zealanders have participated in the 40 Hour Famine since it began.

More on the Malawi hunger crisis

Extreme weather events are causing loss of crops for communities who rely so heavily on them – 71.9% of Malawians are subsistence farmers who rely entirely on what they can grow to survive. One bad yield, due to drought or flooding, can mean the difference between surviving and children going to bed hungry.

Right now, climate vulnerable communities are facing food shortages, hunger and malnutrition. 

World Vision is working with communities in Malawi to help them adapt to and mitigate extreme weather conditions, so their human rights are safeguarded and realised.