FOOD SECURITY
The United Nations has declared the global hunger emergency the largest humanitarian crisis since 1945 and as of 2017, an unprecedented 815 million people need emergency food assistance. Across East Africa, the Lake Chad Basin, starvation threatens millions of people while countries like Ethiopia, Somalia, Nigeria and South Sudan are already experiencing emergency levels of food insecurity and face a credible risk of famine.
A crisis came about as a result of prolonged drought, violence and insecurity. Consecutive years of poor rains and harvests have decimated crops across South Sudan, Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya. An effective solution to the crisis to enable security will include both-short-term and long-term solutions with strategic implementation of the four identified pillars of food security by The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations; availability, access, utilization, and stability. All four components must be satisfied simultaneously to meet the objectives of food security.
We believe the short-term solution involves urgently addressing the immediate need for food by the less privileged who cannot afford decent nutritious meals either in the city or crisis-hit areas. On the long-term solution, we also seek partnership and support to empower farmers through sensitisation and provisions of seedlings, cassava stems, fertilizers and farm tools to ensure a future where all will have enough to eat. Food security guarantees that all people at all times have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food which meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. Household food security is the application of this concept to the family level, with individuals within households as the focus of concern.
Agriculture has great potential which when properly harnessed, can end hunger, bring prosperity and create great employment opportunities and at Golden Oasis Spring Foundation, that is what we are committed to achieving.