For many children in Latin America, poverty can be confusing. Within just a few miles of a slum community, there are gated communities and large houses with full refrigerators. This unbalanced distribution of wealth is common throughout Latin America, and it is very difficult for impoverished families to break out of poverty. With many families unable to get decent jobs, it is difficult to put food on the table.
For many Asian countries, agriculture is a main source of income for billions of people. For a part of the world regularly plagued by natural disasters, this causes drastic economic losses. When families are unable to find regular work, they may be vulnerable to forced labor—including the children! In many parts of Asia where Children’s Hunger Fund serves, traffickers look for children in great need to lure them into dangerous situations with promises of food and shelter.
Even though the United States is one of the wealthiest countries in the world, there are many children and families who are facing food insecurity, and it is not always easy to see. They may live in a home but cannot afford electricity or regular meals. For many children, summers are especially difficult. During the school year, schools across the country offer free and reduced-price meals. Unfortunately, those meals end when summer starts. Children facing poverty in the US may not know when they will have their next meal or if they will go to bed hungry.