Compassion has been working in Haiti since 1968.
International (MNN) ― The global food crisis is impacting children and families involved in Compassion International's child sponsorship programs.
Prices of staple foods have doubled in the last year, forcing families that live on $1 a day to spend at least 80 percent of their budgets on food. As a result, many go hungry. 2 billion of the world's 6.7 billion people live on less than $2 a day.
The World Food Programm calls the crisis a "silent tsunami" and says it may plunge 100 million more people on each continent into hunger. Over 800 million people are currently at risk for starvation.
Rising fuel costs, the growth of biofuels, the exploding populations of India and China, and crop damage from natural disasters have all contributed to an 80 percent increase in food prices since 2005. Compassion families in many countries, especially in Bangladesh and Haiti, are suffering as a result.
In Bangladesh, Compassion supports 82 child-development centers, which serve more than 12,000 children. 90 percent of these children are severely affected by the global food crisis, and many of these children receive the only food they ever get at the church-based center.
In Haiti, 226 Compassion centers serve 60,800 children. 70 percent of Haiti's population lives on less than $2 a day. Compassion Haiti estimates that it will need 2-6 million dollars to feed all of the children and their families over the next few months. For just $13, you can feed a child for a month.
In the face of this crisis, Compassion is asking its supporters to participate in a day of prayer and fasting on Wednesday, June 25.
"Prayer is the greatest action you can take in combating this unfortunate event," said Mark Hanlon, senior vice president-USA at Compassion International. "Most people don't know what to do in the face of such a significant global crisis. We are encouraging people to start with prayer. That's why we're inviting all of our U.S. sponsors, donors, advocates and staff to ever so briefly and symbolically enter into the suffering of our brothers and sisters worldwide and join in on this corporate effort."
