"I have been shocked to see that children could still die of hunger in Rio de Janeiro..."
Over 10% of young children are undernourished in Rio's ‘City of God’, says a study releases by international NGO ActionAid and the Centre of Studies, Cultural actions and citizenship of the City of God (CEACC).
And the lives of 39 of those children are said to be at risk if urgent action is not taken.
The study looked at children from birth to age five and compared them with those in the north east of Brazil – said to be one of the poorest parts of the country – where 5.4% of children were said to be undernourished.
“I have lived in the ‘City of God’ for many years and I was shocked to see the gravity of the situation,” says Zelia Pereira, who coordinated the research.
The research evaluated 2,428 children for birth to age five and was undertaken by professional nutritionists and 30 young people from the ‘City of God’.
“We know that the Brazilian government is developing key public policies to fight hunger but they need to be better implemented and strengthened so that this situation cannot happen anymore,” said Rosana Heringer, programme coordinator at ActionAid Brazil.
ActionAid and CEACC presented the study to the local authorities today (Tuesday 31 July) and will bring it to the UN and President Lula in New York at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGASS) to take place between the 18th and 20th of September in New York.
“I’ve been shocked to see that children could still die of hunger in my own community,” said Alexey Ribeiro, one of the young who participated to the research.
“But I am proud to have taken part in the project, which I hope will raise awareness about this terrible situation,” he added. -ActionAid
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