The Hunger Project - training volunteer leaders to end poverty
Last updated 7/9/2009 4:39:16 PM
The Hunger Project is a global organisation whose aim is to end hunger in the developing world.
However, rather than giving aid in the traditional way, The Hunger Project empowers local people to take effective, sustainable and strategic action themselves, through training, education and inspired leadership.
The organisation works in more than 20,000 villages across 13 countries of South Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America, reaching an estimated 35 million people, primarily through 275,000 trained volunteer leaders.
The Hunger Project in South Asia
Recent laws in India guarantee than one-third of seats in local government are reserved for women. The Hunger Project has empowered more than 70,000 grassroots elected women as effective change agents through a comprehensive strategy of training, networking and advocacy, throughout a 5-year election cycle.
In Bangladesh, The Hunger Project is currently the country's largest volunteer-based organisation. Here, the focus is on the training and on-going support of more than 116,000 volunteer animators (40% of whom are women) and empowering locally elected representatives to encourage decentralisation and increased access to resources.
The Hunger Project also catalysed the creation of SHUJAN (Citizens for Good Governance) to strengthen grassroots democracy, ensuring the transparency and accountability of local government.