Africa-Press – Botswana. The COVID-19 pandemic has continued to increase the depth and scale of food insecurity, malnutrition and poverty in communities.
This has therefore necessitated the need for initiatives such as the food relief project by the Botswana Red Cross Society (BRCS) in partnership with Palms for Life Fund.
Launching the second phase of the project in Gaborone on Monday, BRCS Secretary General Mr Kutlwano Mukokomani explained that the project was prompted by incidences of food deficits in communities due to a number of factors among them climate change.
Mr Mukokomani said the situation had affected the poor leading to an increase in both the number of hungry communities and the depth of food deprivation.
“The second phase is an extension from last year’s partnership with Palms for Life, which provided food packages to over 450 families in the sub-districts of Maun, Bobirwa, Kweneng West and Okavango,” he said.
He said last year’s project was funded at a cost of close to P2.4m whilst this year’s project used close to P1.6m.
“Our current partnership with Palms for Life will see continuation of the Okavango district project, which has targeted 250 families for the next six months,” Mr Mukokomani said.
Palms for Life National Coordinator Ms Dorothy Okatch said they were committed to working towards socio-economic investments with the intention not to lose a generation to hunger and poverty.
She said they were focused on educational platforms, with a strong emphasis on girls and young women.
“It is imperative to invest in institutions such as schools and community centres where projects are more likely to generate necessary changes in behaviours and attitudes among young people,” Ms Okatch said.
Ms Okatch also noted that they would continue to engage with partners to identify opportunities to support communities in remote areas in the fight against poverty.
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