Rice to feed needy

The
Catholic Weekly
Online

Sydney
8 February 2004

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Rice to feed needy

With the help of Catholic Mission Australia, Our Lady of Mt Carmel Centre in the Thai vilage of Ngao feeds the children from the local hill tribes, plus refugees from Burma

By Chris Lindsay

Catholic Mission Australia is doing its bit for this year’s International Year of Rice by helping feed needy people in Thailand.

One of its projects is the Our Lady of Mt Carmel Centre in Ngao, Thailand.

With the help of Catholic Mission, the centre feeds, clothes, and provides education and shelter for local village children from the surrounding hill tribes.

There are many refugees from Laos and Burma, too. The Burmese refugees often arrive with no documents, no place to stay, no prospects of employment and no knowledge of the local language, making their integration into Thai society extremely difficult.

In the centre, the children of these refugees are fully assisted with food, clothing, housing and medical expenses.

Their families are unable to contribute any money.

“In the boarding houses in the village, Catholic Mission gives rice to the children and provides school fees and equipment, and medical assistance,” says Catholic Mission Australia’s national director, Fr Terry Bell.

“In the villages, the program provides assistance with food where necessary, with special foods such as milk.

“It also provides school materials and special education courses.

“The centre is a Catholic Mission Australia project and we get regular reports on how it is going.”

Fr Terry says rice is a staple food in many countries.

Catholic Mission uses rice in feeding programs all over the world.

“Feeding programs are a constant part of our work,” he says. “Schools we run often provide a hot meal for the children and in many cases it is their first meal of the day.

“Nutrition is a most valuable part of our work. Without proper nutrition the children cannot learn and eventually their health fails.”

According to the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation, rice is the staple food for 17 countries in Asia and the Pacific, eight in Africa, and nine in North and South America.

Rice feeds more than half the population of the world. And it is often the main source of employment, income and nutrition in many poor regions.

More than 15 per cent of children under five, totalling about 174 million, in undeveloped countries are severely malnourished and 230 million have stunted growth.

In South Asia alone more than 90 million children go hungry every day.

The long-term effects on their lives are devastating, as malnutrition kills, maims and disables.

To help Catholic Mission fund projects like this one in Thailand, freecall 1800 257 296 or you can visit www.catholicmission.org.au to make a donation.