Launched in 2003 by then-president Lula da Silva, Brazil’s Zero Hunger programme had an ambitious goal: to guarantee every Brazilian had three meals a day. Nine years on, it has become a textbook case of success. What’s the secret?

If you were following Rio +20 you’ve probably heard about UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s “Zero Hunger Challenge”. He wants to see an end to hunger in his lifetime. We can all get behind that, don’t you think?

But did you know that the Zero Hunger Challenge was inspired by a successful anti-hunger programme in Brazil? Give a listen to the Center for Investigative Reporting for the Food for 9 Billion project radio report about Brazil’s Zero Hunger Programme. It has interviews with people who benefited from the programme and who worked to make it a success.

As part of its activities, Zero Hunger in Brazil provided direct financial assistance to the most impoverished families. It also opened up government-run restaurants that provided low-cost meals three times a day to those in need. What’s more, Zero Hunger worked to address root causes of poverty and hunger. For a family to receive money for food, the children had to be enrolled in school. Better education has given these children a chance to break free from the vicious circle of poverty and hunger.

Brazil’s Zero Hunger reaffirmed the responsibility of a government to ensure a basic human right – the right to food. And it proved that when a government is truly committed, hunger can be eradicated.

Is your government doing all it can to end hunger? Maybe it could learn some lessons from Brazil. Maybe you could let them know.

 

Food for 9 Billion, is a collaborative project of Homelands Productions, the Center for Investigative Reporting, American Public Media's Marketplace, and PBS Newshour.