Nutritional Support

Children who are HIV+ must eat at regular time and must keep their body weight up in order to stay healthy.  Since many of the children are taking strong medicine to combat opportunistic infections and/or HIV, it is especially important for them to have healthy food. During times of drought or famine, children and their families have a hard time finding the food they need to survive. To that end, AFCA does two things:

1. We provide ATMIT (an oat based porridge produced by the Church of the Latter Day Saints), as well as locally produced foods, which might include maize, beans, oil, milk, and other neccessary items which are out of financial reach of the children, due to inflated prices.  This is only done when there is no other way to move forward.  It is a stop-gap measure because we do not want to become a welfare program.  Nutritional support is carried out for specific amounts of time, in specific locations, depending on the needs of the children. This program is just until food production starts again and the children can afford to eat.

2. We support Livelihood Projects which train and enable children and their guardians to raise their own flocks of chicks, goats, or rabbits.  And, we support community and family gardens through the provision of seeds, training, supplies, and man-power.