Djamila had to leave home, school and her friends to help her mother beg for food and money. Farmers and their families in Niger are facing a food crisis after droughts have caused their crops to fail and food prices to increase by up to 30% in some areas. Unable to grow or buy enough food to survive, these families are now heading to cities and towns in Niger and across the border in Nigeria to find work or to beg to try and ward off hunger.
About the Filmmaker
Save the Children works in six districts in Niger with integrated programs of health, nutrition, and protection, delivering life-saving support for children in the greatest need. While Niger’s under-five child mortality rate remains high in comparison to many other countries, Niger is on track to achieve the fourth UN Millennium Development Goal (MDG 4) to reduce preventable under-five mortality rates by two-thirds in 2015. But what sets Niger apart from other countries that have reduced their under-five mortality rate by two-thirds is Niger is meeting a critical “triple bottom line”-reducing child mortality and doing it in an equitable and sustainable way.
This means that Niger’s progress has benefited children across all income groups, boys and girls equally, and in rural areas, as well as urban slums. Moreover, Niger’s success has happened in spite of scarce resources and recurring droughts.
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