With gratitude evident in her eyes, Maria clutched her food package. For her, this wasn’t just a food aid, it was relief from weeks of uncertainty of where she and her children’s next meal will come from. The Temporary Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) helps families like Maria’s to transform their lives far beyond the dinner table.
Everyday thousands of families across Lagos have to make tough choices between buying food or paying for other unavoidable expenses. More often vulnerable families skip meals as a coping method to meet other pressing needs such securing shelter. In Lagos State, a program like the Temporary Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) of the Lagos Food Bank exists to ensure that food consumption gaps do not exist in households. Through TEFAP, LFBI has reached over 170 communities in Lagos and its environs with immediate food assistance that can sustain these families for about 2-3 weeks.
The initiative believes hunger is not just about an empty plate. It strips people of their dignity and peace of mind. A mother who can place nice meals on her children’s plate gains more than calories for her family, she gains the reassurance that there’s always still hope with each passing day. Fighting hunger is about restoring the dignity and hope of people.
Beyond food aid and hunger relief, TEFAP reduces both the physical and emotional stress induced by hunger within families. It curbs food waste through the storage of surplus produce and redistribution to the most vulnerable people. Volunteers find purpose in distributing these food items while building networks of solidarity. Communities thrive well when their people are more food secure.
Lessons drawn from recurring outreaches carried out by Lagos Food Bank Initiative in underserved communities across Lagos and other states by a network of Beneficiary Organizations across Nigeria show that the impact of food aid is emotional as well as nutritional, safeguarding dignity and hope as a form of social protection. When a family gets food supply from the Food Bank, they walk away with the message that they matter, that they are seen and supported. LFBI is creating a future where no family has to choose between basic needs and self-worth.
Article written by Adebiyi Raheemah Bukola