In my travels through Asia, I am saddened by the poor nourishment of many Asian children. My training as a doctor helps me to pick up signs of malnourishment (eg. under-sized children, late maturity, general lethargy) in almost every Asian country – whether rural or urban.
The average traveler is more likely to be impressed by the nicer clothes that they wear, the newer electronic gadgets in their hands and the slickly packed snacks that they eat and assume that these children are doing well.
An average meal for many Asian children is a plate of rice, topped with a little instant noodles (from a pack that is shared among the whole family). This convenient, tasty meal may satisfy the child’s taste buds and fill his belly but will surely not adequately nourish him. Sad to say, such meals are becoming more common as we “progress”! After all, to many mothers the slickly packaged instant noodles suggests a “scientific” meal for the modern mum!
I do not believe that Asian mothers deliberately want to under-nourish their children. I believe that ignorance contributes significantly to this state of affairs. And I believe that this trend can be reversed – one backyard at a time!
For the past year, Goducate has been experimenting with different aspects of bio-intensive backyard farming and we are convinced that with the right type of organic fertilizers (easily produced by earthworms), the right type of seeds (easily obtained from agricultural organizations) and a little encouragement, Asian mums can produce enough “organic” vegetables to feed their children in their own backyards. With today’s agri-technology, there is no reason why the poor cannot enjoy the freshest, most nutritious meals from their own backyards.
Goducate presently is developing two farms in the Philippines – one in Iloilo (in the central part of the Philippines) and the other in Laguna (in the northern island of Luzon) – to train community workers for Asia.
Goducate hopes to help Asians help themselves – beginning with one backyard at a time!