Although the end result of the above examples is the same to some extent, they come from vastly different sources; one is from the heart, and the other from the head.
But in these unprecedented times, are we able to do either? How can we, when we are struggling ourselves, go about helping others with financial aid, and who is worthy of our generosity when we are giving from our need, and not our surplus?
Livelihood development and poverty alleviation have always been at the heart of what Impophomo believes and implements, but under the exceptional circumstances that we all find ourselves in, Impophomo has moved into disaster relief mode. The disaster we are trying to avert is hunger on a scale not seen before.
It is true that most of us are poorer than we were in March when COVID-19 became a reality and the world changed, and it is true that most of us don’t have surplus funds like we used to for helping others through charitable giving. But how relative is poverty in these times? Tonight, will we have to listen to our child crying because they are hungry, or go to bed hungry ourselves? Will we have to water down our food to make it stretch a little further? Will we watch our previously employed neighbour begging for food because they have lost their job?