“His condition was serious when I brought him in, and I didn’t expect him to reach the town alive. My biggest worry is the children, whether my own, those of the relatives or those of my neighbours. When drought comes, it follows that hunger will strike.” Shamso*, the mother of seven-month-old Mukhtar*, recalled the terrifying journey to get her son medical help.

Right now, stories like Hamdan’s are becoming harder to repeat. 

At least 110,000 severely acutely malnourished children globally supported by Save the Children could soon be left without access to life-saving emergency food, as devastating aid cuts hit global supplies in the coming months. 

These children rely on Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF), an energy-dense, fortified peanut paste, which is a critical element of the treatment process for severe acute malnutrition. For many children, it’s often the only thing standing between life or death. But recent aid cuts mean there is a global shortage of this lifesaving peanut paste.

To keep our nutrition programs running in countries like Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Myanmar, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, and Yemen we urgently need to raise $7 million. With this sum, we will be able to deliver 110,000 boxes of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food to children facing severe malnutrition, helping to bring them back from critical danger. 

Without immediate help, this critical work won’t be able to continue. With each passing day there will be more hungry children, more desperate families, more broken lives. We cannot allow this. Donate now to the Children’s Emergency Fund to ensure they get the treatment they need.

*Name changed to protect their identity 

Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) is a special peanut paste, high in micronutrients, that has the power to boost children’s strength when they’ve been weakened by malnutrition – and gives children and their families hope for tomorrow. Globally, 1 in 5 deaths among children under age 5 are attributed to severe acute malnutrition, making it one of the top threats to child survival. Community-based treatment programs combining medical treatment and ready-to-use emergency food have a 90% success rate in treating severe acute malnutrition.   

RUTF is not just food. It’s a lifeline for malnourished children. And it works:

• It provides essential calories, vitamins, and minerals to help children recover from acute malnutrition.

• No refrigeration needed—it’s easy to store and use in emergency situations.

• Proven life-saver—over the past 30 years RUTF has saved the lives of millions of children facing acute malnutrition.

• For many children, RUTF is the difference between life and death.

Six weeks of peanut paste—just $67— can bring a child back from critical danger, giving them the strength to take in diverse, nutritious, locally available foods. It gives a child the chance to regain their health and restart their childhood.  

$7 million would mean around 110,000 boxes of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food could be supplied to children facing severe hunger in 10 countries (Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Myanmar, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, and Yemen).  

If there's even a chance to raise the funds we need, please help us keep these children alive. Every donation to the Children’s Emergency Fund —no matter how big or small—can make an immense difference.

Donations to our Children’s Emergency Fund support our work with children and families in any of our emergency responses worldwide, meaning you will be helping us deliver lifesaving assistance wherever it is needed, when it matters most.