Fortify Education Foundation (FEF) is dedicated to improving the lives of economically disadvantaged school children in Pakistan. Through our School Meal Program (SMP), we provide freshly prepared meals on every school day to nourish and enable the learning of children aged 5-15 years old.
With over 38.3% of school age children in Pakistan being stunted, 28.5% wasted, and 17.5% underweight, we understand the importance of providing daily school meals to improve their health, physical development, and mental sharpness. It also serves as a strong incentive to attract and retain children in schools.
Our vision is: To improve child learning and health by eradicating malnutrition and hunger in underprivileged schools.
Our mission is to: To provide nourishment and cultivate minds through serving free meals to children in all provinces of Pakistan by 2030.
Currently, we are working in Orangi Town Karachi, the largest slum in the world, where the population faces severe economic and living conditions. Our goal is to expand our meal program to all of Karachi and eventually other cities across Pakistan, with the rallying cry of "today Orangi tomorrow the entire country".
Presently, we are serving meals to over 800 children in 4 schools (1 private and 3 government-run). Since launching our program, we have seen a significant improvement in enrollment, particularly in government schools, with up to a 40% increase. Teachers have also reported much improvement in their overall school performance.
As of February 28th, 2023, we have served 259,686 meals to underprivileged school children. Our program costs Rs. 2,100 per child per month for freshly prepared meals six days a week, with meat provided twice a week.
