A new exhibition from global development charity Self Help Africa aims to highlight and showcase the challenges faced by women and girls across Africa, in the context of the climate crisis.
‘Africa Adapting’ is on display at Queen’s University Belfast, School of Biological Sciences, 15 Chlorine Gardens, Belfast, on Tuesday 15th, Thursday 17th and Friday 18th October from 9am-5pm.
The thought-provoking exhibition brings to life the stories of people Self Help Africa are working with in countries in Africa. People who are least responsible for, but are most impacted by climate change.
Through personal narratives, ‘Africa Adapting’ illustrates how women and girls are harnessing information, science, market opportunities and more, to mobilise their communities to respond to the climate crisis and other pressing challenges.
One of these challenges is access to a healthy diet. As we mark World Food Day on October 16, more than 2.8 billion people in the world are unable to afford a healthy diet. Last year, more than one in five people in Africa – and one in 11 worldwide – faced hunger.
Extreme weather events are having a devastating impact on the ability of millions of farmers in Africa to grow enough food to earn a decent income, and to feed their families. If the climate crisis continues along its current path, crop production in Africa will decline by 18% by 2050.
Martha Hourican, Director of Public Engagement at Self Help Africa said: “Access to food is a fundamental human right – yet in 2024 as we commemorate World Food Day, more than 730 million people around the world are facing hunger, due to a number of global shocks and challenges. Self Help Africa’s ‘Africa Adapting’ exhibition not only highlights some of these challenges, but also the innovative solutions being put in place by the women that we are working with. These are stories of strength and resilience, and the power of community in the face of adversity.”
Dr Anne Nugent, Reader, School of Biological Sciences, and the Institute for Global Food Security at Queen’s University Belfast, said that they were delighted to showcase the exhibition at Queen’s.
“This visual project documents the real-life impact that Self Help Africa have in empowering females within communities in Africa. In addition, it is vital as it helps build on existing research and encourages further collaboration between Queen’s and Self Help Africa, work that has most recently focussed on improving goat health in Malawi and to provide important nutrition and health advice to female small farm holders in the Teso Region of Uganda, particularly in relation to pregnancy and child health. We look forward to welcoming people to our School to view the exhibition and hope that they leave feeling inspired and encouraged to support us on this journey,” she said.
The public are invited and encouraged to attend the exhibition, which is free of charge.
To find out more about the work of Self Help Africa, please visit www.selfhelpafrica.org and your local Self Help Africa shops are located on Andersonstown Road, Belfast; Upper Newtownards Road, Ballyhackamore, Belfast; Botanic Avenue, Belfast; Cregagh Road, Belfast; Ballynahinch, Bangor, Dunmurry, Holywood and Lisburn.
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