Scottish charity has gone from feeding 200 Malawians in 2002 to 923,572 children across 12 countries in 2014

Scottish-based charity Mary’s Meals is now feeding over 900,000 of the world’s poorest children every day they attend school.

In the last four months, the charity has been able to add close to 30,000 new children to its global school feeding programme.

Beginning in 2002, Mary’s Meals originally fed just 200 children in Malawi but is now currently reaching 923,572 children across 12 countries every school day and is hoping to reach its first million in the first half of next year.

Thanks to the unrelenting efforts of our army of supporters who give as much as they can we are moving closer to realising our vision that every child receives one daily meal in their place of education.

Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow, founder and chief executive of Mary’s Meals, said: “In the communities where we serve Mary’s Meals, so often the poorest children can’t go to school because they’re working, begging on street corners, or just doing whatever it takes to put the next meal on the table.

“They therefore miss out on their education, which is the key to lifting the world’s poorest communities out of poverty.

“Thanks to the unrelenting efforts of our army of supporters who give as much as they can – time, money, skills and prayer – to help the communities in which we are working, we are moving closer to realising our vision that every child receives one daily meal in their place of education.

“Yet, in a world where 57 million children are out of school and thousands are dying each day because of hunger-related causes, there is still so much for us to do. We hope others who share our vision will help us on our journey to reach the first million children with Mary’s Meals.”

It costs Mary’s Meals a global average of just £12.20 to feed a child for an entire school year. The charity spends a minimum of 93p of every £1 donated directly on its charitable activities.