• Supported since 2003
• Meal program for elementary school children
• Over 300 children fed, aged 2- 14
• The program is located in the Nuevo Amparo barrio
  Barahona in the south-west of the Dominican Republic

*Click images below for a larger picture.

Barahona is one of the Dominican Republic's poorest regions, with an unemployment rate exceeding 26 percent and an illiteracy rate of 16 percent.

Nearly 65 percent of Barahona residents are poor, according to the report on Focalisation of Poverty
in the Dominican Republic, released by national authorities and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Food prices have also increased significantly making it more difficult for people to attain the basics. Barahona is considered the forgotten part of the Dominican Republic with a lot of desperation.

CAFE has been supporting a lunch program in Nuevo Amparo, a barrio in Barahona for six years.

Feeding over 300 children, this is an important program for this poor community providing many of
them with their only substantial meal of the day.

The program is run by an incredible woman named Sister Juana Balbuena. She works tirelessly
for the children and is an institution in the community. CAFE is proud to continue supporting this
vital program.