Flying into Cambodia recently, I could see green everywhere, as if the landscape had been blanketed in moss with rice fields in different stages of growth. I love this time of year in the country. The greens are so bright it hurts your eyes. The Vietnamese even have a word for this type of green, which when translated means “a thousand greens in one.” It is stunning to see, from the air or on the ground.

Even with all this promising green, the Cambodians call this time of year “the hungry season”, as farmers and their families wait for the harvest. It is a painful time for them. Their money from the products they sold at the last harvest is running short and without proper storage they can’t save up food for this time period without it spoiling. So while new rice is everywhere, there is nothing they can do except wait.

And this hungry season is made worse by the fact that, like the rest of the world, Cambodia has seen the cost of living increase. A recent survey conducted by an Oxfam partner shows that for the poorest people in both rural and urban areas, getting adequate food is a daily struggle, with 20 per cent of the population living hand-to-mouth on about $2 a day.

Maybe you are like me and you are thinking: “These are just numbers, some estimates. People will be fine. I am cutting back too and even though it’s difficult, I am fine.”

While we spend about 15 per cent of our income on food, Cambodians spend about 70 per cent. What this means is that we can let our gym membership lapse (not a huge problem for me!), walk rather than drive to work each day (I need the exercise because of no gym membership) or we can even (a slight gasp and panic here) cut down on our text messages or telephone calls. Cambodians on the other hand don’t have much to save on other than their intake of food. Cutting back for them means cutting back on the food they are eating each day.

During a recent trip around Phnom Penh to assess the situation, I found that this last statement is terrifyingly true - and it is not just the poorest who are suffering. I interviewed a nice middle-wealth couple who had recently invested in their own business.

They told me that when the prices first started going up, they stopped going out to restaurants with their friends. But now, with the country’s staple food rice being 100 per cent more expensive than it was last year, they are literally cutting back on a meal each day. And they are not alone. All 15 people I interviewed are cutting back on their food intake. Some are skipping entire meals, while others are “skimming” off the top, and still others are buying nearly rotten fruits and vegetables to save money.

So it’s not just numbers. It’s the reality of the situation here in Cambodia. Thursday is World Food Day and never in all my years working in developing countries have I realised the importance of this date. And while I will continue to work hard with Oxfam to ensure people know about the good work that we are doing to support farmers, I have decided to take a personal pledge of my own. I will not whine or complain about what I do not have or those things I have to cut back on. I will thank the powers that be that I have three meals a day… even if it means I can’t text or call anyone to tell them of my pledge.





More from the Oxfam Press Office at http://www.oxfam.org.uk/news