Sabaya lives in Tanzania, Africa. Like many young children in Australia, he enjoys playing with his stuffed toy – a giraffe. But unlike Australian children, Sabaya lives in fear of going hungry. “I am afraid of wild animals and hunger,” he says.

There is not enough food in his community at the moment, because drought has damaged the crops. “I’m scared I will return and find there is no food left,” he says. It’s not always bad – “I sometimes eat three meals a day,” he says – but that is in the rainy season. It hasn’t rained in a long time. “When I am hungry I get pains in my stomach,” he says.

His mother, Naomi, is 31. She works hard every day doing menial jobs to make sure that Sabaya has some ugali – porridge – to eat. She says, “I feel good when my children can eat, but I get so angry when they cannot.”

At just seven years old, Sabaya is already aware that his family is poor. He worries that he won’t be able to go to secondary school because his mother can’t afford it.

Sabaya has never heard of Australia, but recently World Vision started a child sponsorship program in his area. Australians can now sponsor children in his community, and give Sabaya and other children the chance to have a childhood.

You can help by sponsoring a child.

Change is a journey. Start yours today by finding out more about Child Sponsorship