Every day, Eliza carries water up a rocky hill, barefoot. She has to gather enough water for her entire family and scoops it one cup at a time. She is 5 years old. Eliza comes from a family of pastoralists in Kenya. When the family settled in Kerkorisogol village 10 years ago, they had animals and plenty to eat. But drought and war have changed the land and wiped out the family's herd. Now Eliza and her family are hungry all the time.

Sisters Jabbie and Jengo were forced to flee from their village during the war. They lived as nomads in the bush for 3 years with their family. Three of their siblings died living in the bush because the family didn't have enough to eat. The sisters now have a home in Sierra Leone, but conflict and hunger still threaten their lives every day.

Anitha is only 13 years old. Her father died in a Congolese camp, and her mother struggled to support their family alone. To repay a debt, she allowed Anitha to work 12 hours a day on a Rwandan tea plantation. Anitha works every morning standing in cold water, constantly watching for snakes. Mosquitoes spread malaria among the children and Anitha has been infected twice. But the worst part is the hunger. There are no breaks for lunch and Anitha never gets enough food at mealtimes.

Rachel walked a week from her home to Goma, an internally displaced persons (IDP) camp in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Her mother was shot and killed by rebels and she lost her father in the displacement. She's just one of 160 orphans who live in the camp. Food can be scarce and diseases like diahrrea and malaria are widespread.

Jean was found in his home in Lume, at the base of Rwenzori Mountains, close to Uganda. He was found 6 years ago after his parents and brother were abducted by rebels. When he was found, he was 6 years old, living on his own. Jean now lives with an adopted family. He raises guinea pigs to help pay for his food and education.

Nachugai sells coal in the streets of Moroto town. His family used to be nomadic pastorlists, but their crops have been burned up by drought, and their herds have been stolen by armed cattle raiders. With the little money Nachugai makes, his family has to try to buy enough food from neighbouring districts to feed them all.

Djelika gets through every day even though her drinking water makes her sick. Rainwater collects in the middle of the Ogoduru Kun village where she lives. The children in the village used to swim in it and drink it, then get sick from the water borne diseases.

Noura is 10 years old and works as a labourer at Sakely camp in South Darfur. She carries mud bricks for construction at the camp. She carries up to 500 bricks and makes an equivalent of about $2 a day.

Warejia has to care for her two younger brothers since her parents' death. Her father died of an AIDS-related illness earlier this year, and her mother has been gone for some time. Her brothers are 14 and 7 years old, and Warejia is only 16.

One day, when Byamungu returned home after farming with his cousins, his family had gone. Neighbours told the boys to run, and soon after, Byamungu and his cousins heard gunshots. Soldiers were killing the remaining people in the village. The boys later met the soldiers in the forest – the men beat them and stole all their things, including the boys' food and money. Now Byamungu lives in an IDP camp in East DRC. He earns money putting grass on the roofs of huts while they're being built. He earns under $1 for 3 days work.

Joshua lives at Cherengany IDP camp with his grandmother. They were forced to flee their village after their houses were torched and all their property destroyed. His grandmother won't be able to plow the land this year because of the conflict. That means Joshua and his grandmother don't know where they'll get food in the future.

Vivian breaks stones in hot temperatures of over 33°. It's a job she's been doing since she was 4 years old. Now Vivian is 7 and she's an expert at helping her mother make a living in the quarries. Vivian's sister is 4 years old and has also begun working in the quarries.

Fred feels humiliated every day at school because he doesn't have shoes, and his schoolbag is made of worn sack cloth. He wears his 'best' clothes – a stained t-shirt and torn shorts – regardless of the weather because his family doesn't have the money to buy him anything else.

Oumou's family are herders, and because her father is away for up to 10 months during the dry season, so he doesn't have time to look after crops or cultivate land. Her mother borrows food from the market and pays when her father returns with the family's animals. But Oumou's mother says food is getting very expensive and the lack of rains makes it harder and harder to find food they can afford. But even if there is no food, Oumou loves to learn and play games with her friends at school, so she doesn't like to miss a single day.

Jamvura's family, along with 300 others, walked 5 days in order to escape the fighting near their village in DRC. Now Jamvura and his family live in a banana leaf shelter in the camp, but they have little food and few clothes or cooking utensils. Jamvura says he's sick of bananas, but there's nothing else to eat.