NGO Partner – The Robin Hood Army

INTRODUCTION
News reports about people who are starving in those countries affected by war or drought are
not something new to us. It is a sad truth that many people in the world have to go hungry for
days on account of not getting enough to consume.
According to the United Nation's World Food Program, over 925 million people in the world
struggle with finding something to eat. This is more than the population of the US, Canada, and
the European Union combined. Poor people are more prone to suffer from hunger and
malnutrition regardless of where they live.
Despite the fact that world hunger is on the rise, an estimated 1/3 of all food produced is lost or
wasted. As part of the Sustainable Development Goals, the United Nations has established a
global goal to "end hunger by 2030." Given the current scenario, we are far from achieving that
goal.
According to the Food Corporation of India, losses for cereals and oilseeds are smaller, ranging
between 10 and 12 percent. Each year, 23 million tonnes of food cereals, 12 million tonnes of
fruits, and 21 million tonnes of vegetables are lost, totalling 240 billion rupees in value.
According to a recent estimate by the Ministry of Food Processing, India wastes agricultural
produce worth 580 billion rupees per year.
India has achieved significant progress in combating hunger and undernutrition in the last two
decades, but the rate of change has been uneven, and many people have been left behind. Now
is the time to demand everyone's right to food and make Zero Hunger a reality. According to
United Nations research, more Indians are growing obese, while the number of undernourished
persons in the country is decreasing. The number of individuals in India who are undernourished
has decreased from 253.9 million in 2004-06 to 194.4 million in 2016-18. Obesity among adults,
on the other hand, increased from 24.1 million in 2012 to 32.8 million in 2016.
In percentage terms, undernourishment was 22.2 percent in 2004-06 and 14.5 percent in 2016-
18 in India's total population. In 2018, the incidence of food waste in children (under the age of
5) was 20.8 percent, whereas the prevalence of obesity in adults was 3% in 2012, rising to 3.8
percent in 2016. Food production and job possibilities in the Indian Himalayas have been
harmed by a combination of economic slowdown, natural resource depletion, and climate
change. As a result of the diminished purchasing power, there were more concerns to food
security.

ABOUT ROBINHOOD ARMY

The Robin Hood Army is a volunteer-run Zero-Funds organisation that works to distribute extra
food from restaurants to the poor in cities across India and 14 other countries. Over 78,262
volunteers (roughly) in 204 cities make up the group, which has given food to over 66.17 million
individuals so far. Volunteers come from various walks of life. Their "Robins" are mostly
students and young professionals who volunteer in their spare time. Homeless families, night
shelters, homes for abandoned children, orphanages, and patients from public hospitals are
among the less fortunate groups to whom the charity reaches out.
They follow three precise rules: they do not collect money, they are apolitical, and they serve
people of all faiths. In addition, here's a legal disclaimer: Because RHA is a zero-funds platform

with no staff, office space, or insurance, it is unable to accept liability. Any personal risk is
assumed by each of their Robins.
Neel Ghose, Aarushi Batra, and Anand Sinha established the Robin Hood Army. Restaurants
routinely offer surplus or freshly prepared food on a goodwill basis, and this is where the food
for the poor comes from. The RHA believes it is just 1% complete in its fight against hunger, and
it intends to establish a global presence and expand internationally in the next years.
The organisation is based on and promotes the basic idea of self-sustaining communities
throughout the city, which states that each neighbourhood/community inside the city will
contribute to feeding the hungry through local volunteers and eateries.

Currently, the organisation has agreements in place with a number of eateries in each of the 60
cities to supply them with meals. The organisation does not accept monetary donations and
instead relies on its restaurant partners and donors to provide meals and in-kind offerings.
The Robin Hood Arm furthers its cause by applying the following principles:
1. To promote the idea of self-sustained communities, RHA spreads awareness of its activities
through social media

2. RHA has various associations and tie-ups with restaurants that provide food in large numbers
to the less fortunate communities.

3. To create an impact amongst the less fortunate, RHA introduce new volunteers on a regular
basis to the system, and in the process inspires the community to give time and help to those
who need it the most.

CAUSES OF FOOD SHORTAGE AND WASTAGE

Natural disasters: Extreme weather has always resulted in food shortages. Droughts and floods
wreak havoc on crops.
Poverty: Hunger is, first and foremost, a result of poverty. A poor person not only lacks the
financial means to feed themselves, but also to care for their family and their own health.
Wars: Armed wars force farmers to flee their crops, leaving them unable to cultivate the crops.
They frequently lose everything they own. Roads, as well as agricultural infrastructure such as
irrigation systems, are devastated.
Inequality: The Agenda 2030 urges us to ensure that no one is left behind. Nonetheless, both
internationally and within individual countries, the gap between affluent and poor is widening.
One percent of the world's population owns roughly half of the world's wealth.
Poor governance: Governments in underdeveloped nations generally do not align their policies
with the needs of the poorest citizens. There aren't enough measures in place to boost
agriculture in their own country so that no one goes hungry.
Climate change and waste of resources: Desertification, soil erosion, water scarcity, and
extreme weather events are all becoming more and more common as a result of climate
change, especially in places where hunger and poverty are already prevalent.
PROBLEM STATEMENT
According to the current Global Hunger Index (GHI) list of 117 nations, India is ranked 102nd,
down from 95th place in 2010. Concern Worldwide, an Irish humanitarian organisation, and
Welthungerhilfe, a German NGO, collaborated on a study that analyses hunger and malnutrition
in several nations. Worldwide, the number of people who go hungry increased by 5% from 785
million in 2015 to 822 million in 2018. There are 800 million hungry people in the globe, or
around one out of every nine people; India alone is home to roughly one-fourth of the world's
hungry people. What's more alarming is that 3,000 children under the age of five die every day
in the United States as a result of hunger, and the almost absurd thing is that 40% of the food
we produce is wasted or thrown away.

RHA’s vision is to create self-sustained chapters across the world who will look after their local
community. Considering this vision, come up with a solution on the following aspects:
Q1. Chalk the critical elements of the strategic roadmap for the social media campaign. Discuss
the resources and cost required for sustaining the same.

Q2. Working for such a cause would also involve bringing together people who work in waste
management, local governments, and disaster management. Design a plan to make RHA a
thinktank for reducing hunger by getting this broad network of experts to work with the NGO for
less than 4 hours a week.

Q3. One of the major effects that the pandemic has had on the organization’s working is the
availability of Robins. What steps/campaigns can be taken to entice more youngsters to be a
part of this change?

Q4. Since many government and other organizations are working towards reducing hunger as
well, there have been times where some places get surplus food and others go empty handed.
Work out a detailed plan on how RHA can work alongside these other organizations to ensure
sufficient supply of food to all places.

Q5. Different tiers of cities have their own specifications and requirements about the food and
distribution methods. With these varying demographics, one single plan cannot cater to all the
regions. Make a strategy to expand to tier-III cities.