Shame of a Nation

Second graders of the Yanshang Elementary School do not have their own classroom. The rented farm barn cost CNY 400 per year. Yanshang Elementary School is in Kunzhai Township of Nayong County in Guizhou Province. Lucky them, the school had been picked by a number of charity organizations, as well as the provincial government as a model site for free lunch. Before, most 274 students could not afford to pack lunch. For many families, a bowl of rice can only be found at dinner table on the New Year's Eve.

A lunch cost CNY 2.3 ($0.40) but it's so much for the kids. Some even took their young siblings to share one dish. Hangzhou Charity Union's free lunch project received CNY 1.12 million donations in a week. A group-buy website sold 30 thousands lunch donations at CNY 2.3 a piece in 2 days. The free lunch project was organized by a local charity 'Love Nayong'. The first meal was made ready on April 14. Premier Wen Jiabao announced in August that the central government would pick up the bill to provide free lunch for poor students across the country.