Appeal for East Africa Food Crisis

SCIAF is calling for urgent donations from the public to help provide vital support to millions of people who face starvation due to a growing food crisis in Ethiopia.

Donate now to help the worst affected.

The country’s government has warned that 6.2 million people are in need of emergency aid after years of recurrent and severe drought have led to chronic food and water shortages.

Farming communities are among the hardest hit. The main rainy season is getting shorter and arriving later than usual causing traditional water sources to dry up. Crops are failing and the lives of people, and the animals upon which they depend, are increasingly at risk.

From our office in Addis Ababa, SCIAF is working in three of the worst affected areas in Borana, 570km south of the capital. We have sent an initial £50,000 to hire trucks which will shuttle emergency water supplies to the area over the next sixty days. This will provide 5,000 people with seven litres of water per day and ensure that 1,500 drought affected livestock have something to drink.

SCIAF will also roll out a ‘cash-for-work’ programme, employing local people to build earth dams which will help to trap precious water during the next rainy season. The money families receive for this work will enable them to buy food.

There is an urgent need to safeguard the livestock of poor farming families who rely on their animals for milk, food and an income from breeding. If families lose their livestock to hunger and thirst, they will be plunged into absolute poverty and will be less able to deal with food shortages in the future. We are providing emergency feed to the most vulnerable animals which are unable to walk long distances for water.

Emergency supplies of seeds are also being given to families to help with long term recovery by enabling them grow more food.

Speaking from Addis Ababa SCIAF head of office in the country Tanja Kleibl said:

“The failure of the rains has had a devastating impact on the population’s ability to grow food and access water for themselves and their animals. The health of thousands of people and their livestock in the areas where we are working is now reaching a critical point. Unless those worst affected receive urgent assistance, the lives of many of the most vulnerable, including women and children are at risk. This situation cannot be allowed to deteriorate further.

“The scale of the crisis here means that we are in urgent need of additional funds to scale up our response. I would ask SCIAF supporters and the Scottish public at large to help us deal with this crisis by donating whatever they can to SCIAF’s emergency response.”

Donate now to help those most in need.