Ethiopia Food Crisis - 2008

Thousands of women, children and young babies are facing a food crisis in the south and western Ethiopia.

A lack of rain has lead to failed crops and high food prices. Up to 4.5 million are in need of emergency food aid and 75,000 children are severely malnourished.

As the crisis intensifies, people with HIV are particularly vulnerable to the unprecedented increases in the price of food. Patients receiving Anti Retro Viral (ARV) medication to tackle the virus are more susceptible to hunger and must eat a nutritious diet to ensure the treatment is effective.

Vital resources provided

From its joint office in Addis Ababa, SCIAF and sister organisations CAFOD and Trocaire are supplying financial aid as part of an initial £618,000 response from Catholic aid agencies operating in Ethiopia.

SCIAF is supporting the Ethiopian Government’s emergency response and is working closely with the Ethiopian Catholic Church to sustain and expand therapeutic feeding centres. These centres provide emergency food aid to malnourished children under five, pregnant women and lactating mothers.

The joint office is also funds the Daughters of Charity clinic in Ailtena, an area of Ethiopia where almost 41% of the population are in need of emergency relief. The clinic offers vital medical care to the poorest people in the area, some whom walk a staggering six or seven hours through the mountains to receive treatment.

As food becomes ever more expensive and people struggle to afford enough to eat, some patients with HIV find the hunger too much to bear and stop taking their medication. The Daughters of Charity clinic provides nutritional and financial support to those most at risk.

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