Thousands hit by famine and hunger in East Africa

We've launched an urgent appeal to help get food and water to thousands of people being affected by famine and hunger in East Africa.

The United Nations has warned that over 20 million people could face starvation in the worst humanitarian crisis since its creation in 1945.

Working as part of the global Caritas network of Catholic international aid charities, we're already working with local organisations in South Sudan to get emergency food supplies and water to those in need.

We’re also working in other countries affected by severe food shortages such as Ethiopia where we’re helping cattle herders to access clean water, both for people and their livestock, access animal feed and veterinary services and maintain an income.

But the situation will get worse in the Spring and Summer months and many lives will be lost unless food aid going to the region is massively increased:

This is an appalling catastrophe which is unfolding before our eyes. In South Sudan alone over a million people face the very real possibility of starvation in the weeks and months ahead. Several other countries and their people face a similar fate.

The simple truth is, unless we increase the emergency food aid to the region now, many innocent men, women and children will die.

SCIAF is working as part of the global Caritas network of Catholic international aid charities and with other local organisations to get food and water to thousands of people in South Sudan and surrounding countries, but the scale of the crisis means much more is needed.