The Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) has announced details of the radio and television broadcasts to run today (Friday) to help more than 10 million people in the grip of the worst drought seen in parts of East Africa in over half a century.
DEC member agencies are urgently seeking to increase their work to help those at risk survive and put their lives back together.
Actor Jason Isaacs will present the appeal for ITV and commercial radio and actor and comedian Lenny Henry will front the BBC appeal. Broadcaster and journalist Kate Adie will voice the BBC radio appeal. Thousands of families have been caught up in the deepening crisis, trekking for days across parched scrubland from Somalia to Kenya – including barefoot children with no food or water.
Jason Isaacs said today:
"We are an incredibly kind and generous nation and we know the joy of giving. We wouldn't walk past families and children suffering like this in our street and these really are our neighbours. So please give what you can. However much you can manage. Your money will make a difference"
Large areas of Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia are affected and the DEC appeal also includes South Sudan, which celebrates its independence on Saturday July 9th 2011.
More than 1,300 people a day, the majority of them children, are arriving in the Dadaab refugee camp in eastern Kenya near the border with Somalia. The Dadaab camp was already the world's largest refugee camp with a population of 350,000 – larger than the city of Leicester.
With the next harvests in many areas expected to be poor there are serious concerns that the situation will spiral out of control unless action is taken now. The recent announcement by armed group El Shabab in Somalia that they will no longer restrict access by aid agencies potentially opens the door for a larger humanitarian response.
Disasters Emergency Committee Chief Executive Brendan Gormley said:
"Families including vulnerable children and the elderly have slowly seen their lives fall apart because of this devastating drought. Now is the time to galvanise our resources and try to prevent a tragedy unfolding by providing vital food, clean water and medical supplies.
"DEC member agencies and their partners are responding on the ground but we urgently need the public's help to save more lives "
Despite the enormous challenges of reaching those affected DEC agencies are already helping hundreds of thousands of people across East Africa with food, water, therapeutic feeding for malnourished children and medical treatment. The assistance delivered so far includes:
- CARE Ethiopia has reached 218,000 people with aid including food, water point rehabilitation, distribution of water treatment chemicals and hygiene promotion.
- Plan's work in Ethiopia includes providing food, water, shelter, medical aid, child protection, education and psychosocial care.
- Kenya Red Cross' work includes emergency food assistance for children and pregnant women; providing safe drinking water and community health services, rehabilitation of bore holes, livestock, and seed distribution. The Somali Red Crescent is operating 14 mobile health units and 30 static clinics in Somaliland and Puntland.
- ActionAid has helped more than 220,000 people this year in Kenya and Somaliland with food, water and income generating schemes targeting pastoralist communities in the most vulnerable villages.
To make a donation to the DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal call the 24 hour hotline on 0370 60 60 900, visit http://www.dec.org.uk or donate over the counter at any post office or high street bank, or send a cheque. You can also donate £5 by texting the word CRISIS to 70000.
Anyone wanting to stay up to date with developments in East Africa, the emergency response and the fundraising efforts can follow the DEC on twitter at http://twitter.com/decappeal or become a fan of 'Disasters-Emergency-Committee-DEC' on Facebook.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
- The DEC member agencies are: ActionAid, Age UK, British Red Cross, CAFOD, CARE International UK, Christian Aid, Concern Worldwide, Islamic Relief, Merlin, Oxfam, Plan UK, Save the Children, Tearfund and World Vision.
- Live video interviews from Wajir in Northern Kenya with Anna Ridout of Oxfam can be arranged.
- To make a postal donation make cheques payable to 'DEC and mail to 'PO Box 999, London, EC3A 3AA'.
- Donations can be made at any high street bank, or at a Post Office by quoting Freepay 1562.
- To donate £5 by text send the word CRISIS to 70000. The full £5 will go to the DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal.
Please donate to our emergency response fund
Longer term work
In addition to our immediate response in the face of this current food crisis CARE International emphasises the need to tackle the long-term, underlying causes of poverty. We have been present in the region for over 25 years and are helping families to break the cycle of hunger and to adapt to the changing climate and recurring droughts.
Our ongoing work in the region includes:
- Maintenance, protection and development of water points and wells.
- Working with women in Mandera, Kenya to revive traditional food preservation techniques.
- Vaccination of animals to prevent diseases breaking out as they congregate at remaining water points.
- Helping families have more consistent sources of income by supporting them in diversifying their work.
Read more stories from the East Africa Food Crisis:
Staff blog: Sabine Wilke, Emergency Media Officer in Dadaab - 12 August
Video: East Africa Crisis - CARE's response - 12 August
Slideshow: Dadaab refugee camp - 12 August
Somalia to Dadaab: a journey filled with danger - 10 August
Somalia: famine declared in three additional regions of South-Central - 5 August
Ethiopia: in a drought prevention pays - 26 July 2011
Staff Blog: Confusion and waiting in Dadaab, Kenya - 18 July 2011
Staff Blog: "The need for food assistance is increasing at alarming rate" - 16 July 2011
Urgency grows in the Horn of Africa - 15 July 2011
Slideshow: More pictures from the East Africa Food Crisis - 14 July 2011
Staff Blog: Horn of Africa Food Crisis - Dadaab refugee camp - 8 July 2011
Slideshow: East Africa Food Crisis - 8 July 2011
Horn of Africa: The most severe food crisis in the world - 1 July 2011
Reviving traditions to survice drought in Kenya - 3 June 2011
Ethiopia food shortage: The worst is yet to come - 25 May 2011
Press releases from the East Africa food Crisis:
Saving cattle can save lives in drought-stricken Africa - 29 July 2011
DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal reaches £30 million - 25 July 2011
DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal reaches £27 million - 22 July 2011
DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal reaches £20 million - 18 July 2011
DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal reaches £18 million - 18 July 2011
Violence against women doubles in giant East Africa refugee camp - 17 July 2011
DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal reaches £15 million - 14 July 2011
DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal reaches £13 million - 13 July 2011
DEC agencies prepare to scale up work in Somalia - 13 July 2011
Reported cases of sexual violence have quadrupled among refugees - 12 July 2011
Horn of Africa food crisis: CARE launches £16 million appeal - 11 July 2011
UK donations for East Africa Crisis Appeal reach £8 million - 10 July 2011
DEC aims to help prevent East Africa Crisis becoming a catastrophe - 10 July 2011
DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal reaches £6 million - 9 July 2011
Aid delivered in East Africa as DEC Appeals broadcast in UK - 8 July 2011
Africa’s newest country in grip of food crisis - 8 July 2011
DEC announces East Africa Crisis Appeal - 7 July 2011
Drought in Kenya: “Situation of refugees is grave” - 4 July 2011
Horn of Africa: CARE calls for more attention to severe food insecurity - 19 May 2011
