Nairobi, Kenya (July 20, 2011) - Today, famine was officially declared in two regions of southern Somalia – the first time a major famine has been announced since the famine in the Somali region of Ethiopia in 2000.
Today's declaration of famine confirms that the Horn of Africa emergency is the worst humanitarian crisis in the world today. The UN is warning that if the international community does not act now, famine will spread to all areas of southern Somalia within two months.
Across Somalia, more than 3.7 million people – more than half the entire population – are in desperate need of humanitarian assistance. In some areas in the south nearly half the population is malnourished, making it the highest malnutrition rate in the world. Across the three worst-affected countries of Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya, more than 11 million people need immediate food assistance – that's as if every man, woman and child in London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield and Edinburgh put together were facing starvation.
To respond to the growing humanitarian crisis, CARE is calling for:
- International donors to commit funds to this emergency immediately to provide lifesaving aid to people affected by the famine and food crisis. The current humanitarian response is inadequate due to lack of funding and of access; just half of funds needed have been committed so far.
- All parties in south-central Somalia to grant uninhibited and unconditional access to humanitarian agencies.
- International donors to ease the current legal restrictions on the delivery of aid in Somalia on humanitarian grounds to enable more aid to reach those who need it.
"The declaration of famine is an urgent plea for these people. It is the most critical thing I've seen in 22 years of field experience. Every man, woman and child is suffering. The conditions of these people as they cross over the border from Somalia into the Dadaab refugee camps is down to the bone," said Barbara Jackson, CARE International's Humanitarian Director, who is in the Dadaab refugee camp this week. "The level of suffering they have endured is beyond our imagination, and they require immediate assistance. Everyone I met had the same message: 'Please tell the world for us, that we need help, and that we need it now. We cannot last much longer'."
CARE has already reached more than one million people across Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya with humanitarian assistance, and we doubled our initial emergency appeal to £30 million to scale up our response to provide food, water, and emergency supplies to a total of two million people affected by the emergency in the three countries. To date, CARE's appeal is just 30-percent funded, and we are calling on donors to increase funding in order to meet the growing need.
In Somalia, CARE has assisted 164,000 people with drought relief activities and cash interventions to help families buy food, and we are scaling up our response to help as many people as possible. Across the border in Kenya in the Dadaab refugee camps, where more than 61,000 Somalis have sought safe haven in the past six months, CARE is the primary distributor of food, water and primary education for the 380,000 refugees currently living there, most of them Somalis. More than 1,500 people are arriving each day, and CARE is working with partners to scale up our response. CARE will provide food, water and emergency assistance in the newly opened Ifo II camp, which will provide safe shelter to an additional 40,000 refugees. CARE is also responding to the drought in northeastern Kenya. In Ethiopia, CARE has helped 241,587 people with food and nutrition assistance, nutrition, water and sanitation interventions such as water point rehabilitation, distribution of water treatment chemicals and hygiene promotion and livestock intervention comprising of slaughter destocking, animal feed and support to zonal animal health authorities.
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
