Horn of Africa Famine: What's going on and what I can do...

I’m sure everyone has heard about the severe drought and famine in the Horn of Africa (Somalia, Ethiopia and Northern Kenya) and has seen all the pictures the media is putting out.  The situation here is serious.  Many experts are saying that this is likely to be the worst famine since the famine that hit Ethiopia in the 80’s.  

We are bombarded by pictures and stories of tragic events every day.  The internet, newspapers and the evening news are full of these stories and its often difficult to know how you could possibly make any difference at all.  The amount of need and pain in the world can seem too big to handle or change.  I don't know a lot about many of the crisis in the world right now, but I do know a lot about this one.  This one is happening in my back yard.   And in this situation, there are things I CAN do to make a difference. 

The hardest hit by the famine so far are the Somalis- who are not only dealing with the drought and famine but also with the war that has been raging in their country for the last 20 years.  Right now, Al-Shabaab, the militant group fighting the Transitional Government, is banning aid from most relief agencies in the areas it controls (which are the areas hardest hit by this famine). 

Our contacts say that at least 1,500 Somalis are crossing the border daily into Kenya and Ethiopia.  They are coming on foot, walking for days (one family I heard about walked for 20 days to reach the refugee camp).  It’s dangerous; many of the women are assaulted and raped on the way, not to mention those dying of starvation on the road.  Those refugees coming into Kenya are going to Daddab Refugee Camp located at the eastern end of the country between the Kenya/Somalia border.  Before this latest influx of famine refugees, the camp was already home to 300,000 people (it was built to sustain 90,000).  The current population counts at the camp are now close to half a million with more coming every day.  

While Kenya is dealing with the escalating refugee crisis, it’s also struggling to take care of its citizens, particularly those living in North Eastern Province and North Rift.  These areas have seen very little rain this year.  Compounding the problem is this season’s poor maize crop and the country’s runaway inflation.  In areas like Nairobi and Mombasa, some food items are being rationed.  The prices of basic staples have increased drastically in the last 2 months and fuel prices have shot up.  For a nation where more then 55% live below the poverty line, this is also resulting in an increased crime rate.   Families literally can’t make ends meet.  

                                           Last Month         Currently

2kg sugar                           180 Ksh                 250Ksh

2kgs maize flour                75Ksh                    160Ksh

2kgs rice                             250Ksh                  320Ksh

2 liters cooking oil             215Ksh                  454Ksh

Our response as a team has been to work alongside our partners who are authorized to enter the refugee camp. Due to the issue of security and the fact that there are just too many groups trying to get in to help, the Kenyan government and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) are restricting access to the camp. So, we are currently collecting clothes, shoes, and food supplies locally that we will be handing over to our partners for transportation to and distribution in the camp to those who need them.

If you are interested in helping financially with this tragic situation here in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia, send me an email and I can hook you up with the information (I won't post that info online but it was included in the text of my update sent out by email- I just recycled that update for this post- minus any sensitive info).  

Earlier in the post, I said this is a situation I could actually DO something about.  And I can't do much but I can do something. I'm in a place where I can help and it doesn't even involve giving money.  Cash is tight, so I went through my closet and eliminated everything I could give away for the women in the refugee camps.  I'm finding ways to help my friends and their families affected by the rising food prices meet their most basic needs. As a team, we are talking about what can we DO.  What can we give. How can we help our friends who can actually get into the camps.  The local cell phone companies have banned together so average citizens can donate small amounts over their phones  to buy food for those Kenyans starving in the north- in one week 78million shillings were raised- by people giving what little they could.  Together it added up to a whole lot.  

Unfortunately, for people on the other side of the world, its more difficult to find ways to help practically that don't involve money.  Donating clothes in the US wouldn't be very practical (after the expense of shipping them to Kenya, etc) but having a garage sale and selling those clothes or other things to benefit the famine victims could work.  There are always creative ways to get involved.  If you are interested in ideas or have any ideas of low cost/no cost ways to make a difference let me know!