Cheesekids for Humanity News

#AID4Somalia: How To Help Out in The Horn of Africa

Posted on 31 Aug 2011 / Tags: cheesekids, #AID4Somalia, Somalia, Horn of Africa, starvation, help, aid

If you're a straight-to-the-point kind of person and just want to know how u can help, please scroll to bottom for details of drop-zones and bank accounts.

Thanks

Somalia & The Horn of Africa Starvation Crisis

You've seen it on the Telly, and must have read or heard about it. Drought. Famine. Somalia. Maybe u've seen a FB status update or a tweet about it. Somalia. Maybe you recall the Michael Jackson relief effort of the 1980s for Ethiopians and have heard or made the comparisons. Maybe you realise that it's bigger than Somalia; that 1,200 people are dying every day and that millions (yes, millions) are at risk. Or maybe you haven't and are wondering just what is the whole hullabaloo about Somalia and the Horn of Africa region about anyway? Well, here is the skinny on that...

Aaccording to the World Food Programme (WFP), nearly 10m people across 6 countries in the Horn of Africa face starvation due to a severe drought (erratic and short rainfall periods), food shortages all fuelled by political unrest. Currently nearly 30,000 children have died from this starvation since it began. And 5% of Somalia's population is now in a refugee camp.

Breakdown of Affected People

Country	*Affected People* *(Since March 2011)*
Somalia (current)	2,850,000
Ethiopia	3,200,000
Djibouti	120,000
Kenya	2,400,000
Uganda	635,000
Total	9,205,000
Kenya (Refugee)	410,550
Ethiopia (Refugees)	226,000
Total Refugees	636,550
Grand Total	9,841,550

Below is a blurb from a WFP report on the matter, the official word:

"...The continuation of the drought conditions in the region heavily influenced both the failure of the 2010-2011 (October to January) short rains and the erratic and below normal March to May 2011 (long rains) rains in the eastern part of the region.

Shocks and failed short rain harvests in the pastoral and marginal agricultural livelihood zones of Somalia, northern Kenya, and southern Ethiopia have severely affected household access to food.

The failed October to January rains and the erratic March to May rains have led to a reduction in the availability of water and pasture for pastoral communities and impeded agricultural production for marginal agricultural and agro-pastoral areas. The 2011 long rain needs assessments (June to September) estimate that at least 13.0 million people are affected by food insecurity.

The recent FSNAU nutrition assessments have classified south Somalia, as of August, as a widespread famine. Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) rates were measured at one child in two (50%) with between 14% and 27% of children severely malnourished (SAM).

Crude mortality rates vary from between 2 to 6 per 10,000 per day; under-five mortality rates between 19 and 24 per 10,000 per day have been recorded in some livelihood zones. Aside from Somalia, nutrition assessments in the worst-affected areas of Kenya recorded GAM and SAM prevalence between 22 and 37 percent and between 4 and 9.5 percent, respectively. The number of malnourished children receiving supplementary or therapeutic feeding in refugee camp stabilization centres has tripled in 2011. A nutrition survey in April found an acute malnutrition rate of 45 percent among newly arrived Somali children under five in the camps at Dolo Ado in Ethiopia.

In addition to the failed short rains, high cereal prices are reducing the purchasing power of drought-affected households. The areas most affected by high food prices are the remote food deficit agro-pastoral and pastoral areas where, in certain markets, staple cereal prices have more than doubled in the last six months. The price increases are further compounded by the sharp drop in the terms of trade between livestock and cereals, with reports of livestock fetching less than a quarter of the cereals earned in 2010. Given the nature of global prices, the failed short rains and poor long rains in certain areas, it is likely that prices will continue to remain high or increase through to the long rains harvest between September and November.

Continued fighting along border areas of Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia and in Mogadishu has increased the vulnerability of Somali households already greatly affected by high food prices, failed rainfall and displacement. This is likely to further impact household food security and cause increased displacements in these areas as well as contribute to the already-increased refugee influx into Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti"

So now What?

Whereas the responsibility for the well being of these peoples can in no way be inferred to any one country, organisation or peoples, the moral obligation to intervene in stemming the daily deaths of 1,200 mostly children cannot be shied away from, either in the context as fellow Africans or at a more basic level, fellow human beings.

To this end, a number of South African individuals and organisations such as Gift of The Givers and the SA National Defense Force, are geared up towards the mobilisation of either funds, aid or physical contributions towards either the governments of these countries or international aid disbursement agencies to bring relief to the many facing starvation.

Let's help them...

Usually, you and your mates and family can drop off any of the following goodies (in different sizes but bigger is better)

Rice
Maize
Sugar
Salt
Oil
Beans
Canned Items
Water
Dates
Dishes
Pot Sets

at anyone of the following addresses:

Jozi

43 Mint Road,

Fordsburg

+27 11 832-1546

Cape Town

1st Floor, AK Centre, 2 Mavis Road

Rylands Estate, Athlone

+27 21 638-7909

What else?

We will assist Gift of the Givers, WFP and SANDF with a series of Collection Drives (details of which will follow). We will also be purchasing goods on your behalf and sending them to the Horn with your blessings.

We are rolling out a #1004Somalia Social Media Campaign urging people to donate R 100 minimum cotribution towards goods and medical supplies to be shipped out with the afore enablers.

If you'd like to make a donation please do so to FNB 62263413131 Code 250655 with the reference "H" and your cell number eg "H0823456789"