Ethiopia - 25 years on from Band Aid

This week marks the 25th anniversary of the famine that sparked the Band Aid movement. Ethiopia has come a long way since then, but there's still a long way to go.

Thursday 22 October 2009

You could be forgiven for thinking that nothing has changed in Ethiopia since Band Aid. A quarter of a century on, severe drought and erratic rains have once again pushed Ethiopia into crisis and 6.2 million people — including three million children — are in desperate need of emergency food aid.

But the way that the government and aid agencies respond to hunger in Ethiopia has changed dramatically since 1984. New foods to tackle malnutrition have been developed along with more effective early warning systems that have reduced the number of deaths of children under five by almost half in the past 17 years.

Aminet's two-year-old daughter Mina fell ill recently and was treated at a health centre funded by Save the Children. Although she's better, they're still facing food shortages.

"The work that the Ethiopian government has done, supported by agencies like Save the Children, means that children now have a much better chance of making it to their fifth birthday than a generation ago,” said David Throp, Save the Children’s country director for Ethiopia.

"These days we've set the bar a lot higher. We aren't just trying to stop people dying, we’re working to make children healthy, strong and educated so they grow up to face a better future. The challenge now is to find longer term solutions to ensure the most vulnerable children can grow up free from hunger. But there’s still a long way to go.”

“It’s vital that the government and its partners work efficiently together to deliver that help now, and to agree quickly what’s needed early next year to address hunger and malnutrition in children,” said Mr Throp.

“We’re pleased with the government’s public recognition of the number of people in need of help. It’s another important step to getting urgently-needed food to them.”

This week, as part of the 25th anniversary of Band Aid, Midge Ure and his daughter are returning to Ethiopia to raise awareness of our appeal. Read more about the Ethiopian drought and make a donation online to Save the Children's Ethiopia Food Crisis Emergency Appeal.

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