Right now, 20 million people in East Africa are facing soaring levels of hunger as an exceptionally long and severe drought grips the region. Four rainy seasons in a row have failed to materialise, making it the longest drought there in four decades.
To make matters worse, war thousands of miles away in Ukraine is fanning the flames of this crisis. It’s sending the price of essentials like wheat, sunflower oil and fuel spiralling upwards, meaning the most vulnerable families can’t get the basics they need to survive.
Resilient communities are being overwhelmed. Families in Kenya are forced to dig for water in dried riverbeds. In Ethiopia, our teams report hungry monkeys are attacking women and children.
In Somalia, I spoke to families in the midst of this unfolding catastrophe. One mother had buried three children in the last year, all related to malnutrition. The strength it must take to carry on is almost unimaginable. All around, parents were fighting for their children’s survival. Another mother carried her starving baby 90km to reach food and treatment. Thankfully, our Somali doctors got to her in time but were forced to treat her on a blanket on the ground outside because our hospital wards were overwhelmed. Tragically, the number of children who do not make it is increasing with every month that passes.
We know that hunger is preventable and acting early can prevent the worst. But now we must face up to this deadly reality and urgently scale up treatment for children who are malnourished, put cash for essentials in people’s pocket and get clean water to those who need it. The US recently announced new investment to help more children who are severely malnourished get the treatment they need to survive. The UK should follow suit.
Beyond that, we must make sure this is the last time children starve. The world was making good progress tackling malnutrition but Covid, conflict, and climate change have created a unique, perfect storm where hunger can flourish. Governments and others must help to build strong global systems to ensure this type of crisis is consigned to history.
