Famine stares Horn of Africa in the face
19 July, 2011 | Gulf News
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
With the Arab Spring sweeping North Africa and the Middle East,
phone-hacking scandals and economic crises dominating the
airwaves, it's easy to forget the biggest need of all — food and
survival.
But today, there are tens of thousands of people living in the Horn
of Africa who face the threat of hunger, starvation and famine.
Despite all of our advances, our technologies, our fiscal wealth, our
preoccupation with our busy daily lives, we have still not yet
managed to conquer the threat of famine.
little hope.
When war beckons, we are quick to assemble forces, marshal
troops and solve logistical problems.
But when the spectre of mass hunger, disease and death comes
calling, there is a slow and agonisingly painful response of
governments who have other issues topping their agendas.
Aid agencies and NGOs struggle to cope with the destitute, the sick
and the starving.
While political troubles and fighting have added to the sorry state of
those in the Horn of Africa, now is not the time for using
international aid as a weapon itself. Bags of maize have no morals,
simply the ability to put food in the bellies of those who need it most.
A concerted international effort is needed now to avoid a terrible
tragedy unfolding before our eyes.
Courtesy
Read Also: Relief aid 'no solution to Africa drought'
19 July, 2011 | Gulf News
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
With the Arab Spring sweeping North Africa and the Middle East,
phone-hacking scandals and economic crises dominating the
airwaves, it's easy to forget the biggest need of all — food and
survival.
But today, there are tens of thousands of people living in the Horn
of Africa who face the threat of hunger, starvation and famine.
Despite all of our advances, our technologies, our fiscal wealth, our
preoccupation with our busy daily lives, we have still not yet
managed to conquer the threat of famine.
- Having enough food
and water daily, and
having a stable
source of food for
the future, is the most
basic right of human
survival.
- Somalia, long
troubled by tribal
division and the
failure of any central
government to
provide for its
people, is on the
verge of catastrophe.
- Ethiopia, itself
racked by
devastating famines
which claimed
hundreds of
thousands of lives
nearly 30 years ago,
is struggling to
overcome drought
and poor crops. And
Kenya is struggling to
cope with the influx
little hope.
When war beckons, we are quick to assemble forces, marshal
troops and solve logistical problems.
But when the spectre of mass hunger, disease and death comes
calling, there is a slow and agonisingly painful response of
governments who have other issues topping their agendas.
Aid agencies and NGOs struggle to cope with the destitute, the sick
and the starving.
While political troubles and fighting have added to the sorry state of
those in the Horn of Africa, now is not the time for using
international aid as a weapon itself. Bags of maize have no morals,
simply the ability to put food in the bellies of those who need it most.
A concerted international effort is needed now to avoid a terrible
tragedy unfolding before our eyes.
Courtesy
Read Also: Relief aid 'no solution to Africa drought'
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| Previous Stories "Food price crisis” means “no food again today” for many older Ethiopians By Alison Rusinow (Help Age International) World's food system broken, Oxfam warns By Cahal Milmo, Chief Reporter (Independent) Ethiopia drought: “The worst is yet to come” By Audree Montpetit (AlertNet) United Nations Resumes Work in Drought-Hit Ethiopian Region William Davison (Bloomberg) Help "trickling in” for millions needing food aid IRIN Ethiopia Aid Agencies Back Call for Aid for 2 Million People Facing Hunger By William Davison, Bloomberg Food Insecurity Looms in Parched Horn of Africa By Gayathri Vaidyanathan, New York Times WFP says drought, high food prices leave more than 5 million hungry in Horn of Africa By Malkhadir M. Muhumed, (AP) |
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| Children rest at a displaced persons camp in Shebelle, about 50 km (31 miles) south of the capital Mogadishu, July 6, 2011. Islamist rebels have lifted a ban on humanitarian agencies supplying food aid to millions of Somalis after the worst drought in 60 years hit the Horn of Africa region, a spokesman for the insurgents said. Somalia is experiencing pre-famine conditions, driving more than 1,000 people over the border into Kenya and Ethiopia each day, according to the United Nations. REUTERS/Feisal Omar Read the story Drought a catastrophe: British PM here |