Nations Falling Short in Helping East African Famine Victims The drought and attendant food crisis come as no surprise, given
political instability as well
Image: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
Warning that famine in Somalia is likely to get worse before it gets better, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton yesterday pledged an additional $17 million in U.S. aid to East African countries racked by the worst drought in 60 years.
The money comes on the heels of a $105 million relief package President Obama approved this week, bringing the level of U.S. assistance to the Horn of Africa to $508 million.
But, Clinton warned, the immediate needs of those in Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti, part of South Sudan and Somalia must also be met with long-term measures aimed at preventing future catastrophes. Calling the famine "the most severe humanitarian emergency in the world today and the worst that East Africa has seen in several decades," she said the suffering of millions of people -- particularly in Somalia -- is as much man-made as brought about by nature.
"Though food shortages may be triggered by drought, they are not caused by drought, but rather by weak or nonexistent agricultural systems that fail to produce enough food or market opportunities in good times and break down completely in the bad times," Clinton said in a speech at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
"In other words, a hunger crisis is not solely an act of God. It is a complex problem of infrastructure, governance, markets, education," she said. "These are things we can shape and strengthen. So this means that this is a problem that we can solve if we have the will."
Advocating an end to trade barriers, improvement in credit and land-use policies and new technologies to bolster resilience to drought, Clinton also called on the eight leading industrialized countries to make good on a 2009 promise of $20 billion for agricultural development.
Clinton's speech comes as U.N. agencies and international aid groups step up calls for emergency assistance funding to the more than 12.4 million people affected by the drought. Yesterday, U.N. humanitarian aid chief Catherine Bragg told the Security Council the body was more than $560 million short on funding for aid for Somalia alone.
More than $1B short of adequate aid
Regionwide, the United Nations has said almost $2.5 billion is needed to cope with the crisis. So far, it has received about 48 percent of that.
"Donors have committed more than a billion dollars to the response so far and continue to pledge more. We are very grateful, especially in these difficult economic times. But the magnitude of human suffering in Somalia today demands more," Bragg told Security Council members. "Despite the difficulty of operating in one of the most conflict-riven countries in the world, we cannot let people down."
This week, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization warned that famine had spread to three new areas of southern Somalia and could engulf the entire southern part of the country. The agency said famine is expected to spread across the entire region in the coming four to six weeks and could even persist through the end of the year.
Clinton called Somalia the "epicenter" of the crisis. While drought has struck throughout East Africa, U.N. officials and aid workers say the situation in Somalia -- where more than 3 million people are in need of aid and refugees are flooding neighboring Kenya -- is made more dire by internal conflict. The militant rebel group al-Shabab has violently prevented many aid workers from reaching starving communities.
Meanwhile, countries like Kenya and Ethiopia where the United States and aid groups have worked with governments to improve irrigation and other measures aimed at boosting food security are faring far better in the crisis. Clinton noted that in 2002-2003, more than 13 million people faced starvation in Ethiopia. Today, fewer than 5 million do -- a number she noted still is too large but is an "astonishing improvement" that shows investments in food security can pay off.
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6 Comments
Add CommentWho says other nations are falling short? Who makes that determination? What about Self Determination?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI am sorry for The people of Ethiopia, but to suggest that there is a causal relationship between the drought and the political instability would be laughable if it were not such a tragic lie.
This is a largely tribal population that has seen bloody conflict for most of its existence. The lust for power has kept the people in poverty and disease and has destroyed any hope for civilization.
Foreign aid to this country cannot help but "fall short". There isn't enough aid in the world to overcome the profound ignorance and cultural retardation of this population.
Well said! There are tons of food and medical supplies already lying there in the desert rotting and their military government will not allow the people to have it. Africa has use starvation and disease for thousands of years to control their populations. Why should other countries allow their valuable resources lie in the African deserts and rot when their people can use it and not allow it go to waste?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThere has been billions and billions of dollars pumped into Africa, and look at it. When is enough enough?
Simply providing aid in crisis, without addressing the fundamentals underlying such crisis, is actually exacerbating the problem. The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisFamily planning is probably the most important tool to alleviate much of the problems in Africa. Exploding population numbers, combined with limited resources, are at the root of much of the social, religious and political strife plaguing the continent.
Without addressing the demographics, things are just going to get worse, regardless of how much aid is thrown in.
People are starving guys. I understand your frustration, but lets not lose our compassion for these people. They need whatever assistance they can get from the outside world. I would think twice before putting a price on the lives of a fellow human being. Grow up and try to understand that humans are suffering.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisSince Ethiopia and Kenya are making real efforts I'm glad to see progress there. Neither nation came out of the Imperialist era very well off.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisAs far as Somalia goes, let them rot. If the local people don't want to starve then they need get busy and establish an actual functional government or support the UN puppet state. When the USA tried to intervene previously we were attacked by their warlords. Think of it this way - as the population crashes there will be fewer pirates menacing trade and shipping. When Somalia had a government they were a menace to their neighbors.
I have no particular issue with Somalians, rather less than I have with Germans actually. Never the less, even ignorance can't explain the idiocy currently engulfing Somalia. When the Chinese had a similar problem they created a somewhat unified government. The same happened with the Germans, French, Spaniards and a number of others. That makes it hard to have sympathy for the Somalis or any other group that persistently fails to work together.
Victims of imperialism????
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thishint..the countries rated one and two for quality of life by the UN are Canada and Australia. Both 'victims' of imperialism.
Mothers in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia average nearly 8 children each. The only aid I'm in favor the USA sending are condoms and birth control pills.