East Africa Food Crisis

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Large parts of East Africa are facing the worst food crisis of the 21st Century.

More than 13 million people are still affected by the situation. Parts of Southern Somalia remain in famine, as declared by the UN, with hundreds of thousands still at risk of starvation.

Across the region Oxfam’s humanitarian response is aiming to reach up to 3.5 million people.

The Situation

Two years of failed or poor rains, and in some parts the driest it has been for 60 years, have tipped millions of people over the edge. Food prices have shot up because of shortages, while people’s purchasing power has been slashed as their livestock have died or become weak.

Rains failed for successive seasons, and families across Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya are struggling to find anything to eat or drink.
One estimate shows that, from April to August 2011, between 50,000 and 100,000 people may have died due to drought-related causes, over half of whom were children under 5.

The price of staple foods has risen to unaffordable levels for many people and the collapse of livestock markets have reduced people’s income and ability to buy essentials. The emergency period could continue well into 2012 in southern Somalia and the world must act to ensure that the necessary aid is provided.

Oxfam’s response

Since 1 July, Oxfam has helped 2.8 million people in the region with our life-saving work. Oxfam aims to reach 3.5 million people with emergency relief, as well as helping with long-standing threats to livelihoods and building the resilience of the communities where we work.

However, a truly adequate response also involves addressing the underlying problems which have resulted in areas suffering from entrenched poverty becoming the worst affected of this current crisis. While the severe drought has undoubtedly led to the huge scale of the disaster, this crisis has been caused by people and policies. Disasters are often man-made and that is why Oxfam campaigns on issues such as climate change and investment in small-scale food producers.

Responding to immediate humanitarian needs is essential and must continue, but to ensure the future food security of all people in the region, Oxfam is calling on governments to face up to the challenges of a changing climate and increase long-term investment to build the resilience and boost the productivity of pastoralists and smallholder food producers in the Horn of Africa.

Oxfam’s response: Kenya

4.3 million Kenyans are affected by the food crisis – mainly in the southern agricultural areas and the northern pastoralist regions, such as Turkana and Wajir where Oxfam is working.

Since July Oxfam has supported over 1 million pastoralists and refugees with essential water, sanitation and hygiene activities as well as desperately needed food distributions and cash transfers.

Oxfam is scaling up its ongoing cash and food transfer programmes to support over 250,000 people. Oxfam is also supporting small traders by providing working capital for the market so that traders can restock and link up with food markets outside of Turkana. The rural water and sanitation programme will help 140,000 people through borehole drilling, public health promotion, and water point rehabilitation and maintenance.

Somalia

In July the UN declared Famine in parts of Somalia. 4 million people are currently in crisis, and an estimated 1.25 million children across southern Somalia are in urgent need of life-saving interventions. 19% of the country’s populations are displaced as they have being forced to leave their homes in search of safety, food and water, and livelihoods support.

Oxfam has reached 1.5 million people in Somalia. Through its partners, Oxfam is providing chlorinated water to over 250,000 people in Afgooye and nearly 150,000 in Mogadishu, with those in other regions also benefitting from Oxfam’s Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH) programmes. We have also been providing latrines, distributing soap, water containers and sanitation kits, and carrying out public health promotion campaigns.

Ethiopia

In Ethiopia, 4.9 million people are currently affected by the food crisis and in need of food aid. Oxfam is helping 151,800 people in Ethiopia with water, sanitation and hygiene programmes, water trucking, borehole rehabilitation, cash for work activities, and public health promotion.

The UN is reporting that almost half the children arriving in refugee camps in Ethiopia from southern Somalia are malnourished.

Public Response

Oxfam Ireland has raised €1.3 million for our emergency appeal thus far, through shops North and South and through a nationwide advertising campaign in July and August.

The response from the public has been really amazing and it’s been a busy few months with events such as football matches, Croagh Patrick climbs, pub quizzes, cake sales and supermarket bag packs taking place in various parts of the country.

Niall Caffrey went above and beyond the call of duty with his ‘Make me Bald’ campaign. Firstly he shaved his hair at work to ‘The Monk look’. He didn’t stop there! After work he gathered his friends in a local pub and waxed his legs, raising money by auctioning off the waxing strips – eugh! His endeavour raised a remarkable €3,669.

Bernadette O’Neill undertook a fundraising gig, ‘Songs for Somalia’ in the Riverside Hotel, Co. Wexford and enlisted a fleet of volunteer helpers.

Acts such as The Thingamajigs, The New Davitt Showband, Draiocht and Thunderstruck entertained everyone and their efforts raised €3,290!

One of September’s highlights was Reelin’ in the 80s, another music gig held in the Spirit Store, Dundalk on Saturday 17 September.

Oxfam Ireland was also there selling books and records in a pop-up shop. Our thanks to volunteers from the Dundalk shop for their help with this.

Our Shops

Limerick

The shop received a donation of a bicycle on the provision that proceeds go for East Africa. The bike raised €540.00 in a raffle, far more than its resale value. The Limerick shop has also done street collections and ran a collection in conjunction with one of the local parishes that generated over €2,000.

Sligo

The shop staff and volunteers did a collection in Sligo General Hospital and street collections. A volunteer created handbags and pillows out of recycled textiles and sold them in the shop.

Tralee

Staff worked with a local group on a film night with all proceeds going to our appeal.

Dundalk

Two pensioners come into the store and anonymously donated € 2,000 of their life savings.

Wexford

The store was approached by a lady who wanted to do something to help. She organised a music night in Enniscorthy that raised €3,290.

Newry

The shop organised a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party, with staff and volunteers in fancy dress. The event raised more than £700.

What you can do

Volunteering

Oxfam Ireland will be holding several fundraising events over the coming weeks and months to raise money for the East Africa Emergency. If you can offer your time and energy, please get in touch with your closest Oxfam office or email friends@oxfamireland.org to find out when and where these events are taking place.

Fundraising at Work

Fundraising at work is a great way to help support Oxfam’s life-saving work in East Africa. You and your colleagues can fundraise while at work by organising collections or getting sponsored to do (or not do) whatever you can think of. Don’t forget to ask your company to match the total of what you raise. Here are just some of the ways you can raise funds for Oxfam with your colleagues:

Arrange a dress up or dress down day in your office
Do a sponsored… anything!
Hold an auction/raffle – of promises, items or an extra annual leave day
Organise a collection

All the resources you’ll need are in our

Fundraising Toolkit

below. Please call your closest Oxfam office or e-mail

companies@oxfamireland.org

for further assistance.

How Your Company Can Help

Company Donation: make an online donation to our East Africa Food Crisis Appeal
Matched Giving: will your company match employee fundraising efforts?
Encourage employees’ fundraising
Employee volunteering: Oxfam really benefits from volunteers who can help with street collections, bag packing at supermarkets, or volunteer their time in our shops or offices
Adopt Oxfam Ireland as your Charity of the Year

Your Own Event:

Hosting your own fundraising event would help save lives in this time of crisis. Could you organise a:

supermarket bag pack
table quiz
summer barbeque with your family and friends?

Our A-Z of Fundraising Ideas is also a good starting point. Please get in touch with your closest Oxfam office and let us know what you would like to organise. We can then help you in any way we can. The

Fundraising Toolkit

below will equip you with Oxfam materials to get your idea off the ground.

Fundraising Toolkit:

Background information
Sponsorship cards NI
Sponsorship cards ROI
Collection bucket labels
Collection Tin Labels
Getting your money safely to Oxfam Ireland
Collection buckets and T-shirts: we can also supply branded Oxfam T-shirts and collection buckets for your fundraising event. Simply get in touch and let us know what you need.

Get in touch:

Dublin (01) 672 7662

Belfast (028) 9023 0220

Email: friends@oxfamireland.org or companies@oxfamireland.org

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