It has been two years since the last substantial rains and for the farmers and people of Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Somalia and Djibouti, this means many are left with nothing. This is the worst drought in the area for 60 years.
Over 9,000 refugees a week are now arriving in the Dadaab camp, northeastern Kenya – the world's largest refugee camp and already under enormous pressure. Many children under-five are dying within a few days of arrival.
If you would like to donate to ActionAid's East Africa crisis appeal please first consider signing our Last Famine petition that deals with the long terms causes of the crisis, not just the devastating affects.
>> Sign the Last Famine petition now
>> Donate to ActionAid's East Africa crisis appeal
But what does this mean for people on the ground?
People are selling their only assets, their livestock, which are also their livelihood for meagre prices in desperate markets. Many people are dependent on food aid and trucked in water as their local boreholes run dry and their crops wither. Women, who traditionally eat after men are going without food as there is simply not enough to go around. Children are dropping out of school to earn any money they can to survive. Whole families are even migrating, often splitting up families in a desperate attempt to feed hungry livestock.
ActionAid works with many of the affected communities and is providing food aid with the UN World Food Program, providing school meals so that children stay in school and is working with farmers distributing seed for long term recovery.
ActionAid has been helping 200,000 affected people over the past few months- but it's not enough. We want to reach 120,000 further people in the drought affected areas.
