Help for the people affected by famine in Africa
Your donation to combat famine in Africa
More than 30 million people in West and East Africa are threatened with starvation. Caritas helps those affected to secure their survival. Let us work together to avert this humanitarian disaster – together against famine.
«We only eat once a day now, and have reduced the portions», says Bokaye Abduba Jarso (56). The widow lives with her five children in the village of Guyo Huka in the south of Ethiopia. Until recently, their ten cows and five goats provided plenty of milk and meat for the family, they cultivated a fertile plot of land that supplied them with beans and maize. Today, the family goes hungry.
«To survive here is now unbelievably difficult.»Bokaye Abduba Jarso (56)widow with five children
No rain, locust plague and price rises
The rainy season failed to arrive for the fourth time in the autumn of 2022. The soil dried out, the plants withered, the cattle starved to death. The worst drought in more than 40 years is the consequence of climate heating which hits the poorest most severely. On top of this came locust swarms which stripped the barren fields and pastures completely bare.
The UN estimates that more than 30 million people in West and East Africa will go hungry this year. One million are at acute risk of starvation. And now, there are also the effects of the war in Ukraine, leading to food shortages and price increases.
Caritas’ emergency aid
To ensure the survival and food security of the local population, Caritas and its partner organisations provide urgently needed emergency relief in Ethiopia, but also in other countries in severely affected East Africa and the Sahel region.
- Most people live from livestock breeding. Caritas helps pastoralists to secure their herds’ survival. We provide supplementary feed for the livestock and treat and vaccinate weakened and sick cows and goats.
- The provision of drought-resistant seeds for maize, sorghum or onions and of other agricultural products helps to ensure that, despite the drought, harvests will soon be sufficient to ensure survival.
- Thanks to financial emergency aid, the people can quickly meet their basic needs, ensure their protection and restore their livelihood.
- Education is also an important factor: smallholder families learn how to cope better with the changed climatic conditions. They receive training in modern and climate-adapted cultivation methods and in optimised feeding practices.
The emergency aid activities in Ethiopia are supported by Swiss Solidarity.
Please help. Many thanks for your generosity.
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Header image: The worst drought in more than 40 years is the consequence of climate heating, which hits the poorest hardest. © Eduardo Soteras/Gettyimages