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East Africa

Tearfund is helping tens of thousands of people affected by the severe drought in East Africa.

Following the extensive failure of crops and widespread livestock fatalities, our partners have been providing emergency food aid, clean water and income assistance.

Thanks to generous support for our East Africa food crisis appeal and funds from the Disasters Emergency Committee, we've been able to help 130,000 of the most vulnerable people.

Severe hunger is affecting several countries. South east Ethiopia is the hardest hit region, with 4.6 million farming-dependent people experiencing food shortages, while 3.2 million others are affected in northern Kenya and 3.7 million in Somalia.

Tearfund is well-placed to help. We have been working in the region for many years, building the resilience of people to withstand climatic shocks by improving their agricultural skills.

To find out more about our response, read the stories below.

 

  • 8 March 2012 - Many thousands of Somalis have fled their country into neighbouring Kenya to escape insecurity and hunger.

  • 22 February 2012 - The past few months have been truly grim for mother-of-three Suldana Ali but new hope has given her a reason to smile again.

  • 14 February 2012 - People living in Somali coastal communities are facing significant hardship as a result of being caught in the combined grip of drought and conflict, according to a Tearfund partner.

  • 14 February 2012 - Watch our video update from Kenya about the drought.

  • 2 February 2012 - Efforts by Tearfund partners to help drought-hit Kenyan communities have better water supplies are paying dividends.

  • 8 December 2011 - Since the food crisis broke in Kenya nearly six months ago, Tearfund has helped more than 25,000 people in the country’s arid north.

  • 1 December 2011 - ‘Thank you Tearfund for all your support,’ says Adi-Abduba, a 40-year-old mother of five who lives in northern Kenya’s parched Marsabit region. ‘Without water we all would have died a long time ago.’

  • 1 December 2011 - As the US social activist Jim Wallis once said, 'Sometimes you can't just keep pulling bodies out of the river; you’ve got to send somebody upstream to see what or who is throwing them in.'

  • 17 October 2011 - After months of getting by on poor quality and unreliable supplies, mother-of-five Asha has clean drinking water for her family.

  • 5 October 2011 - ‘This is the worst crisis we’ve ever experienced. We’ve gone from a reasonably successful life to utter devastation.’

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