West Africa Food Crisis Appeal

Monday, March 19, 2012

People look to wild leaves to survive as food crisis intensifies

A food crisis in West Africa is rapidly escalating with around 15 million people in need of food assistance and some now surviving on wild leaves and animal feed.

World Vision Australia is today launching its West Africa Food Crisis Appeal and scaling up its response to a growing need in the region - particularly in Niger, Mali, Chad, Mauritania and Senegal.

"This appeal represents World Vision’s commitment to responding to this crisis early," said Ex World Vision Australia chief executive Tim Costello. "No one wants to see a repeat of the famine which gripped East Africa last year and we know that by responding early we have a chance to save many thousands of lives and millions more from hunger and malnutrition."

Already 1.3 million children in the region are suffering from acute malnutrition, with 400,000 suffering from the most severe form.

Globally, World Vision aims to raise US$60 million to assist more than 1 million people across five countries.

World Vision Australia is calling on the international community to respond quickly to mitigate the worst effects of the crisis.

"Unlike the East Africa emergency which was driven largely by conflict in Somalia, this crisis is mainly the product of climate and long-term vulnerabilities in the region," Mr Costello said.

"As a result, the situation is not hopeless. It’s simply a matter of political will and community action.

"Niger and neighbouring countries are no strangers to food emergencies, but a change in climate patterns means those events are now taking place more regularly. As a result, communities have less time between droughts to recover. That’s why it’s vital that the international community responds with both immediate and long-term solutions."

World Vision’s emergency response includes life-saving interventions like feeding programmes for acutely malnourished children, the delivery of food aid and replenishing village granaries. The organisation is also responding with long-term development solutions which include drilling bore wells, distributing seeds and helping families establish vegetable gardens.

To donate to World Vision’s West Africa Food Crisis Appeal go to www.worldvision.com.au or call 13 32 40.

Media Releases, Poverty, Climate change, Famine, Africa, Famine, Food Security, Foreign Aid, Tim Costello, West Africa Food Crises

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