Plan to launch $2million emergency drought operation in Kenya: half sponsored children affected

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) September 1, 2011 -- Emergency assessments have found that more than 27,400 sponsored children are affected by the crisis, which is around 38 per cent of total sponsored children in Kenya. Latest assessments have found the situation to be worse than previously believed.

Immediate aid will target around 114,000 people, including sponsored children and will involve trucking in water, water treatment, medicine, and delivering therapeutic feeding (nutrition) programs, supplementary feeding at 414 schools, shelter and hygiene promotion.

Plan will start urgent work in the Tharaka, Machakos, Kilifi and Kwale areas where it has existing program units (PUs) and may also intervene in the non-PU areas of Samburu, Maralal, Makueni and Kitui counties.

Recent reports from the field are painting a disturbing scene of families struggling with malnutrition and water-bourne diseases.

A health facility at Maralal which has been handling increasing cases of malnutrition reported rapid rise in pneumonia among children who have to trek up to 20 km and queue at the well throughout the night to fetch water for their families.
Schools are also experiencing serious shortage of food with 90 per cent of them reportedly overwhelmed by declining supplies.

Severe problems are visible with increased death of livestock. In Samburu and Maralal carcases of animals in different stages of decomposition can be seen in the fields.

Food prices have skyrocketed and the going trade-price of one 90 kg bag of maize meal is now three goats (increased from the usual one).

In addition to concerns over immediate welfare and malnutrition, there are worries over child protection with families being separated, children having to travel far from home to earn food money, and feared increases in child labour, school dropout and even child marriage.

In addition to immediate aid, Plan will focus on child protection, conflict management and peace building.

Regional Director of Plan in Eastern and Southern Africa, Gezahegn Kebede, said: “We are in a situation where children are exposed to the highest level of neglect due the current drought and food crisis. It is with deep concern today that the situation of most children in Kenya remains critical due to hunger, malnutrition, physical and mental abuse due to this current crisis.

“There is a high risk of child mortality, disease outbreaks including measles, acute watery diarrhea and pneumonia. There is also a risk of children being exposed to other forms of abuses such as injury as they scramble for food; sexual abuse as they stay in densely populated shelters and in the streets. It is the obligation of all of us to ensure, to the maximum extent possible, the survival and protection of every child.”

The Horn of Africa drought crisis has been triggered by repeated, long-term droughts, rising global food prices, land issues and conflict in the region. An estimated 10 million people are seriously at risk. Plan also has emergency work ongoing in Ethiopia and South Sudan.

More information can be found online at http://www.plan-uk.org/sponsor-a-child/