Severely malnurished Ethiopian child

You can donate through our website using our online donation form indicating is for our Emergency Drought Appeal after inputting your name. Please hurry - these children need your help now!

Over the past few months, the Somali and Oromia regions of Ethiopia have experienced two consecutive failed or severely below average rainy seasons which has significantly affected food production in the east of the country.

The complete failure of last year's Deyr rains (October-December) affected the availability of water to replenish water storage reservoirs, pasture availability for cattle and the nutritional status of local people.

The drought in both regions was further exacerbated by the delay and inadequacy of this year's Gu rains (mid April - June) in southern zones and the Diraa rains (mid March- May) in northern zones. The Belg rains in Amhara and Afar regions was also delayed and significantly below average. As a result, there is now a serious shortage of water, leading to widespread devastation of farmland, failed harvests and livestock deaths. Families have lost their incomes and food supplies. Food and water prices have soared.

The Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) estimates that over 3 million people in Ethiopia are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.

Families are struggling to get even one meal a day - and many people, including children, are having to survive by drinking heavily sugared tea alone. The crisis is compounded by an increasing number of refugees fleeing drought into the Somali region. This increasing influx of refugees is placing additional burden on already scare water, pasture and nutritional availability/resources.

People are desperately hungry. They need your help now.

The situation is without question serious for millions of people, but most life-threatening for young children. Children are always the most vulnerable in a food crisis - without enough to eat and the right nutritional balance, they are at high risk of malnutrition. Malnutrition is incredibly serious - it can cause stunting, impede mental and physical development, increase the risk of developing other illnesses and ultimately cause death. It remains one of the biggest killers of children under five around the world. Chronic malnutrition will have severe consequences which affect the child for the rest of its life. It significantly increases the likelihood of premature death, and those who do survive are at much greater risk from a variety of afflictions including heart disease, diabetes and kidney damage, and are far less able to withstand infection. Failure to grow and reduced body size can also result in a lower physical capacity and energy for work as an adult, with associated economic costs.

Treatment for severe malnutrition is simple but effective. Therapeutic food, such as micronutrient peanut paste, is cost effective and ready-to-use.

Ethiopaid has set up a project to raise €50,000. This amount could provide 10,000 severely malnourished children with 10 days worth of emergency treatment to enable them to recover from the deadly effects of malnutrition.