East Africa Crisis Appeal 2017

Launched in February 2017, a catastrophic food crisis left millions of people in East Africa facing the threat of starvation. At its peak, some 20m people in the region were affected by intense food shortages, fuelled by either severe drought or civil conflict.

Through our partners, we have reached nearly 75,000 people across South Sudan, Kenya and Ethiopia. As well as responding to immediate relief needs, we have also helped communities to recover and build resilience for the long term.

Our partners provided:

• safe, clean drinking water to over 21,000 people
• food supplies to 6,000 people
• food vouchers to 600 families
• fishing materials to 6,000 people, to give them a sustainable way to find nutritious food
• survival kits (including kitchen materials, plastic sheets, mosquito nets) to 6,000 people
• cash distributions to over 2,500 families, so they can meet their essential needs
• emergency feed for the animals of more than 1,200 livestock owners, to give them a means to earn a living again.

Communities are reducing the risk of disasters by building dykes to avoid flooding, and building latrines to prevent diseases. Others have constructed water pans and are managing rangelands. Savings groups are being strengthened as a way of developing small enterprises.