Ethiopie kampt met ergste droogte sinds 30 jaar

Den Haag, 29 januari. Oxfam Novib maakt zich grote zorgen over de gevolgen van de hevige droogte in verschillende provincies van Ethiopie, in sommige delen van het land moeten mensen 2 dagen lopen om water te vinden voor hun families en vee. Het land kampt met de ernstigste droogte sinds 30
jaar.

In Siti, in het oosten van het land, zijn veel mensen inmiddels afhankelijk van voedselhulp om te kunnen overleven. Annick van Lookeren Campagne, humanitair beleidsadviseur Oxfam Novib: " Het weinige voedsel dat mensen hebben wordt in sommige gevallen gedeeld met het vee om het in leven te
houden. Mensen zien hun oogsten verdorren, hun vee sterven, terwijl ze tegelijkertijd weten dat er ook voor hen niet genoeg water en voedsel is.

De Ethiopische regering schat dat 10,2 miljoen mensen humanitaire hulp nodig hebben dit jaar. Daarvoor is zeker 1,4 miljard US dollar nodig. De Ethiopische regering doet wat zij kan maar de ramp is zo groot dat ze het niet alleen kunnen. " Dit is, sinds het midden van de jaren tachtig, de
ergste droogte waar Ethiopie mee te kampen heeft. Donoren zullen moeten bijspringen met financiering om de grootste problemen aan te pakken. Het is al maandenlang duidelijk dat deze extreme droogte enorme gevolgen voor de bevolking heeft. Er moet meer gedaan worden om het land te helpen. "
aldus Van Lookeren Campagne.

Ethiopie is niet het enige land dat geconfronteerd wordt met de gevolgen van de huidige Super El Nino. Naast voedseltekorten in Zuidelijk Afrika, Papua Nieuw Guinea and Centraal Amerika, veroorzaakt El Nino ook overstromingen in Paraquay en Bolivia.

Zie voor meer informatie onderstaand Oxfam persbericht.

Millions at risk as Ethiopia suffers worst drought in a generation - Oxfam

People in parts of Ethiopia are walking for two days to get water for their families and animals as the country suffers its worst drought in thirty years.

In Siti zone in the east of the country, many people have told Oxfam that they are dependent on food aid to survive but some are sharing this with their sheep and goats in a desperate attempt to keep their animals alive as well.

The Ethiopian government estimates that 10.2 million people will need humanitarian assistance this year, at a cost of $1.4 billion. The El Nino weather system, on the back of 12 to 18 months of erratic or failed rains, has caused the worst drought in Ethiopia since the mid 1980s.

Nigel Timmins, Oxfam's Humanitarian Director, said: "People are watching their crops wither and their animals starve to death all the while knowing they don't have enough food and water themselves. The Ethiopian government is doing its best but the scale of the problem requires urgent and
significant funding from donors to complement the government's efforts. It's been clear for months that this drought would have a devastating effect on Ethiopia. More needs to be done to help the country cope."

Oxfam is helping over 160,000 people in three areas of the country by trucking in water, repairing boreholes and wells, and giving out animal feed. The aid agency is planning to reach 777,000 people but needs $25 million to do so.

Ethiopia's `belg' rains are due to begin in a couple of months but even if normal rainfall occurs, it will take time for people to replenish their herds and cultivate crops.

Fatuma Hersi had a herd of 300 sheep and goats of which just seven remain. The mother of eight who is now seeking help at a site for internally displaced people in Siti, said: "There have been other droughts. But this one is the worst I have seen. We are here waiting for support."

Ethiopia is one of a number of countries struggling to cope with the effects of one of the strongest El Ninos on record. Along with food shortages in southern Africa, Papua New Guinea and Central America, it has also caused floods in Paraguay and Bolivia.

El Nino is a natural phenomenon that occurs periodically. Although it is not directly caused by climate change, global warming makes it more likely that strong El Ninos will develop. And in turn, El Ninos involve the release of a large amount of heat from the Pacific Ocean, exacerbating
climate change.

Any short term response to feed those left hungry by this year's El Nino needs to be matched with medium and long term plans to tackle climate change which makes super El Ninos more likely.

Ends