Save the Children welcomes New Zealand aid for West Africa food crisis

Save the Children New Zealand welcomes new money pledged today by the New Zealand government to fund a response to food shortages in the Sahel region of West Africa.

New Zealand will provide $1 million to a United Nations food relief programme in the Sahel region of West Africa, which is providing urgent food relief to combat malnutrition among one million people in Burkina Faso - especially young children and mothers.

CEO of Save the Children New Zealand Liz Gibbs said timely donations from the international community are critical to prevent what is already a crisis from turning into a catastrophe.

“There are many families struggling to feed their children in West Africa. Mothers are mixing wild leaves into their food to make it go further; families are cutting down to as few as two evening meals a week; and children are being forced to drop out of school.

“Save the Children teams are on the ground across the region scaling up food and health work for families in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso and supporting the livelihoods of vulnerable families in Mauritania. We know that unless we act now a bad situation will get much worse - and millions of malnourished children will be pushed over the edge,” Ms Gibbs said.

The food situation in Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso and Mauritania has been declining since September 2011, when poor rains resulted in crop failures of up to 80%. The problem is set to worsen with the UN predicting further food price rises will leave 10 million people - half of them children - without enough to eat.

Earlier this year, Save the Children reported that failure by the international community to act on early warnings of a hunger crisis in East Africa in 2011 led to thousands of needless deaths and millions of pounds in extra spending. The same will happen again unless concerted international action is taken in response to the current situation in the Sahel.

As well as responding to the immediate humanitarian needs, the international community also needs to address the underlying causes of the hunger crisis.

New Zealanders can support Save the Children’s vital emergency relief work by donating to our Children’s Emergency Fund online at www.savethechildren.org.nz.

You can read Save the Children and Oxfam’s report on the impact of the delayed humanitarian response to the East Africa crisis, ‘A Dangerous Delay’, online at www.savethechildren.org.nz

A recent survey by Save the Children shows that: In parts of Niger, more than 80% of some crops have failed, while prices of some staple foods have risen by more than 50%. The poorest families will only be able to afford 65% of the food and other goods they need; in parts of Mauritania, the entire maize crop has failed whilst the price of other staples like sorghum has risen by up to 50%, leaving the poorest families only able to afford 75% of the food they need; and in the worst-affected parts of Mali, 78% of the rice crop has failed whilst the price of millet has risen by more than 80%. The poorest families will only be able to afford 80% of what they need. In the worst-affected parts of Burkina Faso, sorghum production has dropped 50%, but its price has risen by 50%. Peanut production has dropped by almost 71%, and the poorest families will only be able to afford 90% of what they need.

By donating to the Children’s Emergency Fund, New Zealanders can help save more children’s lives and help us get vital resources and support to children and families in need. The fund allows Save the Children to prepare before emergencies happen and then help deliver immediate care and long-term assistance. Since 2010, New Zealanders who contributed to the Children’s Emergency Fund have assisted emergency-relief operations in Christchurch, Haiti, Niger, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan and Cambodia.

ENDS

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