Hunger kills 9 in Samburu as drought persists around the country

Hunger in Samburu county has left about nine people dead and several others in critical condition due to an ongoing drought in the area.

The affected, mostly children and the elderly, died after their families left them unattended in search of water and pasture for their livestocks.

“We are facing water shortage as well as food for our families and livestocks making us to survive on acacia and some bitter wild fruits and leaves we come across,” said Joseph Jemail Mapanya, a father of eight children, in Ndonyowasin Samburu East constituency.

According to reports by the Kenya Red Cross Society, areas adversely affected by the drought in Samburu East constituency  are Kawap, Ngaroni, Nachola, Swari, Seri Olepi and Marti villages.

Kenya Red Cross says that at least 25,100 persons from Samburu East, 15,000 In Samburu Central and 21,650 in Samburu North have been affected by the ongoing drought and famine in Samburu county as from March to July 2014.

The Red Cross also proposed early action interventions by introduction of school feeding Programmes to keep children in schools, especially the Early Childhood Development when they re-open and rehabilitation of water points in strategic places as well as providing essential health and nutrition services.

“We intend to work with the central and county governments as well as the humanitarian agencies for interventions in the target counties to help reduce the impact of the drought in the ground,” said Abbas Gullet the KRCS Secretary General in his twitter handle on Saturday.

Abbas also called upon Kenyans through the Kenya for Kenya initiative (K4K) to support interventions for 2014 looming drought by using MPesa Paybill No. 10,000.Or KCB Moi Avenue Branch Account No.1129605760.

The government of Kenya through The ministry of devolution has donated 1 billion shillings to help create sustainable and long term projects such as irrigation in pastoralist communities for the agro-pastoralists farming in order to bridge the gap of food security in the country.

The Star

ALSO READ:
Baringo residents succumb to starvation as drought bites