International Development written question – answered at on 16 February 2006.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps are being taken by his Department to address the food crisis in Kenya following the recent drought.
During my recent visit to Kenya I committed a further £3 million in response to the food crisis in Kenya. This brings the total UK contribution to £12.7 million since July 2004. A total of 3 million people mostly in the north eastern and eastern parts of Kenya are affected by the drought. The levels of malnutrition are unacceptably high and urgent action is needed by all parties—Government, donors, NGOs, and communities to help save the lives of those at risk.
DFID support is channelled through the UN system—specifically the World Food Programme (WFP) for support to food aid and UNICEF for emergency health and nutrition. We have also made substantial contributions through NGOs (OXFAM, Merlin and Action Against Hunger). The support is focused on the worst affected areas based on the needs assessment report conducted jointly by Government of Kenya, the UN and the NGOs. The support given includes food aid, emergency health support, feeding programmes for malnourished children and emergency water provision.
DFID is also working with the Government of Kenya, other donors and others to look at ways to break the cycle of dependency on relief and to find more effective ways to address the problems of those who suffer from predictable chronic hunger.
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