Over 168,000 people in Garissa face starvation as majority of children attend school on empty stomach
The Garissa government has begun a food distribution program to help residents cope with the effects of the drought.
Finance executive Issa Oyow, who launched the exercise in Fafi on Wednesday, stated that the one-week distribution is intended for all vulnerable households identified as beneficiaries in the sub-counties.
He stated that the county was determined to reach out to all of the targeted households, adding that at least 2,000 families would benefit by the end of the exercise.
Despite the fact that some roads have been rendered impassable due to the brief rains, Oyow stated that the county will do everything possible to ensure that the consignment reaches the intended families.
Due to the lack of rain, the county’s food security situation has reached crisis proportions.
The short rains have not been sufficient for a community that is heavily reliant on livestock keeping.
According to a November report by the Drought Management Authority, at least 14,514 cases of malnutrition in children under the age of five have been reported in Garissa county.
According to the authorities, if quick interventions are not implemented, the children’s lives will be jeopardized.
At least 168,000 people in Garissa county are facing starvation, and the majority of children are attending school on an empty stomach.
According to the report presented to the county steering group, the most severely affected areas are Lagdera, Ijara, Dadaab, and Holugho.
According to the executive, the county will continue to provide water trucking to settlements that haven’t received enough rain and don’t have enough boreholes.
The religious department, led by Religious Affairs Director Sheikh Mohamed Yakub Dabar, and sub-county administrators were tasked with delivering the various food items to all sub-counties.
Mohamed Sambul Hassan, the administrator of Lagdera, was coordinating the distribution exercise on Wednesday in Darsalam, Afweyne, Maalimin, and Jilango.
He stated that the exercise prioritized 16 centres in the sub-county that had yet to receive reliable rainfall and others that were facing a food supply crisis as a result of the rain.
Food was delivered to centers in Fafi such as Kamuthey Warable, Nadhir, and Nanighi. Balambala, Daadab, Ijara, and Holugho will be added to the exercise.
According to experts, if Kenya does not receive enough rain in December, the drought situation could deteriorate into an emergency.
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Food security and nutrition are likely to deteriorate, necessitating the expansion of humanitarian assistance and interventions.
According to the NDMA, 23 counties are at risk of being food-insecure.
