Africa

As I am sure you well-informed folks know, the southern area of Sudan will become an independent nation by the end of this week. This is a big and exciting change for the people of this African nation. While the prospect of independence offers hope to many Sudanese, the change is not without problems.

NAIROBI, KENYA—An estimated 10 million people in the Horn of Africa are in urgent need of assistance as drought-like conditions threaten to push populations into a devastating nutritional crisis, warns humanitarian organization Action Against Hunger | ACF International.

NAIROBI, KENYA — As a severe food crisis sweeps across the Greater Horn of Africa, an estimated 10 million people are faced with food shortages, mass livestock losses, and protracted drought-like conditions. In Kenya alone, some 3.5 million people have been declared food insecure, with significant numbers facing catastrophic conditions after consecutive years of below-average rainfall that have resulted in one of the driest years since 1950.

ABYEI, SOUTHERN SUDAN—Tensions have risen steadily in Sudan as the date for southern independence draws near, but recent developments suggest a new level of insecurity along disputed sections of the border , displacing tens of thousands in the region and threatening to set off a broader humanitarian crisis. While the situation remains fluid, an estimated 110,000 people have already fled their homes in and around Abyei, relocating in neighboring Northern Bahr El Ghazal, Unity, and Warrap State.

International humanitarian organizations Action Against Hunger | ACF International, Islamic Relief (IR), and Save the Children (SC-UK) have issued a joint appeal for urgent action to contain and reverse the alarming rates of acute malnutrition uncovered in Kenya’s northeastern province.

Landlocked in the center of sub-Saharan Africa, the Central African Republic (CAR) has suffered from ongoing conflict and instability over the past two decades. With 73% of the population struggling to survive on less than one dollar a day, it remains one of the poorest countries in the world.

As security has gradually begun to improve over the past year, the context in northern Uganda has changed dramatically. Families have begun returning to their ancestral homes after spending more than two decades in displacement camps that held some 2.5 million people. Yet the transition home has exposed these communities to new humanitarian risks, requiring support from organizations such as Action Against Hunger.