Kenya Responds to Drought Crisis Affecting 3.3 Million People

9-year-old Ejiem sits with the carcass of his favorite sheep, Merireng, in Turkana, Kenya. The East Africa drought has caused the death of many animals like Merireng. (©2017 World Vision/photo by Jon Warren)

Kenya is currently facing a drought emergency that has culminated into a humanitarian crisis. The condition has affected access to food, water and nutrition services placing millions of households at risk.

The Kenya Red Cross Society and International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies say that 3.3 million people spreading across 23 counties require immediate help.

Millions of Households Struggling With Food and Water Shortages

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The drought has triggered food insecurity and water shortages in the country. 3.3 million Kenyans require food assistance, 1.5million need water urgently. 202,000 children are suffering from acute malnutrition and more than 784,000 children require nutrition support.

How the Drought Crisis is Affecting Mothers and Children

According to data from humanitarian sources, 300,000 households representing 1.5 million people need water support. Some families living in drought affected areas are forced to walk more than 7km daily in search of water.

810,471 children of ages between 6-59 months, 16,796 pregnant and breastfeeding women are acutely malnourished and need urgent care. Additionally 202,230 children are suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition and over 740,000 children require urgent treatment since they risk permanent physical and cognitive damage.

How Kenya Red Cross has Intervened During the Drought Crisis

The Kenya Red Cross Society has been implementing emergency interventions to support affected communities. So far, the organisation reports that, 1M+ people have had water access restored through the rehabilitation of 65 boreholes, 63,024 people have been reached through water trucking services.

5,400 households have received cash voucher support.133,790 people have received emergency food assistance. 42,058 children under 5 years have benefited from supplementary feeding programmes, alongside 7,158 mothers and 29,688 children under 5 years have received integrated medical outreach services.

These efforts are helping to reduce the immediate humanitarian impact, although needs remain extremely high.