Sh37bn plea to save victims of famine

• Post-election chaos, drought and global economy blamed for national food crisis

The massive task facing the Government as it tries to save 10 million Kenyans from starvation was laid bare on Friday when President Kibaki declared the food shortage a national emergency.

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It will require Sh37 billion, more than the amount set aside for the ministry of Nairobi Metropolitan and nine other ministries, to buy and distribute food and provide education and medical care for the most vulnerable, said President Kibaki.

He appealed for international assistance amounting to Sh32 billion.

Extreme desperation

And as President Kibaki, Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka, Prime Minister Raila Odinga and a number of Cabinet ministers were launching the appeal in Nairobi, reports from the countryside told of misery and extreme desperation as families struggled to find food.

Families in Machakos, Makuyu, Makueni, Pokot, Tana River, Kwale, Kilifi, Turkana, and the slums of Nairobi and Mombasa reported struggling to get food.

“The last time it rained was on November 15 last year and it was just a light rain,” says Mr Patrick Mwai Mwande, a chief in Makuyu said.

Forestry officers in Kericho declared a fire alert due to the drought.

In Nairobi, the top government officials were joined by foreign diplomats, representatives of the donor community, scholars and NGOs in making the appeal.

And as they gathered at Nairobi’s Kenyatta International Conference Centre, light showers pounded Nairobi and other parts of the country.

The rains offered a ray of hope, not only because it was the first drizzle since the year started, but because severe drought has been the major cause of the famine.

Even those who spoke at the meeting welcomed the rains as God’s blessings for Kenya.

However, the Government, President Kibaki said, had only managed to set aside Sh5.2 billion for the emergency kitty.

“I am therefore appealing to all our friends and development partners to assist us in meeting the shortfall of Sh32 billion that will be needed to ensure the needs of 10 million Kenyans are met until the end of August this year,” said the Head of State.

He further directed all arms of the Government to marshal available resources to respond to the situation.