Thousands stare hunger in the face in arid North

• Starvation threatens families, with 70 per cent of them needing urgent relief food

According to aid agencies, about 1.5 million pastoralists in northern Kenya are part of the 10 million Kenyans facing hunger.

Thousands of them are on the move in search of pasture and water. In the past few weeks alone, hundreds of families have moved towards the border with Ethiopia and Somalia.

The region had poor rains throughout last year. Provincial authorities say the situation is getting worse, and the vegetation cover getting depleted as watering points dry up.

“The food security situation is depressing,” said Wajir East district commissioner Henry Ochako.

The problem is compounded by the high prices. “The prices of food are high due to the skyrocketing fuel prices. The majority cannot afford meals,” said Mr Ochako.

Poor harvest

The effects of the poor harvest in the rest of the country have spilled over to are area where famine is a perennial problem.

“Residents are feeling the consequence of both the artificial and natural causes of food crisis in the country,” says Halima Said, a trader in Wajir’s Soko Mjinga.

Now the shortage of pasture and water has translated into deteriorating livestock health.

The cattle in turn fetch low prices. In Wajir, a goat is going for Sh1,000, down from Sh2,000.

About half of the people in Wajir District now rely on food handouts from the Government and aid agencies.

An assessment by international aid groups in the region indicated that malnutrition among children is above the World Health Organisation’s threshold peaking at 23 per cent.

In the vast province, the shortage of both food and water is affecting the pastoral population in a similar way. In Mandera, food insecurity is threatening many families, with an estimated 70 per cent of the population requiring food assistance.

“Only 37 per cent of the population in Mandera relies on food aid, far much below those who require food assistance,” says a worker with Action Against Hunger.

There is hardly any farming along the seasonal River Dawa due to several seasons of failed rains.