H.E Sheikh Thani Bin Abdullah Bin Thani Al Thani has donated $5.8 million to Action Against Hunger to run projects supporting malnourished children in Kenya and Somalia. Thanks to this grant, Action Against Hunger will provide life-saving ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) and therapeutic milk to nearly 169,000 children facing life-threatening hunger.
According to a FAO May 2022 report, over 3.5 million people in Kenya and 4.1 million people in Somalia did not have enough food. The number of people facing hunger in the Horn of Africa is predicted to rise from 14 million to 20 million by the end of the year. With the hunger crisis in the Horn of Africa rapidly worsening, this donation will help Action Against Hunger support people impacted by severe drought, the COVID-19 pandemic, exponentially high food prices, desert locusts and protracted armed conflict.
Thanks to the grant, Action Against Hunger will work with Community Health Workers so that children with severe acute malnutrition can be identified in their villages and treated with RUTF at their local health centre. RUTF is an energy-rich food with minerals and vitamins that is used to treat severe acute malnutrition when the child doesn’t need to be hospitalised. RUTF requires no water for preparation. It is a peanut-based paste served in a foil pouch. This means that it is portable, non-perishable, and can be eaten by babies who aren’t yet ready for solid foods.
“Action Against Hunger is extremely proud to receive this grant from H.E Sheikh Thani Bin Abdullah Bin Thani Al-Thani. We are honoured to develop this partnership to support our response to tackle malnutrition in Kenya and Somalia. This has come at a critical time as more children are facing life-threatening hunger.”