The UK Government has today pledged £14m in overseas aid to East Africa to help respond to the escalating hunger crisis.
In reaction to this news, Kate Munro, Head of Advocacy at Action Against Hunger UK, says:
“Due to a convergence of conflict, drought and global price rises, hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to abandon their homes and livelihoods in the Horn of Africa. Over 50 million people across the region are expected to go without the food they need to live – a tragedy looms if we do not take urgent action.
“The steeply cut aid budget is more stretched than ever, with the demands of the Ukraine conflict. This means that children in East Africa are paying the price; we are seeing significant increases in malnourished children to our clinics, and families do not know if there will be enough food to get their children through the day. The Government urgently needs to review its overseas aid budget to prevent loss of life on a scale we have never seen before. The UK has prevented large-scale famine before in 2017; it can do so again with the right political will.”
Notes to editor
• Kate Munro, Head of Advocacy at Action Against Hunger UK, is available for interview upon request. For Action Against Hunger UK interview requests, please contact Lucy or David on the details below.
• Action Against Hunger is the world’s leading charity stopping life-threatening hunger in its tracks. By training parents and healthcare workers to spot the signs, we get life-saving care to people who need it. Action Against Hunger’s research drives forward understanding of how to predict, prevent and treat life-threatening hunger. With unbeatable knowledge and unstoppable determination, the charity supported more than 26 million people across 51 countries in 2021.
• For more information, please visit Action Against Hunger, follow Action Against Hunger on Twitter and Facebook,LinkedIn, and Instagram