Southern Africa Faces Threat of Famine, Millions At Risk of Disease, Starvation and Death, Says Save the Children: Immediate Assistance is Needed to Avert Humanitarian Catastrophe

Southern Africa Faces Threat of Famine, Millions At Risk of Disease, Starvation and Death, Says Save the Children: Immediate Assistance is Needed to Avert Humanitarian Catastrophe

Business Wire - August 6, 2002

WESTPORT, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 6, 2002-- Children in southern Africa are already dying from lack of food resulting from the region's biggest threat of famine in over a decade, and the crisis is getting steadily worse, says Save the Children, a leading child development and relief organization.

Irregular rainfall, economic crisis, and the depletion of grain combined with the high incidence of HIV/AIDS throughout most of southern Africa, are weakening people's capacity to survive while increasing their vulnerability to life-threatening infectious diseases like cholera, malaria, and tuberculosis. The worst affected countries are Malawi, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Angola.

"The factors that contribute to mass famine are gathering force," says Rudolph von Bernuth, associate vice president of Children in Emergencies and Crisis for Save the Children, "If we do not respond immediately, and on a massive scale, children may begin dying in ever-increasing numbers in a matter of weeks. Funds are urgently needed to provide food, health care, and get agricultural production back on track. We must act now to avert a disaster."

More than 12 million people in southern Africa, many of them children, are at great risk. Malawi, for example, has 25 percent less food than is needed to feed the country's 11 million people, a population equivalent to the state of Ohio. Zimbabwe has a 60 percent food shortfall for a population of similar size. This has led people to sell off household assets, such as livestock, at the fraction of their value in order to sustain their families, according to Save the Children's Malawi Deputy Field Office Director Tom McCormack.

"People are eating wild foods, such as roots and grass seeds. Children chew the inner pulp from maize stalks in an attempt to extract something of nutritional value," McCormack said. "Coffin-making workshops abound and appear to be one of the few thriving industries."

Save the Children was the first organization to respond in Malawi by distributing food to the hungry, targeting families that have lost wage-earners to AIDS. The organization is reaching 500,000 people in the central and southern parts of Malawi. In Zimbabwe, it is feeding 65,000 people and is seeking funding to increase that number to 150,000. Save the Children also is distributing food in Angola as well as providing vaccinations and Vitamin A. All of the funds the organization raises for this emergency will go toward the purchase of food, such as beans, corn and blended children's foods, and the personnel costs to manage their delivery, says von Bernuth.

The United Nations (UN) estimates that in order to meet the minimum food needs of the region's population, 3.2 million tons of food will need to be imported between now and April 2003. The UN estimates that the cost of procuring and distributing these supplies is $148 million.

"The U.S. government has been quick and generous in its response to this emergency," added von Bernuth. "But the rest of the international community, as well as individual donors, have been slow to respond." The United States has given $98 million to the United Nations consolidated appeal. An additional $40-50 million has been given to the UN and nongovernmental organizations by the United Kingdom."

For more information on the crisis in southern Africa, or to make a donation, visit Save the Children's website at www.savethechildren.org.

Save the Children is a leading global child development and relief organization working in more than 40 countries, including the United States. Its mission is to create and lasting, positive change in the lives of children in need.

CONTACT: Save the Children Colleen Barton, 203/221-4187 Cell: 203/952-4148 cbarton@savechildren.org

SOURCE: Save the Children

020806
BW020803

Copyright © 2002 - Business Wire. All rights reserved. Reproduced with permission. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the Business Wire, Permissions Desk, Business Wire, 1185 Avenue of the Americas, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10036; Tel: (212) 575-8822; FAX: (212) 575-1854. http://www.businesswire.com.

AEGiS is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, tax-exempt, educational corporation. AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted funding from Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, Elton John AIDS Foundation, the National Library of Medicine, Pacific Life Foundation and donations from users like you.

Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2002. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.

AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.

Copyright ©1980, 2002. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .