Louise in Africa
Louise Finan is our regional communications officer based in Kenya. Louise will be blogging as she travels through Africa.
Kenya’s drought: media coverage
Posted by Louise Finan in Louise in Africa | 27 October 2009 |
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Many parts of Kenya have now been without rain for three years.
Child malnutrition
Voice of America recently visited Kenya with Concern. They have written about the troubles facing the Masaai community in Kajiado, southern Kenya:
At least half of the area's cows have died, more cases of child malnutrition are surfacing, and attempts to feed the population are meeting with mixed results.
Both the article and a video about the crisis can be viewed on this page.
Affecting pastoralists
BBC News has also been covering this issue. In this comprehensive article, Will Ross looks at how the drought is affecting the pastoralists in Turkana district in north-west Kenya.
- Find out more about the crisis in Kenya
Disaster looms in east Africa
Posted by Louise Finan in Louise in Africa | 5 October 2009 |
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Daniel Howden from the Independent recently visited Marsabit in northern Kenya with Concern.
Daniel’s article paints a stark picture of life for those living in Marsabit.
“Climate change is here”
Posted by Louise Finan in Louise in Africa | 7 September 2009 |
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Journalist John Vidal recently visited Moyale, Kenya, with Concern to see how the prolonged drought has been affecting the communities there.
Emergency
We’re currently responding to the emergency in Moyale by distributing food vouchers and providing treatment to severely malnourished children.
Bleak prospects
John Vidal’s article about the crisis is entitled “Climate change is here, it is a reality.” In it, he writes, “As one devastating drought follows another, the future is bleak for millions in east Africa.” Read the full article.
Searching for water
Posted by Louise Finan in Louise in Africa | 23 July 2009 |
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I had always assumed that traveling through a desert would be hot, dusty and disorientating. Last week I found out that yes, all of the above is true.
The Chalbi desert is a vast expanse of salt-covered sand that runs through part of Marsabit district in north-eastern Kenya Often as you’re driving through, you imagine you see a pond of water or the end of the desert. As you get nearer, you realise it’s a sand dune.
Another mirage?
So when I saw what I thought were about 100 men towards the edge of the desert, I just assumed I was going a little mad and seeing a mirage again. Turned out I wasn’t. Water shortages We happened upon 91 men who have been living here for the past two weeks. These men came in search of water for their animals, which surprisingly exists as a result of a spring at the edge of the desert. The water in the spring is too salty for human or animal consumption, so these men were here to de-salt the water.
Lowest water tables
The manmade wells in their towns are almost dry and cannot accommodate the needs of their animals. De-salting the spring should supply them with water for the next six months. It’s the same story everywhere in the vast dry and arid plains that surround the desert. With no rain in most areas for the past two years, the water tables are at their lowest.
Coping in harsh conditions
The people who inhabit this harsh area have been coping with inclement conditions for centuries. Moving with their livestock to where they can find water and pasture. This year, they have been traveling further and further to feed and water their cattle, goats and camels.
It can now take some three to four days between pastures where they can find a well with water. For these pastoralists and livestock owners, this is the only way to keep the majority of their animals alive until the next expected rainy season. But those rains are not due to fall until November.
No one dares think what will happen if those rains do not appear again.
Action reaps rewards
Posted by Louise Finan in Louise in Africa | 25 May 2009 |
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Action Mutenheri is a Zimbabwean farmer who was helped by Concern. Now he’s harvesting more crops than ever before.
Traditionally, small-scale farmers in Zimbabwe used hoes to prepare their land for growing crops. Over the years, they began to use ox-driven ploughs.
At first, this seemed like a godsend. However, this method is often unsuitable for soil types in southern Africa, and led to the soil losing its fertility.
Restoring soil’s fertility
One way of restoring the soil is to use what Concern calls “conservation farming.” Instead of using ploughs, farmers dig holes which are filled in with manure or dried leaves. By the time farmers are ready to plant, the soil has regained fertility.
Concern is training farmers to do this. We’re also providing seeds and topsoil, ensuring farmers are ready to plant when the rains start.
Meet Action
Action Mutenheri has been involved in conservation farming for the last four years. To some in the community, this practice was seen as slightly backward. Action explains: “When my neighbours saw I was not using a plough and had gone back to digging, some really laughed at me. But when they saw my yields, I can tell you they were not laughing then. A couple of years ago, I was lucky if I harvested between 100 and 250 kilos of maize, this year I will harvest almost a ton!”
Huge harvest
Concern has now provided Action with new seeds. “Before, I could only afford to sow maize seed, but now I have a huge variety of crops to harvest. I plan to keep most to feed my family of seven, but I will have enough of a harvest to sell some crops.”
“My family won’t see hunger”
Action intends to spend the proceeds from his crops on school fees and fertiliser. “You know there has always been some hunger in this area, but this year my family won’t see any hunger. It makes me so happy and proud when my children have enough to eat and they can go to school,” he smiles.
Encouraged and motivated by this success, Action is determined to keep this momentum going. “I’ve bought some rabbits and am breeding them, as well as chickens. And next year I want to put in more effort to my farm. If you come back and see me in 10 years time, you’ll see I’ll have done well. Maybe I’ll have a bigger house, farm or electricity – who knows!”
To hospital with a goat
Posted by Louise Finan in Louise in Africa | 11 May 2009 |
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Travelling through Zimbabwe, it’s easy to see the devastating effects the last few years have had on people.
Empty shelves
Driving through country towns that only a few years back were vibrant and buzzing, you’re now more likely to see boarded-up shops and dusty, empty streets. The small country shops and supermarkets used to be hives of activity in Zimbabwean towns. They now show nearly empty shelves.
But life is beginning to come back to the larger towns. With the introduction of currencies like the US dollar and South African rand, people are beginning to buy goods from shops again.
In Harare, although basic food items are still expensive, people are visiting shops to buy bread, milk, flour and rice. Bigger towns outside Harare are also stocking up their shelves with these basic commodities and small amounts of foreign currency.
Trading without money
Go further into the countryside, though, and you’d be hard pressed to find a dollar or rand. For these rural communities, the only way to buy soap, salt or oil is to barter.
Now the harvesting has begun, people are carrying buckets of maize to shops which they’ll use to trade. Before the harvest, when there was no maize to barter with; people here had to use their livestock to pay for services. It wasn’t unusual to see a person being transported to hospital with their goat in tow.
Emergency response
Concern has been implementing emergency response programmes to help people cope with the crisis. We have been distributing food aid and setting up cholera treatment centres.
We’re are also focusing on ensuring communities are have enough food in the longer term. As part of this, we’ve had huge success this year helping farmers to improve their harvest. Read more about this in my next post.
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Great Ethiopian Run
Ethiopia’s prowess in long distance and marathon running is well known, bringing many an Olympic medal back to the country.
There are theories that all the top Ethiopian athletes come from the same village, where something magical must be happening. It may also have something to do with the fact that these athletes train at crazy altitudes, to improve their stamina and fitness.
Huffing and puffing
Walking fast at 3,000 meters above sea level leaves most of us mere mortals huffing and puffing, so I would be a little nervous at the thoughts of a five kilometre run at this altitude. Luckily this fear didn’t deter over 6,000 women from taking part in the Women First 5k Run in Addis.
International Women’s Day
The run has been co-sponsored by Concern for the last four years. Each year since the attendance and support it’s received has grown and grown. The run is timed to coincide with International Women’s Day and brings together women of all creeds, ages and nationalities. In fact, at less than a year old, the youngest participant this year was Zoe, the daughter of a Concern staff member!
This year’s theme for the day and the run asked for a commitment from everyone to practice gender equality in their daily lives. As one of the posters read, “Nothing is unreachable for women”!
Waiting for rain
Posted by Louise Finan in Louise in Africa | 3 April 2009 |
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Kenya and other countries in the region have been waiting anxiously this week for the start of the “long” rains. While Nairobi had a few heavy showers at the start of the week, we haven’t seen the noisy, thunderous downpours you’d expect. In fact, some parts of Kenya haven’t received a drop.
When I first started living in Africa, the idea of having “rainy” and “dry” seasons was completely alien. Having grown up in the west of Ireland, where the idea of a dry day is only getting damp from the drizzle, it’s hard to imagine that there are countries where you don’t get a drop of rain for five months.
A joyful occasion
And unlike in Ireland, for countries in this region, the first sign of rains is a joyful occasion. Fields have been ploughed and seeds planted in anticipation. If the rain falls on time and continuously for the next three to four months, farmers will harvest and be able to feed their families.
When the rains don’t come
It’s depressing to think of what happens when the rain doesn’t come. Farmers then have nothing to harvest. It’s looking like this is a reality for this region in 2009.
Climate change and its effects on Africa are beginning to really show. As are the effects of the recession.
For a few months now, African economists have been warning countries like Kenya to plan for reduced aid budgets, lower prices for exports and the declining remittances that are invaluable to the coffers.
Effects of the recession
The G20 meetings this week have reassured developing countries that the 0.7 aid target will be kept. There’s no doubt though that the effects of the recession will continue to be felt in developing countries.
Developing countries, now more than ever, need our continued support. Let’s hope this message is heard by the Irish government in advance of next week’s budget, and Irish Aid can continue its necessary and life-saving work throughout the developing world.
