Action Against Hunger | ACF-USA

President Obama Promotes New Initiative to Tackle Hunger in Africa

erapport — Fri, 18 May 2012 18:36:34 +0000

President Obama Promotes New Initiative to Tackle Hunger in Africa

May 18, 2012

On the eve of the G-8, President Obama announces $3 billion in private sector commitments to fight malnutrition and bolster food security

In a speech today, President Barack Obama affirmed the United States' commitment to being a leader in the fight against hunger and malnutrition around the world. He announced $3 billion in new private sector pledges to significantly increase agriculture and food production in Africa.

There are no new commitments from the U.S. government, but many see the timing of the president's remarks—at the start of a four-day period including the G-8 Summit at Camp David and NATO meetings in Chicago—as a symbol of the government’s desire to put and keep the issue on their agenda.

A special session of the G-8 will focus on African food security, and the leaders of Benin, Ethiopia, Ghana, and Tanzania have been invited.

“We must do what we say. No empty promises.”

—President Barack Obama, on efforts to promote food security in Africa

The White House said the private sector pledges, coupled with commitments from donor countries to work with African nations on food security programs, may contribute to helping as many as 50 million people out of poverty over the next decade.

InterAction, an NGO alliance of which Action Against Hunger is a member, welcomed the private sector pledges but noted that they are not a substitute for governments meeting their pre-existing obligations around food security.

What we can all agree on is that ending hunger and promoting food security throughout Africa are topics that deserve national and international attention. We applaud the G-8 leaders for having a dialogue, and we encourage all of you, our friends and supporters, to start dialogues of your own. By starting that conversation, and making our own pledges, we too can be part of making malnutrition history. Thank you for your support!

Tell Us What You Think

What is your reaction to the president's remarks? What can you do to put fighting global hunger higher on your personal agenda?

Help ACF Make Malnutrition History.

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New Report Shows Inadequacies of Aid Investment in Nutrition

erapport — Fri, 11 May 2012 19:17:09 +0000

New Report Shows Inadequacies of Aid Investment in Nutrition

May 11, 2012

Publications

Only one percent of the funds needed to combat global undernutrition are being delivered

We’re about to reach a critical moment in combating the hunger crisis. Key conversations will be happening. The maternal- and child-health focused 1,000 Days will host the Scaling Up Nutrition: Calling All Champions briefing in Washington on the eve of the G8 Summit, May 17^th. President Obama has invited African leaders to join leaders at the G-8 at Camp David on May 19th for a discussion on accelerating progress on food security in Africa. 1,000 Days will also host a summit in Chicago on May 21^st, where our Board Chair Ray Debbane will speak. These are critical conversations, and we have a whole lot to say—much of it anchored in our major new report, Aid for Nutrition.

The report shows that funding for undernutrition programs represents a mere one percent of the estimated $11.8 billion that is needed annually, funding levels that remained unchanged between 2005 and 2009. And 11 percent of government and international funding commitments went unfunded.

Action Against Hunger’s latest report provides a detailed analysis on aid reporting systems, assesses the transparency, quantity and effectiveness of nutrition funding in recent years, and provides recommendations on what is needed to adequately address undernutrition.

Funding for nutrition programs that deliver the full package of direct nutrition interventions, which address the more immediate elements of undernutrition and have the greatest potential for reducing child mortality and future disease burdens associated with undernutrition, were severely underfunded, receiving only two percent of the total funding earmarked for nutrition. Evidence also showed that the aid could be better directed to where needed most in the worst-affected regions of Africa and Asia. Another finding was that much of the data used in the analysis was inaccessible due to poor reporting by government agencies, suggesting a lack of transparency in nutrition funding and highlighting the need for more accountability.

“Aid For Nutrition highlights the worrying lack of investment in direct nutrition interventions. If international donors are committed to scaling up nutrition interventions, they must act now and provide adequate funds to meet what is required.”

—Sandra Mutuma, Senior Nutrition Advisor, Action Against Hunger UK

Another concern the report raised has to do with the reactive and short-term nature of those nutrition programs that are funded—largely in response to emergencies, with few resources dedicated to longer-term development programs that address structural issues alongside lifesaving activities.

Drawing from the evidence gathered in Aid For Nutrition, Action Against Hunger’s recommendations include the following:

Government funders must improve their reporting and transparency.
Investments in nutrition-specific interventions must be dramatically increased. The links between health and nutrition need to be better understood and supported by donor and recipient governments.
Greater investments are needed in the treatment and prevention of undernutrition in both emergency and non-emergency contexts.
A comprehensive, independent annual review is needed to assess government investments in nutrition, both to ensure greater accountability and to monitor commitments to scaling up nutrition.

Publication: Aid for Nutrition

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What results of the report do you find most compelling?

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As Conflict Continues, Keeping Focus on South Sudan’s Humanitarian Crisis

erapport — Fri, 04 May 2012 14:25:44 +0000

As Conflict Continues, Keeping Focus on South Sudan’s Humanitarian Crisis

May 4, 2012

Current Events

Despite escalating tensions, ACF is hard at work fulfilling basic needs for thousands in the youngest nation in the world

The peace between Sudan and South Sudan was not to be, at least not for long. Even after the Republic of South Sudan’s independence last July, tensions remained high between the former civil war combatants. Oil fields—mainly located along the contested border region—became the focal point in a play for power that has intensified into violent clashes over last month. After months of border skirmishes between the two countries, South Sudan seized a disputed oil field in Heglig earlier this month, prompting the north’s retaliation.

Last Thursday, the United Nations drafted a Security Council resolution to make legally binding an African Union demand that Sudan and South Sudan stop clashes along the border and resume peace talks. Whether or not the resolution passes—and if it does, whether or not it has any impact—remains to be seen. But what’s clear—resolution or no resolution, warfare or none—is that the region, especially where we are working in South Sudan, suffers from a vast underlying humanitarian crisis, one that requires continued attention and an aggressive humanitarian response.

A combustible set of problems

Nearly half the population of South Sudan is food insecure, and malnutrition rates are alarmingly high. South Sudan also has the highest maternal mortality rate in the world. Only 4% of the nation’s arable land has been cultivated. The country is also facing a deficit in its agricultural production, suffering from a lack of rainfall due to late rains in October and November 2011. Food stocks from that harvest only lasted two months and predictions for this year’s rainy season are also poor. Water is in surplus across South Sudan but access, quality, and distribution are highly problematic. Epidemics and waterborne diseases remain in abundance and there is urgent need to develop sustainable water management systems.

Market access and food availability have also emerged as problems. Food stocks are depleted, driving people to market sooner; at market staple food prices have more than doubled from last year in most areas, making them inaccessible to many families. In addition, much of South Sudan’s food supply has historically come from Khartoum in the north; now that supply route has been cut off. South Sudan has few roads suitable for high-volume transportation between the capital, Juba, and the northern part of the country. Transfers from Darfur occur but are spotty, and a road from Uganda—the only viable neighbor with food to provide, other than Sudan—is in progress but far from complete. As a result, a growing number of families have been priced out of the market with few alternatives for feeding themselves. Access is particularly an issue in Warrap and Unity states, where most of the roads will become inaccessible during the impending rainy season. If we don’t beat the rains to deliver assistance, it will become increasingly difficult to reach affected populations.

“The stress on households will be much higher during this year’s lean season as food stocks run out before new harvests are ready. Given the sheer number of people needing food and the distorting impact that food shortages have on market dynamics—think high prices—we’re looking at a daunting scenario of widespread hunger and undernutrition.”

—Silke Pietzsch, Technical Director, Action Against Hunger

Large-scale movements among the population, predating the current round of violence, are also troublesome. Since independence, tensions in the border areas have escalated and conflict became common. Displaced people from the contested area of Abyei as well as refugees from Blue Nile and South Kordofan have burdened South Sudan. The country is indeed facing a massive influx of internally displaced persons, as well as some refugees from neighboring Sudan. Since October 2010, nearly 300,000 people who were in the north returned to South Sudan, and approximately 500,000 more are expected to return between 2012 and 2013.

A combustible mix of food shortages, collapsed supply routes, high fuel prices, population displacements and military clashes have converged with dangerous implications for the South’s populations. The extent of the international community’s political and financial involvement will likely determine how this complex emergency plays out.

Putting best practices into action

Despite escalating military tensions, we’re committed to maintaining our lifesaving programs in nutrition, food security and livelihoods, and water, sanitation, and hygiene. Our teams are also developing plans to scale up our efforts along the northern border, depending on the achievement of relative security. A large-scale agriculture project is in the works, centered on the widespread distribution of seeds through voucher fairs; increasing the number of households actively engaged in agriculture is vital to producing promising food security and livelihoods, as well as nutrition, outcomes. We’re also increasing the number of people served in our therapeutic nutrition interventions, and anticipating the needs of populations returning from the north and other locations. We may even begin cash-for-work programs, providing local citizens with disposable income while stimulating local food markets, if the security climate allows it.

In South Sudan, one child in every eight dies from malnutrition before the age of five. Last year, nearly 23,000 children suffering from severe acute malnutrition benefited from ACF’s nutritional programs. In 2012, ACF will strengthen its prevention programs and scale up its work with acutely malnourished children.

Our operations in South Sudan have more than tripled in size over the past three years—an indication of the scope of humanitarian needs. It’s imperative that those involved in peace negotiations facilitate humanitarian access to displaced populations in the border regions, as well as in the three protocol areas. We’re committed to expanding our programs and beneficiary reach, despite the difficult security context. With your ongoing support, we can and will continue these efforts to help the South Sudanese build safe, secure, and healthy lives.

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Have you ever needed to leave home and move elsewhere temporarily—due to a weather event like a tornado, or for any other reason? What was that experience like?

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Pakistan: Hundreds of Thousands Displaced, in Need of Assistance

erapport — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 13:55:19 +0000

Pakistan: Hundreds of Thousands Displaced, in Need of Assistance

April 28, 2012

Current Events

Pakistan Humanitarian Forum and National Humanitarian Network Joint Press Release

The following information has been distributed by the Pakistan Humanitarian Forum, of which Action Against Hunger is a member, and the National Humanitarian Network.

Islamabad, April 28, 2012—A recent influx of 63,000 displaced families—almost half a million people—into the Districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has sparked grave concerns among international and national NGOs in Pakistan. Assessments by members of the Pakistan Humanitarian Forum and the National Humanitarian Network show considerable emergency needs and significant protection concerns with families living in overcrowded conditions with little food or water, limited sanitation facilities or healthcare supplies, and limited to no opportunities to earn an income. The Pakistan Humanitarian Forum (PHF) and the National Humanitarian Network (NHN) are calling for financial support from the government and donor agencies to ensure the urgent needs of those displaced from their homes are met.

After travelling on foot for up to two days, just 10% of these displaced families have settled in Jalozai Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Camp, where the registered displaced have access to basic necessities such as food, shelter and essential healthcare services. Due to cultural constraints, as well as issues with registration for assistance, the remaining 90% of those displaced have opted to live with host communities and rent spaces or move in to accommodation already occupied by families, resulting in overcrowding and extra burden on host community services and markets that are already poor. Critically, many of the displaced fled with limited possessions or assets. This coupled with limited to no employment opportunities to enable the displaced to contribute to or improve their living conditions will result in many families, both those that are displaced and the host communities accommodating them, entering into debt to try and meet their basic needs. PHF and NHN are calling for the start of registration and distribution of aid outside of Jalozai IDP camp, where the vast majority of IDPs have settled and for targeted support for host communities.

“The displaced residing in host communities are stretching limited resources further, there is an urgent need to commence registration and distribution of emergency supplies and services to IDPs that have settled off camp and to deliver support to host communities to cater for the additional demands levied on these communities as a result of the displacement”

—Samina khan, Coordinator, National Humanitarian Network

Since January 2012, security operations against non-state armed groups in Khyber Agency have prompted this mass displacement. The situation is particularly critical as the government states it could last up to six months while the humanitarian community expects that families will not be able to return until early 2013. There are also fears that 20,000 more families will be displaced as the conflict spreads to other parts of Khyber Agency.

“Assessments conducted off camp in the Districts of Peshawar, Nowshera and Kohat, where the internally displaced persons (IDP) concentration is high, has revealed alarming information. Nearly half of families displaced are unregistered, excluding them from receiving any aid. Over 40% of families struggle to find shelter. About 80 % of families assessed said they have little or no access to healthcare or medicines and are dependent on the minimal income earned by men securing work as daily wage labourers.”

—Aine Fay, Chair, Pakistan Humanitarian Forum

Ensuring support for the most vulnerable, including children, women, the disabled and the elderly is a specific need for both the 10% of IDPs registered in Jalozai camp and for 90% of IDPs that are off camp. “Given their cultural constraints, displaced women and girls are especially vulnerable wherever they find themselves, addressing their privacy and security issues must be prioritized urgently," according to Arif Jabbar, Country Director for Oxfam in Pakistan.

Children account for half of the displacement figures. Assessments revealed that 12% of the displaced are under the age of 2 while 16% are less than 5 years old. The present situation raises serious concerns for the security, health and wellbeing of these children. 13% of children are already said to be suffering from psychological distress. Many IDPs said education is a primary need of their children, yet three in five families say they cannot afford even basic school expenses such as stationery items for their children. NHN and PHF call for the local Government to issue notification to District Education Officers to admit children to the schools available in host communities to the full capacity possible putting aside usual requirements for certificates or an ID cards.

"With more than half of all displaced children out of school, the fear of them being forced to work is increasing day after day. Previous experience shows that many will engage in hazardous occupations such as helping hands at workshops and teahouses or worst still as beggars and garbage pickers. Putting these children back in school is the best hope for their future.”

—David Wright, Country Director, Save the Children

The Pakistan Humanitarian Forum and the National Humanitarian Network are calling for a strong show of solidarity and support from the Pakistani government and international donor agencies to ensure the urgent needs of those displaced from their homes are immediately met.

Notes to Editors:

The Pakistan-Humanitarian Forum was formed to coordinate and strengthen the efforts of International NGOs working in disaster management. The forum collectively represents INGOs to the Government of Pakistan, United Nations, and the larger humanitarian and civil community, including the National Humanitarian Network of Pakistani NGOs and Community-Based Organizations. PHF has seats on the Humanitarian Country Team, the Policy and Strategy Meetings in Peshawar, the Emergency Relief Fund Advisory and Review Boards, and the Pakistan Inter Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Country Team, a coordination mechanism constituted by UN agencies, the Red Cross Movement, and international NGOs. There are 47 member organizations of the PHF and 9 organizations with PHF observer status.

The National Humanitarian Network is the forum for National NGOs working in Pakistan. It comprises of 112 organizations based at District, Provincial and/or National level.

For more information: info@pakhumanitarianforum.org | +03455009574

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Amid Complexity, Progress in Tackling Deadly Hunger in Nigeria

erapport — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 19:01:24 +0000

Amid Complexity, Progress in Tackling Deadly Hunger in Nigeria

April 25, 2012

Current Events

An inside look at ACF’s work in Africa’s most populous nation

If you simply scratch the surface, it appears as if Nigeria is having a golden moment. It’s a middle income country according to the World Bank, and is the second largest economy in Africa after South Africa. The U.S. gets 20 percent of its oil from Nigeria and is the nation’s largest foreign investor. And according to Citigroup, no country in the world will have a higher average GDP growth rate in the next 40 years than Nigeria.

But it’s also a land of significant dichotomy. That fast-growing GDP, reflective of the highly-concentrated oil wealth, masks the plight of an impoverished majority. For starters, more than 70 percent of Nigeria’s population lives on less than a dollar a day; more than 90 percent live on less than $2 a day. Less than half have access to sufficient sanitation and sources of water. And the life expectancy is a staggering 44 years.

Its rapid population growth has also been sounding international alarm bells. One out of every two people in West Africa hails from Nigeria, and the country’s nearly 170 million people already make it the most populous nation in Africa, the 6^th most populous in the world. What’s raising eyebrows now are projections that in just 25 years, that population could skyrocket to 300 million—meaning that a population roughly equivalent to that of the United States would be living in a geographic area no bigger than Arizona and New Mexico.

Despite significant needs for nutrition, food security, and water and sanitation support, only four international NGOs work across Nigeria. Action Against Hunger is proud to be one of those NGOs.

It’s a country in need of significant nutrition, food security, and clean water interventions—and one that only has four international NGOs in place to tackle some of that work. Action Against Hunger is proud to be one of those NGOs, and we understand the complex road ahead. To that end we recently hosted an Insider Briefing at our New York headquarters, where members of our senior Operations staff shared key context and programmatic updates with some of our donors and friends. Since we couldn’t fit all of you in our conference room, we’d like to share some of that information with you now.

Going where the needs are greatest

Until fairly recently, the Nigerian government wasn’t particularly forthcoming about the country’s high rates of severe acute malnutrition among children. Calling it a problem is an understatement—there are more than a million children in need of treatment for severe acute malnutrition in Nigeria. A turning point came in late 2009, when, for a variety of reasons, government officials became more receptive to outside assistance. We opened our first office in May 2010, in the capital city of Abuja, and spent the remainder of that year supporting the Ministry of Health in developing nutritional and training guidelines.

In 2011 we expanded our operations by opening two more bases, in Damaturu and Dutse, in the country’s north where humanitarian needs are most pressing. This northern region is also home to the extremist Islamist group Boko Haram, whose violent activities have heightened security concerns—more than 100 people were killed in a single day of coordinated bombings and shootings this past January—and raised tensions between the Muslim north and Christian south.

Scaling up capacity to combat child malnutrition

Last year our efforts resulted in lifesaving treatment for 12,000 severely malnourished children across Nigeria, and our staff trained 1,000 community volunteers and 200 health workers. This year we plan to effectively double that reach, helping 20,000 severely malnourished children and training 2,000 community volunteers and 400 health workers. We’re already supporting 15 health centers in Dutse and 21 in Damaturu; by December we’ll be in 33 centers in the former and 36 in the latter. Before a new year begins, we’ll be providing training and services in nearly 70 health centers throughout Nigeria.

“The total number of severely acute malnourished children in Nigeria is 1.2 million. We’re basically doubling the number of people who will benefit from our programs this year, but the needs are massive. It’s critical that we increase our capacity to reach these children.”

—Andrea Tamburini, Director of Operations, Action Against Hunger

Diversifying programs for an integrated approach

We already ensure there’s clean water, good sanitation, and safe hygiene practices in the health centers where we work. A natural progression is extending these critical services into the surrounding communities. The areas we serve currently face high rates of waterborne diseases like cholera due to the widespread use of unprotected surface water and poor latrine coverage. Since these diseases are so heavily correlated with malnutrition, we view it as essential to conduct community outreach on sanitation and hygiene practices while ensuring access to clean water and latrines. This year we’ll work alongside one of our in-country NGO partners, Doctors Without Borders, to develop a cholera response and prevention strategy for at-risk communities across the North.

We’ve also conducted a food security and livelihood assessment to better understand what’s causing malnutrition in Nigeria’s northeastern states. We found that Nigerians struggle with market price fluctuations, post-harvest management, seasonal livestock migrations that limit animal protein availability, and overall diet diversity, especially amongst the youngest children. We’re working now to use these findings to better inform our programs as we work with these communities on proper nutrition and food security.

An uphill battle remains, and new challenges continue to emerge. This year saw inflation rates spike when a government fuel subsidy was removed in January, causing transportation costs to jump 25 percent and triggering considerable economic hardship and political turmoil. Obstacles like these, however, come and go but our teams remain dedicated to helping Nigerians create better lives for themselves, starting with lifesaving support for their malnourished children. As always, we can’t do it without the generous support of friends like you, and for that we thank you.

Tell Us What You Think

Did it shock you to learn that only four international humanitarian NGOs work in Nigeria? Some 90% of Nigerians live on less than $2 a day; as an experiment, have you tried spending less than $2 a day? How did you do?

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Millions in the Sahel Face Food Crisis without Increased Funding

erapport — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 19:51:20 +0000

Millions in the Sahel Face Food Crisis without Increased Funding

April 23, 2012

Breaking News

Press Releases

Action Against Hunger and other aid agencies need dramatic funding increases to respond to the growing emergency

A huge gap in funding for aid projects aimed at preventing the deepening food crisis in the Sahel is threatening to leave millions of people hungry in the coming months, a coalition of aid agencies has warned today.

Action Against Hunger, Oxfam, Save the Children and World Vision are aiming to provide emergency assistance to nearly six million people across the region but say they have so far been able to secure funding for less than a third of this essential work. Nearly US$250 million is needed by all four agencies, but only $52 million has been raised so far.

Action Against Hunger plans to reach 1 million but so far has only managed to raise a third of what it needs. Equally Oxfam has only raised a third of what it needs to reach 1.2 million people. Save the Children which has plans to help 2.5 million people has only managed to raise 15 percent of its budget and World Vision which plans to help 1.1 million people are only 20 percent funded.

Collectively, this shortfall is equivalent to over 2 million people being deprived of life-saving assistance and, if it remains, is likely to result in significant cutbacks in the agencies’ aid programs.

Help ACF Combat Malnutrition across the Sahel

The United Nations has also been hit by the funding crisis where less than half of the projected $724 million required to tackle the crisis has been raised. This funding gap is likely to grow further as the situation deteriorates and more money is required.

The aid agencies are seeing increasing malnutrition levels across the Sahel and are calling for a donor pledging conference to rally wealthy governments and donors to generously fund the total aid effort for the food crisis.

“In the Chadian Sahel, the global acute malnutrition rate already exceeds the emergency threshold of 15 percent and admissions to our feeding centers have increased dramatically. More than 2,000 severely malnourished children were admitted for therapeutic nutritional care in Kanem last month alone. We have deployed additional emergency staff and scaled up our programs but further action is needed to prevent the situation from deteriorating.”

—Patricia Hoorelbeke, West Africa Regional Representative, Action Against Hunger

In Mauritania, Oxfam is aiming to reach at least 70,000 people with desperately needed food and clean water. However, with a funding gap of over $1.3 million for its work in the country the agency will only be able to reach half of these people.

Steve Cockburn, Oxfam’s Regional Policy Manager in West Africa said “There is no doubt that families across West Africa are entering a dangerous period, and we have already seen women forced to search for grains in anthills in order to survive. We are ready to bring assistance to millions of people, but time is running out to get programs in place before the crisis hits its peak and funding is urgently needed. We urge the UN to organize a pledging conference as soon as possible to ensure that 15 million people who risk going hungry are not left without the assistance they so desperately need."

In Niger, Save the Children has only been able to deliver vital cash support to 1 in 10 of the families they plan to reach. “We are already seeing the number of malnourished children needing treatment rise, and unless we can scale up our programs, it will continue to do so,” said Jeremy Stoner, Save the Children’s West Africa Director. “If we act early we can save thousands of lives. We have known that a hunger crisis is brewing in the Sahel for months, but without funding, there is little we can do to stop it. Addressing malnutrition – including in its most acute form here in West and Central Africa - should be high on the agenda of G8 leaders when they meet in the U.S next month.”

Chris Palusky, Response Manager for World Vision, said: “We’re at a key moment in the fight to protect lives of children suffering crippling hunger and malnutrition. We’re already seeing people taking extreme measures to cope with the crisis. Some families are resorting to eating wild leaves, others are barely able to feed children one meal a day. We have to act now before the crisis reaches its peak when the most vulnerable will be among those dying from preventable hunger and malnutrition."

In Niger the lack of funding has prevented World Vision from reaching over 15,000 malnourished children with a life-saving nutrition project and 22,000 people in need of clean water. “This is a desperate situation," added Palusky. "We've seen how our relief and rehabilitation projects can help save lives and protect communities against future crises when funding is available." added Chris Palusky.

Agency	Expected Beneficiaries	Amount Needed (US$)	Amount Received	Shortfall
ACF	1 million	$45.5M	$15.4M	$30.1M
Oxfam	1.2 million	$53M	$12M	$41M
Save the Children	2.5 million	$81.27M	$12.27M	$69M
World Vision	1.1 million	$60M	$12M	$48M
Totals		$239.77M	$51.4M	$188.1M

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The Sharing Experiment

dhernandez — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 20:49:18 +0000

The Sharing Experiment

April 10, 2012

Current Events

Already a viral hit in Europe, the Sharing Experiment video shows that sharing is a part of human nature.

You may remember first being taught to share under the watchful eye of your Kindergarten teacher, but we’ve got a new video that suggests something surprising: Kids will happily share, even when they think nobody’s watching.

It’s a concept that we first tested with twenty little ones in Spain who were recorded in pairs as they were told to sit in a room and wait for an adult to return. One of the two was given a snack, while the other was left empty-handed.

How did they react? Did they share their food? Find out for yourself below.

We want to draw attention to one simple fact: in a world with the capacity to feed twice its current population, too many children still die from causes related to acute malnutrition each year. Although we have the means and knowledge to prevent, diagnose and treat deadly malnutrition, only 3% of malnourished children around the world receive access to treatment.

The Sharing Experiment is a reminder that kids have a lot to teach us: global hunger may be highly complex, but we know what to do when someone needs nourishment. The video and our campaign aim to broaden awareness and understanding of deadly malnutrition and generate support for prioritizing childhood malnutrition—a deadly condition that, as the video shows, we’re all predisposed to solving.

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Sahel Crisis: Regional Food Emergency Intensifies in Mali, Mauritania

erapport — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 21:16:14 +0000

Sahel Crisis: Regional Food Emergency Intensifies in Mali, Mauritania

April 9, 2012

Current Events

As a military coup upends Mali and harvest failures threaten Mauritania, Action Against Hunger gets to work

As the regional food crisis intensifies in Africa’s Sahel region, we’ve worked to provide you with the latest information. Most recently, we wrote about the situation on the ground in Chad, where food shortages, price hikes, and drought have put many thousands of children in danger. Indeed, one million children are at risk of severe acute malnutrition across the region. This week we shift our focus to Chad’s neighboring countries of Mali and Mauritania, where we’re working to scale up our operations to meet growing needs.

Helping Mali’s displaced in the wake of a military coup

Two weeks ago, a group of soldiers seized the presidential palace in Mali’s capital, Bamako. They dissolved the democratically-elected government and suspended the country’s constitution. Malians, already subject to a growing food crisis triggered by drought-like conditions, are now grappling with political unrest that has already uprooted more than 65,000 people from their homes.

“These are families who have had to hastily flee the violence. They lack even the most basic items needed to care for their families, like cooking utensils, blankets, and clothing.”

—Helena Valencia, Emergency Team Leader, Action Against Hunger

With one in five families in Mali already struggling to support a child with severe acute malnutrition, we knew we needed to scale up our emergency operations quickly. We activated an emergency agreement with the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation, which will cover the basic needs of 8,000 displaced Malians. We’re also running general food distributions for families with severely malnourished children, and strengthening the capacity of 31 nutritional centers to diagnose and treat those affected.

Combating acute malnutrition outbreaks in Mauritania

In Mauritania, the combination of a severe rainfall deficit, rising grain prices, and plummeting livestock prices have decimated food stocks and left millions in need of assistance. Estimates indicate that a full third of the country’s population, around a million people, are at risk of deadly malnutrition. In some communities in the Gorgol region, the number of children with severe acute malnutrition has doubled in just two months. Fatimata Diop, an Action Against Hunger nutritionist, warns that the months ahead will be extremely challenging. “We fear an exponential increase in cases of malnutrition, and the crisis will become catastrophic if it doesn’t rain by July,” she said.

“We have no time to lose in trying to protect Mauritania’s most vulnerable children. Without ready-to-use foods and other emergency rations, even more children will become acutely malnourished.”

—Mohamen Ghaly, Action Against Hunger Nutritionist

In response to this potential humanitarian catastrophe, we’re ramping up our efforts to prevent and treat severe acute malnutrition while distributing emergency food rations to help the most vulnerable. Our teams are also monitoring preexisting infrastructure projects, like the rain water collection dam and solar-panel-powered irrigation system we installed in the community of Ndiokoudi. These projects help families maintain cultivated land and small gardens during the dry season, and, coupled with our emergency response activities, should help communities cope with current shortages and future crises.

We remain committed to helping 800,000 people across the Sahel region—in Mali, Mauritania, Chad, Burkina Faso, and Senegal. Thank you for your supportin achieving our goal to save lives. We will continue to update you about our efforts on the ground.

Tell Us What You Think

What might you do to raise awareness of the food crisis in the Sahel? Describe the difference you hope to make.

Help ACF fight deadly malnutrition.

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AECID (Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and Development)

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Sahel Crisis: Nutritional Emergency Begins in Chad’s Kanem Region

erapport — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 19:10:01 +0000

Sahel Crisis: Nutritional Emergency Begins in Chad’s Kanem Region

March 30, 2012

Current Events

Action Against Hunger scales up operations to address food shortages, treat more than 20,000 severely malnourished children

For months humanitarian actors have sounded the alarm in anticipation of an impending regional food crisis due to shortages, price hikes, and drought. One million children are at risk of severe acute malnutrition. The impact of this slow-onset crisis is now being felt, much earlier and more severely than expected, as populations in Kanem, Western Chad, experience a telling spike in malnutrition rates. More than 2,000 severely malnourished children were admitted for therapeutic nutritional care in Kanem last month alone—more than three times the number in the same month last year—and our teams are alarmed at the critical state in which many of these children arrive as it suggests a rapidly deteriorating nutritional crisis.

“In November and December of last year, we saw an influx of malnourished children but they were at least in a state that allowed us to treat them without too many complications. Now, children are arriving in such an advanced state of malnutrition that we cannot always save them. Many are dying on their way to our centers, which is something we rarely saw in previous months.”

—Clemence Malet, Action Against Hunger Nutritionist

In Kanem, more than 60 percent of the population lives in a permanent state of food insecurity. Additionally, communities are still recovering from previous food crises, making this year’s instability all the more dramatic. Those conditions have contributed to a haunting countrywide statistic in Chad—one in ten children die before they turn one, and one in five before their fifth birthday.

One such unlucky little one was a 16-month-old girl named Achta, who was admitted for therapeutic nutritional care at the hospital in the village of Mao. She arrived weighing just 11 pounds, her severe acute malnutrition compounded by diarrhea. Five nurses went to work on Achta, trying for over an hour to find a vein to give her fluids. But her heart rate was already so low, and breathing so slowed, that the diagnosis was grim. Achta didn’t make it through the night.

Chad’s haunting new reality: one in ten children die before their first birthday; one in five before their fifth birthday

Scaling up: Mobile nutrition units, food distributions

It’s experiences like this that inspire our staff to scale up our efforts as much as possible. This is the time to do it; the so-called lean season, a period of food shortage in between harvests, has begun two months early in Kanem. Many families have had no stock of food for weeks. In response to this critical lack of food, our teams have launched large-scale emergency food distributions in coordination with colleague NGOs in the region.

In response to the widening nutritional crisis we’re ramping up the operations of our 20 mobile nutrition units to proactively identify and treat malnourished children before it’s too late. The teams anticipate reaching more than 20,000 children in Kanem and the neighboring province of Bahr el Ghazal. To support this effort we’ve opened a new base in central Chad to cut down on logistical challenges and transportation time.

Livestock is the main source of sustenance in Kanem and farmers depend on their animals to survive. As drought-like conditions reduce pasture lands for grazing, the region’s livestock have suffered heavy losses, leaving farmers without income to buy food for their families. The United Kingdom government’s Department for International Development (DFID) has funded a livestock protection program that provides veterinary services and distributes feed to help farmers salvage their herds and weather the crisis without having to sell at rock-bottom prices.

Making a difference, one child at a time

Families are already starting to see positive results. Two weeks ago, a Chadian mother named Assama walked more than five miles from her home in the village of Senet to a therapeutic nutrition center we’ve run in Mondo for the past eight months. She brought in her 8-month-old son Ousmane, who weighed little more than a newborn should. Assama had tried an outpatient nutrition center for Ousmane first, but he continued to lose weight, vomited frequently, and had no appetite. She explained that her family’s income potential as grain farmers was destroyed by the lack of harvest, and that inflation was making it next to impossible for her to buy enough food for her three children.

“I don’t eat enough, there’s nothing to eat in Senet,” Assama explained when her son was first admitted. “As a result, I have almost no milk for Ousmane. I can’t breastfeed him enough, which makes him malnourished. He is suffering.”

But now, after seeing her son receive lifesaving care, she’s hopeful.

“For Ousmane, things are getting better. He’s regaining his appetite. He’s drinking milk. Along with the staff at the nutrition center, I am helping take good care of him. Everything is so much better than when we first arrived.”

—Assama Ali, mother of 8-month-old ACF nutrition program beneficiary Ousmane

And we’re hopeful, too. The challenges developing across the Sahel are substantial, but we’re committed to helping thousands of children get through this crisis while putting longer-term programs in place to mitigate future crises.

Tell us what you think

What factors do you feel will be critical in helping the people of Chad and other countries in the Sahel get through this crisis?

Help ACF fight deadly malnutrition.

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2012 Sahel Crisis

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Liquid Assets: Providing Clean Water Around the World

erapport — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 22:29:39 +0000

Liquid Assets: Providing Clean Water Around the World

March 20, 2012

Current Events

Action Against Hunger ensures access to safe water and sanitation while building local capacity for the long term

Chances are you’re reading this post at your desk, a bottle of water in easy arm’s reach. If you’re like us, you sip throughout your day—staying happy, healthy, hydrated. You might take a moment to give your ubiquitous H₂0 a little extra appreciation because this week, on Thursday, March 22^nd, is World Water Day. It’s also a great day to remind ourselves that water is not ubiquitous for everyone. In fact, issues with water—its scarcity or its contamination—present a crisis to some 300 million people in emergency situations every year.

The Millennium Development Goal for water—halving the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation—has been met.

The good news is that the humanitarian sector has made significant progress. Earlier this month, we learned that the United Nations Millennium Development Goal focused on water—to halve the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation—has been met, three years ahead of schedule. Two billion people gained access to clean water between 1990 and 2010. And indeed, Action Against Hunger has been proud to work with some of those people—about three million of them in 2010, for example. Our water, sanitation & hygiene (WASH) programs provide access to clean water, promote sanitation and hygiene, and ensure lasting change by training community members to manage water and sanitation programs themselves.

It’s good progress, but there is much work that remains to be done. Four thousand children under the age of five still die every day from preventable water-related diseases, consuming unpurified water or from sources tainted by poor hygiene practices. And it’s a Catch-22 because it’s impossible to maintain good hygiene and sanitation practices without clean water—especially when it comes to that great disease eradicator, hand washing.

Every day, more than 4,000 young lives are lost from preventable water-related diseases while millions of women and children spend hours collecting water from distant, often polluted sources.

General access to safe sources remains a challenge too, especially in the wake of droughts and other natural disasters, and is a huge threat to communities dependent on farming and herding. At Action Against Hunger, we’re all about combating deadly malnutrition, and know that clean water is absolutely essential—in copious amounts—for food production. Did you know that it takes about 400 gallons of water to produce two pounds of wheat? It also takes huge amounts of water to make feed for livestock, grow any sort of crop, and process meat and dairy products.

By 2025, 1.8 billion people will be living in countries or regions with absolute water scarcity, and it’s possible that two-thirds of the world’s population will be living under water-stressed conditions. Action Against Hunger wants to defy those projections. With your help, we can continue to provide access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene for the most vulnerable of our global neighbors. We encourage you to stick around to learn more about why water matters and how we’re taking action.

Grab a (water) bottle or raise your (water) glass. Cheers to World Water Day.

Tell Us What You Think

What are you doing to acknowledge World Water Day? Were you surprised to learn about the connection between water and food security?

Support ACF's Work to Provide
Clean Water to Millions.

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World Water Day 2012

Action Against Hunger | ACF-USA

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