URGENT APPEAL
East Africa is facing its worst water and hunger crisis for decades.
Will you act now to save lives?
Our Big Give Christmas Challenge campaign ran from 28 November to 5 December 2023. We are delighted to have raised £81,000 thanks to the generosity of our incredible supporters. Every donation made online on our Big Give page was doubled by our match funders including the Aeonian Foundation, to help extend Amref’s life-saving health and nutrition outreach projects to isolated communities on the frontline of the climate and health crisis.
Although the match-funded campaign week has now closed, you can still make a donation to the Appeal, on the donate page here.
Will you act now to save lives? Donate here.
A desperate situation is unfolding in East Africa.
Following five seasons of failed harvests, erratic rainfall and rocketing global food prices, East Africa is facing its worst water and hunger crisis for decades.
Continuous drought has caused animals to perish and left families with no source of food or income.
Underweight mothers like Salo (pictured above) are struggling to feed their babies.
“We used to have enough water but since the rains failed most of the time we get one litre. It’s not enough.”
Her livestock are dead, and now she fears for the life of her children, she explains “This drought is a big challenge for us mothers who are breastfeeding because we do not even have anything to breastfeed our babies. I fear for the health of children.”
We urgently need to raise £100,000 to extend our lifesaving health and nutrition outreach projects into isolated communities like Salo’s.
Amref’s Mobile Community Health Outreach
“Right now communities do not have food and water and their health is at risk. Cases of malnutrition are on the rise. There are a lot of interventions needed,” says Amref Kenya public health specialist, Kame Wato.
In isolated African communities like Salo’s, Amref is using a ‘One Health’ approach. This recognises the close connection between the health of communities, the animals they herd and their shared environment.
Our Community Health Outreach teams have both public health specialists like Kame Wato (pictured giving nutrition supplies to Godanno, an underweight mother and her two-year-old son Gumato who is malnourished) and veterinarians. They travel together to bringing life-saving healthcare to people and the animals they rely on.
With intensifying impacts of climate change, families like Salo’s have become more susceptible to malnutrition or outbreaks of disease.
Urgent action is needed.
Help us reach communities with life-saving healthcare and nutrition
By training more health workers to deliver emergency interventions
“Some places where we conduct community health outreaches are more than 35 kilometres from the health facilities. So, bringing health services to them is like carrying a whole hospital to those areas.”
Kame and team are targeting underserved communities, with chronic cases of poverty.
We urgently need to raise another £100,000 to extend this life-saving service to people and animals at risk in isolated African communities.
Will you stand with Kame to take life-saving healthcare and nutrition to remote communities? Donate today.
All images © Amref Health Africa/Tony Wild:
(Banner image) Salo Ali in her home in North Horr, Marsabit County, Kenya; Kame Wato (L) tends to Godanno Mamo and her son Gumato at a mobile outreach in Marsabit County; Kame Wato, public health specialist, Amref Kenya; Guyo Gonjaba, Amref-trained community health assistant stands over the carcass of a camel in Marsabit County.