Why Somalia

Today I read an article posted on MSNBC with an update on the Somalian Famine. This article highlighted some of the devastating issues that are hitting Somalia right now. According to this article, written by Jason Straziuso the famine has:

• Killed more than 29,000 children under the age of 5 in the past 90 days.
• More than 640,000 children are severely malnourished
• More than 40% of the population is in immediate of life saving relief (3.2 million out of the 7.5 million population)

The article also discusses that it is difficult to get aid to those in Somalian Rural area because they are ran by militant leaders that refuse to admit they are in a famine. So people are fleeing to Ethiopia, Kenya, and to the Somali capital to find food camps.

The famine is also spreading. Originally in June, the UN declared that 2 southern districts of Somali were struck by famine: Bakool and Lower Shabelle. Now they are declaring 3 more regions in the southern area of Somalia - meaning that all of southern Somalia is now in a severe famine. The drought that is causing the famine is also affecting other countries in the Horn of Africa; affecting nearly 12 million people total. According to the UN, the famine is "the most severe humanitarian crisis in the world today and Africa's worst food security crisis since Somalia's 1991-92 famine."


Here are a few organizations that are currently working to bring relief to the crisis in the Horn of Africa and specifically Somalia:

Mercy-USA

1. Website: mercyusa.org
2. 90% of all funds go to relief work; 10% are allocated for administration and fundraising
3. Has been in Somalia since 1993
4. More information specifically regarding recent work in Somalia: http://www.mercyusa.org/SomaliaDroughtFamineRelief.cfm?gclid=CJ6Q2YDHuKoCFQGFQAodC3R64A

 World Vision

1. Website: worldvision.org
2. 85% of funds go to relief work; 5% towards fundraising; and 10% towards administration
3. Has worked in the Horn of Africa for decades
4. More information specifically regarding recent work in Somalia:http://www.worldvision.org/content.nsf/pages/horn-of-africa-famine-2011?open&campaign=113655232&cmp=KNC-113655232

United Nations World Food Programme

1. wfp.org
2. It is difficult to locate information regarding percentages towards relief and administration; found financial reports from 2008, but they were not very straightforward.
3. Since they are a large organization through the UN, they have not only been in the Horn of Africa for a long period of time, but they also have clout to make serious changes in the country. 
4. More information on their work in Somalia: http://www.wfp.org/countries/somalia

Personally, I am most familiar with World Vision and know that they are a large organization with a big impact. I appreciate that I could easily access their financial information so I will be donating funds specifically for Somalia relief through World Vision. I will be making weekly donations as I divide our monthly grocery budget into weekly use. At the end of each week, I will post how much we have donated and would love to see how you are impacting organizations as well!

Resources:

MSNBC Article: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44021514/ns/world_news-africa/
CNN: http://articles.cnn.com/2011-08-03/world/un.somalia.famine_1_somalia-mogadishu-al-shabaab?_s=PM:WORLD
Global News: http://www.globalnews.ca/health/Famine+engulf+southern+Somalia/5204562/story.html