The Drought Explainer

 We are in a sad and dire situation as a country as a result of failed rains that has caused drought and famine that has sadly extended to even counties that has been food secure in the past. In our segment today, we will look at how exactly the situation looks like. Let’s engage.

The situation is getting dire. Now a few weeks ago the government had 23 counties on high alert as far as drought is concerned but the number has since gone up to 29 counties in distress with 10 out of those 29 being classified as Red Zones. The Kenya Red Cross has been part of the relief efforts and they have classified the country into these two categories, those on alert and those where there is alarm. The counties at alert stage include Embu, Garissa, Kitui, Makueni, Meru, Narok, Nyeri, Taita Taveta, Kwale and Kilifi. Counties that are at alarm stage are Isiolo, Mandera,,Samburu, Kajiado Tharaka Nithi, Turkana, Wajir, Laikipia,Tana River and Marsabit. These classifications are based on some indicators including how much time and distance it takes to access food and water for the residents there.

On average, residents travel three kilometers to access water but by the time a county or region is classified as being at alarm stage the Red Cross then says the residents there are traveling up to 48 kilometers to access water. Residents who are living in counties at alarm stage also have minimal access to food and are not able to get food locally or from their own capacity and so need some level of support. In the alarm phase, they need more support than those in the alert stage. If interventions at this stage are not helpful, then they are likely to move to what Red Cross terms emergency status at which point the residents in those counties will need more food support and will be bordering on famine. It’s also notable that even counties that have not typically been in drought distress such as Nyeri, Embu and Tharaka Nithi are now in the list. whilst the situation might not be countywide these classifications are also consistent with the weatherman's report that the areas mentioned will receive far below average rainfall this season coupled with some warmer than average temperatures.

There are 4.35 million Kenyans who are food insecure now these are people who require continuous support in terms of food. they do not have enough food as part of the effects of the drought and they may have lost their sources of food, for instance, it could be pastrorists who do not have milk and meat from their animals because the animals died as a result of the drought or who can't even sell their animals to buy food and for the farmers it means their production is very low that they cannot sustain themselves at household level. The Kenya Red Cross is also reporting that slightly over 1 million pregnant women and children are acutely malnourished and this means they're not able to get their nutritional needs from the foods they get and therefore require some nutritional support through some special foods which are meant to try and fill the gap of what they lack really quickly!

Sadly, it's not just humans who are bearing the brunt of the drought season, the ministry of livestock while launching a dairy nutrition manual in Mombasa County reported that 2.5 million livestock have died over the last four seasons due to the ongoing drought.

The short rains expected in the months of October, November and December season failed or have not be sufficient and that is according to the Kenya Meteorological department. in general the weatherman has warned that we are looking at a fifth consecutive failed rain season and that will no doubt be devastating for millions of Kenyans already feeling the effects of drought and obviously requires some immediate support and solutions from the government. Even though we have seen the government, cooperates and even private sectors trying to mobilize for food support, the situation is far from being controlled and sadly we have lost lives, both human and livestock and with continued failed rains, it is far from certain that people will be able to survive. Needless to say, we are looking at a worse situation in the coming months and we can only hope that the expected rains will be enough for the growth of food and even pasture for the livestock. 

In Turkana region for instance, drought isn't the only natural disaster they face, expanding Lakes are causing floods which are destroying homes and taking Lives and so there so much that the Kenyan government need to do in controlling drought and flooding. We can only hope, that we will have adequate rains this season  but in the meantime, let’s all share what we can in terms of food to our neighbors who could be going for days without a meal. Thank you.

https://youtu.be/6KfVfUW1K3k