ELCA NEWS SERVICE
March 2, 2006
Lutherans Respond to Food and Water Crisis in Kenya 06-031-MRC
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Up to 3.5 million people in Kenya are in danger of dying if food and water are not delivered soon, according to Action by Churches Together (ACT). Drought conditions severely cut food and water supplies there. In response to an ACT appeal for funds, International Disaster Response of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) provided $100,000 to support the distribution of food and water and other drought-related recovery operations in Kenya.
ACT is a worldwide network of churches and related agencies that meets human need through organized emergency response. It is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), both in Geneva, Switzerland. The ELCA is a member of the WCC and LWF.
ELCA International Disaster Response funds will be implemented by the LWF, ELCA companion churches in Kenya and Church World Service (CWS) -- a relief and development agency of U.S. Protestant and Orthodox churches. The ELCA participates in the work of CWS.
Drought conditions, stemming from the lack of rainfall this past fall, have prompted the Kenyan government to declare a state of emergency.
"The famine situation is particularly alarming in the Mandera, Wajir, Marsabit and Moyale districts of northern Kenya," said Dr. Belletech Deressa, director for international development and disaster response, ELCA Global Mission.
"Other districts requiring immediate emergency relief operations include Kajiado, Kitui, Mwingi, Makueni, Isiolo, Tana River, Turkana, Samburu and Laikipia and parts of the Baringo district," said Deressa. "These districts are often vulnerable to drought compared to other parts of the country."
In addition to the drought, "the collapse of the livestock market in most of the major cattle-keeping districts has negatively impacted food security," said Deressa.
"Grain prices have almost doubled in most parts of the affected districts while livestock prices have declined significantly, thereby eroding the purchasing power of households. Most water pans and dams are dry, and boreholes experience frequent breakdowns due to overuse," she said.
The LWF Department for World Service has been working toward relief in Kenya, especially in the Turkana district. Its work focuses on food assistance, drought mitigation activities with the construction of water pans, provision of emergency water through mobile tankers, rehabilitation of existing boreholes, the development of new boreholes and vaccination of livestock against drought-related diseases, said Deressa.
The Kenya Evangelical Lutheran Church (KELC) -- a companion church of the ELCA -- has identified about 20 relief distribution centers in the drought-affected districts. The church has assisted 5,056 families, which constitute about 30,000 beneficiaries, she said.
The KELC, ELCA, National Council of Churches in Kenya and other church bodies support the work of Church World Service. In Kenya, CWS and its local partners have been involved in building the capacities of grassroots churches and communities in order to equip them with the skills of monitoring and responding to emergencies, Deressa said.
"Lutheran churches in Kenya, together with Church World Service, are engaged in food distribution to drought-affected communities and mitigate the circumstances of conflict caused by the scarcity of food," she said. - - - INTERNATIONAL DISASTERS:
Editors: When listing organizations receiving funds for aid to survivors of major disasters outside the United States, Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands, please include:
ELCA International Disaster Response, PO Box 71764, Chicago, IL 60694-1764, 1-800-638-3522 and http://www.ELCA.org/disaster/idrgive on the Internet.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org http://www.elca.org/news ELCA News Blog: http://www.elca.org/news/blog