Africa

The Razor’s Edge: Embezzlement, Corruption and Development in Ethiopia, a Novel (2022)
For anyone interested in learning what development work overseas entails and what work is like, there may be no better introduction than Robert Gurevich’s novel, The Razor’s Edge. Thinly modeled on his own experiences in Africa, with his protagonist, writing in the first person...

WHO Reports 43,000 excess deaths in Somalia, in 2022, due to Drought
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported the results of a retrospective study commissioned by both their WHO-Somalia office and Unicef's Somalia office. The study, conducted by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and Imperial College-London, used statistical modeling to dete...

“Love and Liberation” Captures Voices of Local Aid Workers in Famine Zone
Lauren Carruth's important 2021 book, Love and Liberation - Humanitarian Work in Ethiopia's Somali Region (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press) fills a gap in the literature about aid programs by listening to the perspectives of those personnel delivering aid o...

US Ambassador to the UN warns of famine in Somalia
Linda Thomas Greenfield, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, gave a speech on January 29th in Mogadishu announcing $41 million for famine prevention in Somalia and urged other nations to join in assisting Somalia fight famine....

Hunger Hotspots: Sahel Countries of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger
In this update from Reliefweb, the coming Spring will also bring acute severe malnutrition in the Sahel, focused in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. In addition to conflict in these countries, it is projected that approximately 7.5 million people will be in the stage 3 hunger category (IPC classificati...

Mapping Conflict and Food Insecurity in Africa
This is a very interesting info-graphic presenting how conflict drives food insecurity in Africa. It shows that 111 million people who are experiencing food crises are in countries suffering from conflict....
Article Link: In Baidoa, Somalis live at the epicenter of drought, hunger and conflict
From NPR News by Jason Beaubien: In Baidoa, Somalis live at the epicenter of drought, hunger and conflict Displaced people in Somalia are facing increasing hunger after years of drought and war as aid agencies struggle to help....

OXFAM warns that current famine in Horn of Africa will kill a person every 36 seconds.
In a press release of October 14, 2022 Oxfam has sent a warning that from now until the end of the year, the current famine in the Horn of Africa will cause hunger related deaths equivalent to a rate of one person dying every 36 seconds. OXFAM reiterated that this famine is worse than the fam...

Inter-Agency Standing Committee Says Famine Affecting 7.1 Million People Imminent in Somalia
The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), a United Nations forum which includes the International Committee of the Red Cross, issued a statement last week indicating that up to 7.1 Million people will be affected by famine in parts of Somalia. In a statement on September 5, 2022, the IASC indicat...

Niger and Sahel use Farmer-Managed Natural Regeneration Increase Yields to Improve Food Security
As described in this recent National Geographic article (see link below), farmers in Niger let cut trees regrow in their fields, leading to improved crop yields from retained soil moisture and fertilization by fallen leaves. Improved crop yields can improve food security. Over the past 35 years N...
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World Hunger News
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