UNICEF Emergency Response

Dear Friend,

Children in the Horn of Africa are at risk of becoming victims of one of the worst climate-induced water and drought emergencies of the past 40 years. Four consecutive poor rainy seasons have left large swathes of Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Eritrea and Djibouti facing exceptional drought. Children and families have been pushed to the brink as crops fail and livestock die, damaging lives and livelihoods. The impact of the war in Ukraine has tipped more families in the Horn of Africa over the edge with increasing fuel prices and reduced availability of wheat imports for Horn of Africa countries. Some 10.5 million people – of which 5.2 million are children - are facing severe water shortages; and 16 million people require immediate food assistance as a result of the drought. In addition, across Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia, around 1.7 million children will require urgent treatment for severe acute malnutrition (SAM) by the end of this year. The drought crisis was already depriving children from the essentials of childhood – such access to food, safe water, school, and health services. Now the crisis is becoming a catastrophe, and child survival is at risk.

Thanks in part to your support, UNICEF is providing lifesaving support for these children including through scaling up family-led Middle Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC) screening for acute malnutrition. MUAC tapes are predominately used to measure the upper arm circumference of children, but also that of pregnant women, helping to identify malnutrition. These bands are an important method for screening a child’s nutrition status, allowing families to quickly recognize if their child is malnourished and seek supportive interventions. UNICEF is also ensuring the continuity of life-saving treatment through facility-based and mobile health and nutrition services and securing supplies of lifesaving Ready to Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF), a nutritious, energy dense peanut-based paste used to treat SAM in children under five years of age. In addition, UNICEF is supporting micronutrient supplementation across drought-affected countries, including in Kenya, where UNICEF is supporting Vitamin A supplementation for 5.4 million children.

Thank you for standing in solidarity with children throughout the Horn of Africa during this challenging time. As a result of your support, children’s lives are being saved on the ground. On behalf of them, thank you.

In partnership,

Whitney