Oxfam:Shattered drought economy may take 15 years to recover without support

Pastoralists struck by the current East African drought may take 15 years to recover their livelihoods unless they are given appropriate support, said international aid agency Oxfam International today.

With death rates of cattle herds in some areas topping 95 per cent, local economies are crumbling. In Wajir in north-east Kenya, up to 70 per cent of small shops have closed because customers are unable to repay mounting debts.

In many areas, two-thirds of people are reliant on food aid but in some parts of Wajir it is much higher than this. Mohamed Ali, a resident of Dambas in Wajir, where 98 per cent of people are currently reliant on food aid, told Oxfam:

"During lean periods the shops would bail us out with credit, but now nearly all the shops have been run down by giving too much credit and not receiving any payment back. I don't know how we'll get through this period. So many people are on the brink."

Regenerating the economy once the immediate crisis passes will require the international community to provide cash-for-work schemes and restocking programmes to help pastoralists recover. It will also require stronger commitment from the Government of Kenya to improve health, education, infrastructure and other basic services for pastoralist communities.

Based on previous experience of the 1992 drought, local elders in Wajir estimate that, without aid for regeneration, it could take 15 years for a herd of 120 cows decimated by this drought to recover its original size.

Antar Ahmed, 76, lost all but nine of his 52 cattle in the 1992. His herd recovered to 85 by 2004, of which just two are left alive.

“Now that our livestock have perished, our own lives are in mortal danger,” he says.

The extent of the food crisis is accelerating, with the numbers of children requiring emergency supplementary feeding in Wajir up 50 per cent since January, according to health charity Merlin, which is working in partnership with Oxfam to respond to the crisis.

Pastoralism is the only viable way of life that has proven able to sustain itself despite many shocks in these arid landscapes, with the livestock sector providing 95 per cent of household income. In 2002 livestock production accounted for 10 per cent of Kenyan GDP, much of it accounted for by the work of pastoralists.

Paul Smith-Lomas, Oxfam regional director said:
“Pastoralism is a viable livelihood and makes an important contribution to the Kenyan economy. But there is an urgent need for improved development and economic policies in drought affected areas.”

John Le Carre, author of The Constant Gardener, part of the movie of which was filmed in Loiyangalani, in the drought-affected district of Turkana in north-west Kenya, said:

"In the worst drought of the decade, three-and-a-half million people in Northern Kenya are in imminent danger of starving to death, dying of thirst, or being killed in fights for survival. Wouldn't it be wonderful if, this time round, we devoted as much money and energy to saving three-and-a-half million of our fellow citizens as we do to making war in other regions of the globe".

Oxfam International is responding to the food crisis in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia by targeting food distribution, water and livelihoods support at over 500,000 affected people.

ENDS

For more details please contact:
- Douglas Keatinge, Oxfam GB Regional Media Officer for the Horn, East-, and Central-Africa (HECA), + 254 (0) 733 632 810 or + 254 (0) 20 282 0136
dkeatinge@oxfam.org.uk

Notes to editors

• The United Nations/Government of Kenya appeal for $225m to fund emergency interventions by the World Food Programme remains seriously under-funded.

• As of 8th March $56m had been given, a shortfall of $170m or 75 per cent.

• Committed donations so far:
US $29m, Kenya $13m, ECHO (EU) $6m, UK $2m, Australia $1.5m, Ireland $1.5, Austria $0.7m, Belgium $0.6m, Italy $0.6m, Luxembourg $0.3m, New Zealand $0.3m, Turkey $0.2m, Israel $0.02m

• Unconfirmed contributions:
UK $17m, Canada $4m, Denmark $1.2m, France $1.2m

• Over two-thirds of people in the North East of Kenya live below the poverty line.

• Adult literacy rates are 12 per cent and secondary school enrolment is just 5 per cent.