EMBARGOED TO THE MEDIA UNTIL TUESDAY 18 NOVEMBER 2003, 1100 HRS NEW YORK TIME

Kenya

FLASH APPEAL

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The current national emergency in Kenya is the result of the unfortunate convergence of several events linked to the rainfall patterns that characterize the country. Drought-like conditions have hit the arid and semi-arid areas in Kenya, while erratic rainfall patterns have caused crop failure on a massive scale in some parts of the fertile “food basket” areas. Compounding the poor harvests has been the contamination of maize stocks in some areas of the country by Aflatoxin, a toxin created by a grain mould. Food shortages and the fear of famine are resulting in abnormal grain price increases, which in turn are having a negative impact on terms of trade for vulnerable populations and on food security in general.

There are currently up to 2.3 million people who are extremely food-insecure and who are in need of emergency relief assistance. This number includes 1.8 million requiring general food distribution and 0.5 million schoolchildren for whom assistance under the school-feeding programme is required. In addition, one million children are currently benefiting from school feeding initiatives. Failure of the short rains in October could conceivably increase the number of food-insecure people by a further 1 million. The total food requirement for the next six months is 166,000 MT.

The Appeal covers a period of six months, from August 2004 to February 2005. Stakeholders in this Flash Appeal include UN Agencies, International Organizations and Non-Governmental Organizations who have formulated programmes in six sectors. These are Food Aid, Health and Nutrition, Water and Sanitation, Education, Agriculture and Livestock, and Coordination and Support Services. Using an integrated approach, humanitarian organizations plan to engage in general food distribution and non-food interventions in the most severely affected districts in conjunction with emergency distribution of seeds in agricultural areas where crop losses have eroded seed stocks. Targeted nutritional programmes which are already ongoing will be scaled up to meet increasing needs. Water interventions include the rehabilitation of pans, dams and boreholes, combined with life-saving water trucking in the most drought-affected areas. Health interventions will focus on prevention of measles by means of a massive vaccination campaign and boosting resistance in children through the distribution of vitamin supplements. Response in the education sector will focus on retaining children in school through the school-feeding programmes and will be closely linked to other food aid interventions. Given that orphans and other children who are vulnerable have become even more vulnerable due to the drought, support will be provided to promote their integration in the community and prevent their abuse, neglect and exploitation.

Response in the livestock sector will focus on vaccination and the provision of curative measures such as de-worming as well as maintaining the breeding stock of animals through veterinary health campaigns and emergency destocking (livestock off-take) measures. The coordination and support services sector will: assist in monitoring Who is doing What, Where; support the Government in providing capacity-building to the District Steering Groups where present; maintain a data bank on relief distribution by district and by sector; and raise awareness on the emergency response by conducting media outreach activities including organizing journalist field visits and publishing articles.

The Flash Appeal is for US$ 96,936,756.

Funding Requirements in 2004
by sector
(US$)