News: Save the Children says helping Ethiopia as it faces the worst drought in 50 years
Samuel Bogale
Addis Abeba, December 13/2017 – With the drought and displacements happening en mass in the East African countries the last few years, Save the Children said its main support remained critical to the drought affected areas and refugee camps across the Ethiopia.
In his presentation on the works of Save the Children in the last five years, Roba Halake, Senior Humanitarian Manager for Save the Children in Ethiopia, said that Ethiopia was experiencing the worst drought recorded in 50 years, and the rainfall in 2015 was the lowest since recording began in the 1960s.
From left: David Wright, Save the Children Regional Director for east and southern Africa, Sam Wood, Humanitarian Director for Save the Children Ethiopia, Hiwot Emishaw, Head of Communications for Save the Children Ethiopia, Ekin Ogutogullari, Country Director for Save the Children Ethiopia, and Roba Halake, Humanitarian Manager for Save the Children Ethiopia
Currently 12.6 million people are in need of emergency food assistance, and 3.6 million children and pregnant women are severely malnourished. A further 1.4 million people are displaced due to shocks of droughts and critical need for food, water, shelter and some non-food items.
In 2017, Save the Children’s target response was 1.5 million drought affected people with 900,000 children within, but it succeeded to reach out to 998,000 people so far, 541,146 of whom children. Among the 998,000 people Save the Children reached , 400,438 were assisted in the Health and Nutrition interventions, whereas 5,145 were supported through the Child Protection program of Save the Children.
According a document presented by Save the Children on Monday December 11, with 852,721, Ethiopia is the second largest refugees and asylum seekers hosting country in Africa, of which more than half of them (494,578) are children. And of all the refugee children in Ethiopia, 47% of them have access to education; whereas the national average for education is more than 90%.
Save the Children has raised $134 million for emergency response since 2015.
Since it first opened its office in Ethiopia in 1965, Save the Children has 55 offices across the country, which will make Ethiopia the only country in the world where Save the Children opened these much number of offices.
After doing the humanitarian works for decades administered by seven member countries of Save the Children: Canada, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, UK and USA, they merged to come as a single organization in 2012. Until today, Save the Children’s main humanitarian programs remained in areas of Education, Health, Nutrition, Child Friendly Systems & Structures, Child Protection, Livelihood & Resilience, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH). AS.
