Horn of Africa Crisis: What We're Doing in Djibouti
Across Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and Djibouti, we’re helping thousands of children in the hardest-hit regions—from the 3,000 malnourished children we’re treating in Somalia, to our efforts in Garbatulla, Kenya, where one in five children is now malnourished. We’re racing to reduce the impact of water shortages by constructing wells, drilling boreholes, and installing storage devices to capture future rainfall, in addition to promoting hygiene to prevent the spread of diarrhea, cholera, and other water-borne diseases.
We’re seeing a significant public health problems as rates of acute malnutrition rise, as evidenced by recent reports of disease outbreaks related to lack of potable water. Skyrocketing food prices are particularly hard-hitting as 95% of the food consumed in Djibouti is imported. Action Against Hunger’s programs in Djibouti involve the following activities:
- Six therapeutic nutrition centers have been set up for the treatment of severely malnourished children, with an influx of over 600 children in just 10 days.
- Our teams are also supporting Djibouti’s Ministry of Health in more than 40 health centers by training government health workers to diagnose and treat acute malnutrition.
Water, Sanitation & Hygiene:
- We’re currently carrying out needs assessments among the most affected communities in Djibouti; these evaluations will help our teams plan for the right mix of water and sanitation programs.