a-dangerous-delay-the-cost-of-late-response-to-early-warnings-in-the-2011-drought-in-the-horn-of-africa

Abstract

The pastoralist communities of Turkana, Kenya are experiencing one of the worst periods of drought in living memory and are now increasingly reliant on food aid. Here, people come to collect water, Lokitaung district, March 2011. Photo: Andy Hall More than 13 million people are still affected by the crisis in the Horn of Africa. There were clear early warning signs many months in advance, yet there was insufficient response until it was far too late. Governments, donors, the UN and NGOs need to change their approach to chronic drought situations by managing the risks, not the crisis. This means acting on information from early warning systems and not waiting for certainty before responding, as well as tackling the root causes of vulnerability and actively seeking to reduce risk in all activities. To achieve this, we must overcome the humanitarian-development divide.