Kenya

East Africa food crisis a ‘tragedy of biblical proportions’

East Africa food crisis a ‘tragedy of biblical proportions’

Ken Hackett, President of Catholic Relief Services (a Caritas member in the USA), spoke about the Horn of Africa food crisis at a press conference held in Rome on 7 October. Having worked in East Africa for over 35 years, I am deeply saddened to witness a tragedy of biblical proportions unfolding again. I thank ...

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Church and Caritas leaders discuss East Africa food crisis

Church and Caritas leaders discuss East Africa food crisis

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=pNYdUwe2zHA] “He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside still waters.” It’s a phrase known to Christians around the world, one of the most beloved verses of a beloved psalm. It was the psalm Pope Benedict XVI referred to during his weekly audience Wednesday 5 October which ended with an appeal ...

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Q and A Horn of Africa

Q and A Horn of Africa

What is the humanitarian situation in the Horn of Africa?  In Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia, and nearby areas, a severe drought has led to massive numbers of people going hungry. Famine has been declared in several districts of Somalia. Because goats and cattle are dying of thirst and starvation, people who herd livestock are losing their ...

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Slum fire in Kenya puts focus on social injustice

Slum fire in Kenya puts focus on social injustice

Caritas Kenya is supporting survivors of a huge fire that devastated the Sinai slums in the Kenyan capital Nairobi on 12 September. Over a hundred people were killed and a hundred more injured after a pipeline burst and leaked fuel into the Ngong river, which passes through this slum area. Kenya Pipeline Company  managing director ...

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Caritas dam protects Kenyans against drought

Caritas dam protects Kenyans against drought

By David Snyder  As if the cracked earthen floor of the Kwa Kivanga dam is not reminder enough of the drought gripping Kenya, the long waits for water make memories of last year’s plenty that much more painful. Just one year ago, this pond in Kenya’s drought-stricken Eastern Province helped feed a nearby borehole with ...

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Hunger in Kenya and how to stop it

Hunger in Kenya and how to stop it

The land is barren, the animals are dead, the people are starving. This is one face of northern Kenya in July 2011. “The famine started last year,” says Ellela from the village of Lokitaung. “There were no rains last year or this year. We have had drought for two years. If there are no people ...

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Fleeing Somalia: the men who kill for goats

Fleeing Somalia: the men who kill for goats

By Laura Sheahen “Aden, my oldest son, was four years old. He was watching our goats,” says Ahada, a Somali woman in her early twenties. “Men with guns came and wanted the animals. Aden shouted, ‘Don’t take our goats!’” Ahada’s small son was caught in the midst of the chaotic, seemingly never-ending war in Somalia. ...

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Somalis face perilous journey to escape  famine

Somalis face perilous journey to escape famine

By Laura Sheahen, Death by starvation, death by lions and hyenas or death by armed bandits. Which do you pick? For refugees streaming out of Somalia, there’s no luxury of choice. They’re facing all three. Carrying babies in front and toddlers piggyback, clutching small plastic bags of belongings, thousands of Somalis are trudging barefoot for ...

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