New churches appeal for drought victims

The organisation Action by Churches Together (ACT) on Tuesday issued a second appeal for US $1,772,660 to help drought victims and the hundreds of thousands of people displaced by the war with Eritrea. The appeal, on behalf of the Lutheran World Federation/Department of World Service (LWF/DWS), follows an appeal in May for relief food, non-food items and sanitation. But because of poor funding, with only 13 percent of the target being met, the LWF/DWS had decided to close its project and issue a new appeal focusing on water and sanitation, re-equipping of schools and provision of agricultural equipment and livestock.

The appeal noted that Eritrea was suffering not only from the consequences of war in an area previously considered the country’s breadbasket but also from a severe drought that had affected the Sahel area, comprising Zoba Anseba, Northern Red Sea and Southern Red Sea regions. These regions had had less than 200 mm of annual rainfall and a growing season of only 75 to 90 days. In the past three years, however, there had been little or no rain in these areas.