Irish donations needed urgently for Southern African appeal

Mr. David Andrews, Chairman of the Irish Red Cross said that over 13 million people are facing famine in one of the worst droughts ever to hit Southern Africa.

"I call on Irish people to make a donation to help Red Cross voluntary workers save lives. In Malawi alone 3 million people need food aid to survive the next 12 months," Mr. Andrews said.

"Even a small donation can make a difference. In Southern Africa for the sum of EURO 5 a monthly ration (30 days) of 12 kilos of maize, 1.8 kilos of beans and 600 grams of oil can be bought for one person. In other words, EURO 5 can feed one person for one month," he said.

The impact of the food shortages is made worse by high rates of HIV infection across the region, which affects up to 34% of the adult population in some areas of the region and has depleted the labour force and reduced food production as well as wage income.

Another serious problem in Southern Africa is population movement. This is likely to get worse as the drought intensifies with people moving across country borders in search of food and work. Population movements in all directions will make the coordination of the relief effort more difficult.

This morning (Friday 23rd August) the vessel carrying the trucking fleet for one of the largest food transport operations ever carried out by the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies arrived in Durban. The 231 trucks shipped by the Norwegian Red Cross are currently being unloaded and will be deployed in partnership with the World Food Programme.

"We are going all out to make sure that we have all the logistics and staffing in place to prevent large-scale deaths but we desperately need more food to cover the next couple of months. We can only buy a limited amount with the funds that have so far been committed to the appeal," said Red Cross Disaster Operations Manager, Mr. Iain Logan.

The fleet includes 203 M6 trucks - each capable of transporting 5 metric tonnes and able to reach communities in remote, difficult-to-access rural areas, as they will be able to travel off-road. The food fleet also consists of 10 long-haul trucks that will be able to transport 400 tonnes of food at each rotation.

As well as providing food aid for 750,000 people in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Lesotho, Swaziland and Malawi, the International Federation appeal includes plans for improvements to water and sanitation facilities in poor rural communities. Blankets and medical supplies will be provided and subsistence farmers will benefit from distributions of agricultural tools, seeds and fertilizer. The next main harvest is not until March 2003 and the present food shortfall in the region is put at four million metric tonnes.

With a volunteer network in every affected country, the Red Cross is well placed to respond immediately to local needs.

Please act quickly and send your urgent donation.

You can make a credit card donation by phoning: 1850 50 70 70 (price of a local call)

You can post a cheque or postal order made payable to The Irish Red Cross to:
Irish Red Cross, 16 Merrion Square, Dublin 2, Ireland

Ends