Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Lack of Opportunity in Eastern Africa

Nowhere else is the development paradigm more discussed than in Africa, the highest concentration of underdeveloped countries in the world.  In a continent plagued by third world problems, a recent example can be found in the consequences of droughts on an already difficult situation.  Misplaced and separated families have difficulties enough, with a third of all children suffering from acute malnourishment.  Add to that a less resilient infrastructure due to political instability and conflict, and the problem becomes clear.  When a drought like the one that has swept the area in late spring/early summer this year hits, there is not enough of a safety net to stop the increase in starvation.


Perhaps the most discouraging aspect of this crisis is the first group to fall: children.  Estimates in Somalia are that one in ten children is at a high risk of dying of starvation, and this will only get worse if the estimated 500,000 children at risk of being displaced are forced to relocate.

((Article from: http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1025162--east-africa-drought-the-most-severe-humanitarian-emergency-in-the-world

Image from: http://soils.usda.gov/use/worldsoils/papers/desertification-africa.html))

No comments:

Post a Comment