This article was first published by Julie Cowdroy on ABC's The Drum here.
"The ironic thing about the coverage of the News of the World, is that now we are not actually getting any news of the world," read the witty tweet in response to UNICEF's question of whether the famine in the Horn of Africa was getting enough coverage.
While we may need more reports of the crisis to draw our attention to the plight of the most disenfranchised people on the planet, we also need better quality media coverage. Therefore, it may be worthwhile to present a few new ways to think about what has been dubbed the 'worst humanitarian crisis' in the world today.
1. Africa is not a country
It is vital that we control our assessment of the crisis to the affected individual countries within the north-east region of the continent of Africa. Context is everything. The nature of the political, economic, cultural, historical and security situations within Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti, Eritrea, Uganda and the newly formed South Sudan are quite different. While regional stability in the continent's north-eastern states, or lack of, is a factor in this crisis, painting all of Africa with the same broad brushstrokes is getting kind of old and we really should move on from doing so.
2. While the images we see on our screens capture very real suffering, they don't capture the immense dignity of those who are affected
We are confronted with heartbreaking imagery of children who are dying in their mother's arms. Other disturbing visuals are emerging, such as mothers using rope to bind their stomachs to deaden hunger pangs so they can give what little food they have to their starving children. Upon speaking with humanitarian workers in the Dadaab camp in Kenya, such images line up with reality. Some areas have been dubbed 'hell on earth', and rightly so.
However, one Reuters reporter has given a harrowing account of a television producer who was visiting Dadaab, who asked, "How many skinny babies can you show me?" This is absolutely disgraceful and the lowest form of reporting on this crisis, but sadly not uncommon as the media juggernaut rolls into the neighbourhood.
These beautiful people have incredible dignity and are the types of wonderful human beings who would offer you their last cup of tea. This is the way they carry themselves. One aid worker in Dadaab reported that as he handed out a package of food to one woman, he said, "I'm sorry it's small, but there are lots of people to feed." The woman then offered half of her allocated food back. Surely, such decorum demands nothing but the utmost respect.
3. Thoughtful emergency relief will ease the suffering
Obviously, we must give humanitarian assistance to deal with the immediate need, and do so urgently, but also thoughtfully.
In events like these, all manner of newly formed charities and organisations quickly appear out of nowhere to 'help', and suddenly the circus is in town.
However, only local and international organisations that champion the rights of those who are suffering, and who understand the power those who are affected already have, must be central to the operation in order to bring long-lasting change. There are communities in certain pockets of Ethiopia, for instance, that have proven to be resistant to this crisis thanks to the ongoing work of local and international rights-based organisations.
4. The drought didn't cause this famine. It only compounded existing systemic problems
This crisis is regarded as a "slow onset" disaster. As Raj Patel says in his book Stuffed and Starved:
When flies buzz around the eyes of starving Africans on screens in the Global North, it is when they have officially been declared to be in a state of emergency … What is rarely reported when the tragic pictures are beamed is that getting to the tipping point takes time.
Author and academic Edward Carr recently posted an article on his blog highlighting that this famine should not be simply attributed to the weather. Carr argues that collapsing local and global markets, and a dysfunctional government in the state of Somalia are the main reasons for the crisis, and he is right.
First, the desperate state of affairs in the Horn of Africa demands that the international community address the global food system which increasingly disadvantages small-scale pastoralists who have been jeopardised by large-scale farming, despite the fact that the former – mainly women – produce a large proportion of the world's food. Reforming the system to champion women-led agriculture instead of export-focused agriculture could prove one way to safeguard against future food shortages.
Secondly, a very weak government and an extremely volatile security situation in Somalia is the primary reason this crisis has reached a fatal tipping point, but it is not for lack of notice. Protracted crises and complex chronic problems in places like Somalia take decades to be created, and therefore solved. Not weeks.
As the world scrambles to offer life-saving relief, we must also bear in mind that systems need to be established that will prevent such atrocities from happening again, and, more importantly, systems that mean they could, must be abolished.
Julie Cowdroy is an Australian singer/songwriter who also writes about international policy, poverty and power struggles.
This post was first published by Julie Cowdroy for Mammamia News here.
What is happening in the Horn of Africa?
The Horn of Africa, which is a region comprising the countries in Africa’s northeast, is experiencing the most severe drought in 60 years. 10 million people in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Djibouti, Uganda and South Sudan (which has only recently became an independent nation) are now in desperate need of food, water and emergency healthcare. Many people are on the move, especially from war-ravaged Somalia, and the largest refugee camp in the world, Dadaab, in Kenya, is receiving approximately 1300 refugees a day – 800 of which are children.
The Disaster Emergency Committee (DEC) has launched an urgent public appeal for emergency assistance to these areas:
Is this a famine?
On Tuesday the UN officially declared famine in the south of Somalia, in lower Shabelle and Bakool that are worst affected by the crisis. According to the World Food Programme (WFP), phase 5 of the 'Food Integration and Humanitarian Phase Classification' , means "more than two people per 10,000 die each day, acute malnutrition rates are above 30 per cent, all livestock is dead, and there is less than 2,100 kcal of food and 4 litres of water available per person per day." Because of this, it is even more important that the DEC provide emergency funds and support for the food, water and helathcare in these areas.
The last official famine was in 1983-4 when approximately one million people In Sudan and Ethiopia died. A famine is where, in a given area, there is absolute inaccessibility to food, which leads to death, and the term is not used as often as you think. The World Food Programme (WFP) has a scale to define the phases of food security/insecurity, ranging from a scale of (1) “Generally food secure” to (5) “Catastrophe/famine.” In the current crisis in East Africa, some areas have been declared to be in phase (4), which is “emergency.”
What is the situation like for individual countries?
It is vital to remember that Africa is not one country, it is a continent of many countries, and the diversity between the stages of development for each is wide-ranging. Images on our televisions should not perpetuate the myth that Africa is a hopeless case. Rather, it is important to consider the situation from country to country.
SOMALIA: Somalia is regarded as the most unstable country in the world. There is ongoing armed conflict, rising food prices and drought which has caused one of the largest refugee flows to Kenya and Ethiopia. According to UNICEF, over 2.8 million Somalis are malnourished – a large percentage of which are children.
KENYA: Conflict across the border in Somalia has put extra pressure on Kenya, most notably the Dadaab camp in the country’s north-east. Dadaab holds more than 380,000 refugees and is receiving approximately 10,000 new arrivals every week. The camp was originally designed to hold 90,000. According to UNICEF, more than 385,000 children and 90,000 pregnant and lactating women in Kenya are suffering from malnutrition.
ETHIOPIA: The number of people in need of emergency food assistance increased from 2.8 million people at the beginning of 2011, to 3.2 million people in April. Rising food costs and drought has resulted in an increase in malnutrition especially in children. According to UNICEF, over 300,000 severely malnourished children will require life-saving treatment this year.
Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd said: “These are dark days for the Horn of Africa. The world cannot stand by and witness a repeat of the mistakes of the 1984 famine, where delays in an international response saw a catastrophic loss of life.”
What is the rest of the world doing?
Many joint funds have been established to get funding to the area as quickly as possible. For example, in the UK, the Disaster Emergency Committee (DEC) has commenced a campaign for the East Africa crisis, which has so far raised £15 million. The DEC is an umbrella organization for fourteen humanitarian aid agencies, and unites their efforts to maximize funds raised and ensure they are spent effectively.
As funds and food start to flow, the World Food Programme’s logistics team work to ‘bridge the gap between the donors and the hungry.’ They use ships, planes, trucks, helicopters – even animals – to transport food to the crisis zones. When the food reaches the distribution sites the WFP partners with governments and NGOs to deliver food. Local community leaders work with the WFP to ensure the rations reaches those who need it most (children, mothers, pregnant women and the elderly).
What are aid and development agencies doing?
Since the 1983-4 famine, many international aid and development agencies have set up projects and programs in the Horn of Africa that focus on education for food production, climate change adaptation, preparedness and disaster risk reduction. Activities like planting drought resistance potatoes mean that in some areas, the situation could have been much worse.
While long-term programs are important, the immediate need is getting food into bellies. Most aid agencies are focusing their efforts on giving milk-rich products, high-calorie oil and flour to women and children. These types of food are designed to help fight malnutrition, particularly in nursing mothers and children under five.
What can I do?
The following organisations really need your support right now. You can use the links below to donate from your country and help provide emergency relief for millions of people:
Tuesday March 8 is International Women's Day. In celebration, here's a post from Global Poverty Project team member, Julie Cowdroy, which was originally published on the ABC Drum.
This week we celebrate 100 years since the first official International Women’s Day (IWD). Women celebrate the constitutional rights, civil liberties and privileges that are enjoyed today. We reflect and applaud the women who navigated their way through the last hundred years.
One example of improvement for women in the West over the last century, is in the area of maternal health. Up until 1920, high maternal mortality rates occurred in the US despite improvements in access to health care and antibiotics. Yet major reductions in the Maternal Mortality Rate did not occur until the achievement of women’s right to vote.
Similar political struggles for women are still occurring around much of the world. Achieving women’s rights has not been easy, and in fact on a global level, there is still much to be done. Globally, women still suffer disproportionately to men. Women make up approximately half the world’s population, yet two thirds of those who live in extreme poverty are women. Women perform two thirds of the world’s working hours, yet only earn ten per cent of the world’s income and less than one per cent of the world’s property.
However the problem should not be measured or described as purely an economic one. While estimates by the United Nations suggest it would cost $83 billion to achieve gender equality, naming a price can underestimate the complexities of the issues. Economic solutions for women can achieve some results, but as we observed in the US, the issue of women’s marginalisation cannot be addressed only with money.
For instance, Sri Lanka has managed to halve its maternal deaths since 1935 even thought Sri Lanka only spends three per cent of Gross National Product (GNP) on health care each year. On the other hand, India spends five per cent on health care, yet Indian women are eight times more likely to die in childbirth. Sri Lanka is seeing improvement due to higher education and literacy rates, excellent monitoring and data collection through a strong civil registration system and an effective functioning health care system in rural areas. All of these factors come from a strong political will by the Sri Lankan people, themselves.
In his best-selling book, Half the Sky, Nick Kristof quotes the journal Clinic Obstetrics and Gynecology:
“Women are not dying because of untreatable diseases. They are dying because societies have yet to make the decision that their lives are worth saving.”
When considering how women’s rights can be achieved globally, it is important to be reminded of the complexities of our own development history. Development in other contexts will not just happen with a step-by-step process, a “tick the box” plan, or with a whole lot of capital or economic growth. Poverty reduction for women is not just about an increase in resources, it is about removing the barriers that inhibit access to these resources. Local cultural and political factors can limit access, but so too can international institutions, rules and norms – or put simply, political will at the international level.
Improvements are possible when the international community champions global rules and institutions that strengthen gender equality, such as increasing the number of women in decision-making roles in the health sector. Real progress will be made when both local and global actors work to support women’s greater bargaining power and control at a local level. Positive examples can be found in the Top 10 Maternal Health Highlights in 2010 report issued by maternal health campaign organisation, Women Deliver.
IWD 2011 provides us with the opportunity to celebrate the rights and privileges we enjoy in Australia today, but also provides us with the chance to reflect on why women remain the most marginalised group in the world, and what we can do to rectify that.
"The ironic thing about the coverage of the News of the World, is that now we are not actually getting any news of the world," read the witty tweet in response to UNICEF's question of whether the famine in the Horn of Africa was getting enough coverage.
many countries, and the diversity between the stages of development for each is wide-ranging. Images on our televisions should not perpetuate the myth that Africa is a hopeless case. Rather, it is important to consider the situation from country to country..jpg)
Many joint funds have been established to get funding to the area as quickly as possible. For example, in the UK, the Disaster Emergency Committee (DEC) has commenced a campaign for the East Africa crisis, which has so far raised £15 million. The DEC is an umbrella organization for fourteen humanitarian aid agencies, and unites their efforts to maximize funds raised and ensure they are spent effectively.
