"Thousands of people died needlessly and millions of dollars were wasted because the international community did not respond fast enough to early signs of famine in East Africa, aid agencies said Wednesday, while warning of a new hunger crisis in West Africa. Most rich donor nations waited until the crisis in the Horn of Africa was in full swing before donating a substantial amount of money, according to the report by aid groups Oxfam and Save the Children. A food shortage had been predicted as early as August 2010, but most donors did not respond until famine was declared in parts of Somalia in July 2011. The report even blamed aid agencies, saying they were too slow to scale up their response. "We all bear responsibility for this dangerous delay that cost lives in East Africa and need to learn the lessons of the late response," said Oxfam head Barbara Stocking. The British government estimates that between 50,000 and 100,000 people died from the famine, mostly Somalis. Ethiopia and Kenya were also affected but aid agencies were able to work more easily there than in war-ravaged Somalia. More than half of those who died are believed to be children. The United Nations says 250,000 Somalis are still at risk of starvation and more than 13 million people need aid." - Anne Bouey from Bookmarklet

:-( - John (bird whisperer)

"Governments, donors, aid groups and the U.N. need to change their approach to such disasters to help a larger number of people during the next hunger crisis, the report said. Ethiopia was able to minimize the effects of the drought because of the promotion of disaster risk management policy and practice, the report said. "This contrasts with Somalia, where such work has been largely absent, due to access restrictions, a complex environment and the unwillingness of donors to invest," it said. Now, there are clear signs of an impending hunger crisis in West Africa, said Justin Forsyth, head of Save the Children. The report said a food crisis in the West African region known as the Sahel is being driven by drought and high food prices. The report says agencies should put into practice there what has been learned in the Somalia crisis. A recent Save the Children assessment in Niger shows families in the worst-hit areas are already struggling with around one-third less food, money and fuel than is necessary to survive. Besides Niger, the other countries at risk are Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Mali and Chad, said Alun McDonald, regional spokesman for Oxfam. Friday will mark six months since the U.N. declared famine in Somalia. "The earlier you respond, the more you get for your money," McDonald said." - Anne Bouey

That's a year gap! How awful. - Anika

:'( - Kelli H., FF Squatter

:(( - Zulema ❧ spicy cocoa tart