Red Cross commits $110m to drought projects in Africa
The IFRC has pledged $110m to support a new programme to assist drought-stricken countries in southern African
The International Federation of Red Cross and the Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has pledged $110 million to support a new programme to assist drought-stricken countries in southern African.
Low rainfall in 2015 in South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe has been followed by an El Nino-related drought that has delayed planting and affected crops.
In a statement, the IFRC said that an estimated 31.6 million people across the region are struggling to eat properly, and that figure is expected to reach 49 million by the end of 2016.
The IFRC is aiming to help 1 million people over the next five years with emergency food distribution, training in irrigation schemes and efficient farming methods.
South Africa’s 2015 winter wheat crop fell by 18 per cent from the previous year, and it will need to import around 60 per cent of its produce this year, according a statement from officials this week.
