JUSTIN KILCULLEN,
Madam, - With the current food shortages in Ethiopia and surrounding countries, Trócaire very much welcomes the visit to Ethiopia of Tom Kitt, Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs.
A humanitarian disaster is unfolding in Ethiopia which is not receiving the amount of public attention it deserves. Getting the public to focus on the issue is difficult because of the Iraqi crisis, which occupies the daily headlines and public attention. However the disaster is happening in Ethiopia now.
So far the international community has been slow to respond to Ethiopia's growing food crisis which will worsen quickly unless rapid action is taken.Just over 120,000 tonnes of emergency food aid has been pledged, a fraction of what is required. Some 600,000 metric tonnes of supplementary food is required between now and March and 1.4 million tonnes over the next six months.
There are a number of reasons why the crisis in Ethiopia is so severe. A serious drought is compounded by the AIDS crisis, a fall in export revenues, a heavy debt burden and some elements of the government's rural policy.
The ability of the Ethiopian Government to respond to the present famine has been hampered by the collapse in world prices for coffee prices, which accounts for 54 per cent of Ethiopia's export revenue.
While the government has paid attention to rural development there is a need to develop a more sustainable agricultural policy. A key element in its approach has been the promotion of chemical fertilisers and hybrid seeds to small farmers. However the purchase of hybrid seeds, which need to be bought annually, has created dependency and debt which farmers cannot sustain. This makes agriculture a risky business.
More than 10 per cent of Ethiopian adults are HIV positive, making them even more vulnerable when food is short. There has been drought in five of the past six years and people's coping skills are stretched beyond their limit without adding the additional hardship of HIV/AIDS.
Drought is also affecting Eritrea, as well as parts of Somalia, Sudan and Kenya. While the numbers affected are not so great in these countries, their needs are no less important.
Trócaire is working with local partner organisations in the worst affected regions. Income generation and food-for-work programmes are being incorporated into ongoing development work where possible. We are also helping missionary groups to respond to the many requests from the poor people of the communities in which they live.
So far, the international response falls painfully short of what is needed. There is no point in making pledges unless they are fulfilled. We hope Mr Kitt will make these issues part of the ongoing agenda and urge him to work to encourage the international community to increase its response so that disaster can be averted. - Yours, etc.,
JUSTIN KILCULLEN,
Director, Trócaire,
Maynooth,
Co Kildare.