Madam, - A group of our supporters from Ireland has returned from Malawi, in southern Africa, with a frightening tale of impending severe food shortages. The failure of the January rains and the subsequent loss of the April harvest led to a tripling in the price of the staple food, maize. People are now eating what was meant to have been the seed for next year's harvest.
These are the same early warning signals that Niger and its West African neighbours exhibited at the end of last year. Those signals were largely ignored by the outside world, and the result is starvation.
For this reason, we welcome the announcement of €1 million for Malawi made by Overseas Development Minister Conor Lenihan. Hunger and death need not be the inevitable consequence of a poor harvest. - Yours, etc,
ADRIAN HORSMAN,
Communications &
Media Manager,
Christian Aid Ireland,
Dublin 2.