WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration gave $169 million to feed people facing starvation in Ethiopia and Kenya, USAID said on Thursday, adding to earlier assistance for those suffering from drought and conflict in four other nations.

USAID, the U.S. government’s humanitarian relief agency, said in a statement that it had provided $137 million in aid for Ethiopia and nearly $33 million for Kenya.

The latest funding comes after Trump pledged $639 million last month in urgent food assistance for Somalia, South Sudan, Nigeria and Yemen.

Increased aid comes as numerous countries in the region face crisis-level food shortages due to armed conflict, prolonged drought and economic upheaval that have also resulted in a lack of medical care, sanitation, shelter and safety.

Meteorologists have blamed a series of severe back-to-back droughts in Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa region on fluctuations in ocean temperatures known as the Indian Ocean Dipole. While rain is expected early next year in Somalia it is unlikely to offer immediate relief.

“With this new funding, the United States is scaling up emergency food assistance, while providing specialized nutrition supplies to treat malnourished children, and also furnishing safe drinking water and essential health services,” USAID’s statement said.

The funds for Kenya would help support refugees fleeing neighboring conflicts as well as Kenyans suffering from drought, the agency said. Rising food prices in Kenya have also been an ongoing concern.

The assistance for Ethiopia, which has also been struck by a severe drought, included enough food to feed 3 million people, USAID added.

While the hardest-hit area in Somali region of eastern Ethiopia is not plagued by conflict, it is remote with poor infrastructure and hard to reach.

“It is not a famine but it is rising up to the levels of getting close to famine,” said Matt Nims, acting director of Food for Peace at USAID. “That is why we want to act now so that we’re not into that stage.”

According to the United Nations, 795 million people worldwide are undernourished, mostly in developing countries. It has already warned of mass starvation in Yemen, Nigeria, Somalia and South Sudan.

Last month, The United Nations said that while many people in South Sudan are still going hungry, the worst of the famine had eased.

In Yemen, a two-year war has increased concerns about mass starvation and disease. </s> WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration gave $169 million to feed people starving in Ethiopia and Kenya, USAID said on Thursday, adding to earlier assistance for those suffering from drought and conflict in four other nations.

USAID, the U.S. government's humanitarian relief agency, said in a statement that it would provide $137 million in aid for Ethiopia and nearly $33 million for Kenya.

The latest wave of funding comes after Trump pledged $639 million last month in urgent food assistance for those in Somalia, South Sudan, Nigeria and Yemen.

Increased aid comes as numerous countries in the region face crisis-level food shortages due to armed conflict, drought and economic upheaval that have also resulted in a lack of medical care, sanitation, shelter and safety.

"With this new funding, the United States is scaling up emergency food assistance, while providing specialized nutrition supplies to treat malnourished children, and also furnishing safe drinking water and essential health services," USAID's statement said.

The funds for Kenya would help support refugees fleeing neighboring conflicts as well as Kenyans suffering from drought, the agency said. Rising food prices have also been an ongoing concern.

The assistance for Ethiopia, which has also been struck by a severe drought, included enough food to feed 3 million people, USAID added.

Conflicts can also shift countries' resources away from infrastructure and public health, causing food and water shortages, overcrowding and lack of sanitation. Such conditions can lead to diseases such as cholera, measles and malaria.

According to the United Nations, 795 million people worldwide are undernourished, mostly in developing countries. It has already warned of mass starvation in Yemen, Nigeria, Somalia and South Sudan.

Last month, The United Nations said that while many people in South Sudan are still going hungry, the worst of the famine had eased.

In Yemen, a two-year war has increased concerns about mass starvation and disease. </s> US Provides Additional $169 Million in Aid to Ethiopia, Kenya

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump announced Thursday it will provide an additional $169 million in humanitarian aid to the drought-stricken African countries of Ethiopia and Kenya.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) said the funds, over $136 million for Ethiopia and almost $33 million for Kenya, would be used for emergency food aid, nutrition supplies and health services.

USAID said nearly 8 million Ethiopians are in need of urgent humanitarian aid. Without it, the agency said “food insecurity could reach catastrophic levels for some families in the worst-affected areas” and result in “the displacement of affected populations.”

In Kenya, USAID said some 2.6 million people are “acutely food-insecure” as drought conditions continue.

The latest round of humanitarian aid increases to $458 million the amount of assistance the U.S. has provided to Ethiopia and Kenya this fiscal year./VOA </s> HAMBURG (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday promised $639 million in aid to feed people left starving because of drought and conflict in Somalia, South Sudan, Nigeria and Yemen.

Trump's pledge came during a working session of the G20 summit of world leaders in Hamburg, providing a "godsend" to the United Nations' World Food Programme, the group's executive director, David Beasley, told Reuters on the sidelines of the meeting.

"We're facing the worst humanitarian crisis since World War Two," said Beasley, a Republican and former South Carolina governor who was nominated by Trump to head the U.N. agency fighting hunger worldwide.

The new funding brings to over $1.8 billion aid promised by the United States for fiscal year 2017 for the crises in the four countries, where the United Nations has estimated more than 30 million people need urgent food assistance.

"With this new assistance, the United States is providing additional emergency food and nutrition assistance, life-saving medical care, improved sanitation, emergency shelter and protection for those who have been affected by conflict," USAID said in a statement.

Rob Jenkins, acting head of the USAID's bureau of democracy, conflict and humanitarian assistance, said of the funding, over $191 million would go to Yemen, $199 million to South Sudan, $121 million to Nigeria and almost $126 million for Somalia.

Conflict in all four countries had made it difficult to reach some communities in need of food, he noted.

"We're in a dire situation right now," said Jenkins, adding that USAID was also concerned with the situation in southern Ethiopia.

"The situation in southern Ethiopia fortunately does not rise to the dire situation of the other four, but the situation is deteriorating and might very well be catastrophic without additional interventions," he said, adding that Washington had already provided some $252 million this year to Ethiopia, "but the needs continue to grow."

Beasley said the U.S. funding was about a third of what the WFP estimated was required this year to deal with urgent food needs in the four countries in crisis as well as in other areas.

The WFP estimates that 109 million people around the world will need food assistance this year, up from 80 million last year, with 10 of the 13 worst-affected zones stemming from wars and "man-made" crises, Beasley said.

"We estimated that if we didn't receive the funding we needed immediately that 400,000 to 600,000 children would be dying in the next four months," he said.

Trump's announcement came after his administration proposed sharp cuts in funding for the U.S. State Department and other humanitarian missions as part of his "America First" policy.

Beasley said the agency had worked hard with the White House and the U.S. government to secure the funding, but Trump would insist that other countries contributed more as well.

A WFP spokesman said Germany recently pledged an additional 200 million euros for food relief. </s> The United States today announced more than $169 million in humanitarian assistance to support those in Ethiopia and Kenya who are experiencing the effects of prolonged severe drought.

This additional funding, including nearly $137 million in Ethiopia and nearly $33 million in Kenya, brings the total U.S. humanitarian contribution in Ethiopia and Kenya to more than $458 million in Fiscal Year 2017.

With this new funding, the United States is scaling up emergency food assistance, while providing specialized nutrition supplies to treat malnourished children, and also furnishing safe drinking water and essential health services.

In Ethiopia, this assistance includes a contribution of more than 111,000 metric tons of relief food aid for approximately three million people. In Kenya, the United States is also providing support for refugees who have fled drought and conflict in their own countries, in addition to Kenyans affected by the drought.

This additional aid comes at a critical moment. An estimated 7.8 million people require urgent humanitarian assistance throughout Ethiopia, where the USAID-funded Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) signals that, without immediate and sustained assistance, food insecurity could reach catastrophic levels for some families in the worst-affected areas.

In addition to severe hunger, acute watery diarrhea is spreading in drought-affected regions, which presents a deadly triple threat of hunger, malnutrition, and dehydration, in addition to the displacement of affected populations. Humanitarian needs are also growing in Kenya, where an estimated 2.6 million people are acutely food-insecure, and malnutrition is on the rise as drought conditions persist.

The United States is one of the largest donors of humanitarian assistance in Ethiopia and Kenya, and the largest single humanitarian donor in the world. “We strongly encourage additional contributions from the governments of Ethiopia and Kenya, and other humanitarian donors, to address the growing needs of people affected by this drought,” the United States said in its statement. </s> Today the United States announced more than $169 million in humanitarian assistance to support those in Ethiopia and Kenya who are experiencing the effects of prolonged severe drought. This additional funding, including nearly $137 million in Ethiopia and nearly $33 million in Kenya, brings the total U.S. humanitarian contribution in Ethiopia and Kenya to more […]http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Appa-sourceTheAfric... </s> Report by chartered accountants says US likely to cut spending by reining in development aid. FOTOSEARCH

Kenya and Tanzania are among African countries likely to face a drop in foreign aid as the new US administration cuts spending to create room for increased infrastructure expenditure, according to a new report.

The report by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) says the Trump presidency raises the risk of the US rolling back development aid, thus affecting dependent countries such as Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The accountancy and finance body said that signs of an expansionary fiscal stance under the Trump administration, coupled with spending cuts to build dollar reserves for infrastructure development, are likely to lead to a decrease in aid to African countries.

“Aid is probably the main channel through which a change in US policy under a new president could impact Africa,” states the fourth quarter (2016) report commissioned by ICAEW and produced by partner and forecaster Oxford Economics.

“Policymakers and businesses across the continent will be keen to see President-elect Trump’s plans for development policies once he takes office,” the report adds.

According to the report, and drawing on insights from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the US is sub-Saharan Africa’s major donor in bilateral official aid, with over $9 billion distributed to the region to date.

It is followed by the United Kingdom, with just under $4 billion distributed, and France with just over $2 billion.

In terms of official development aid receipts in East Africa, Ethiopia received the largest amount at over $3.5 billion, followed by Kenya and Tanzania with over $2.5 billion each, and Uganda with over $1.5 billion.

According to the report, the change in the US administration will also affect Africa’s trade and investment prospects. It states that steady progress is being made in the continent’s business environment, with Mauritius ranked 49th out of 190 countries globally in terms of the ease of doing business.

The World Bank’s Doing Business 2017 report ranked Rwanda at position 56h, Morocco 68th, Botswana 71st and South Africa 74th. Oil giants Nigeria and Angola were ranked 169 and 182 respectively. According to the report, foreign direct investment inflows into Africa fell by 7 per cent to $54 billion in 2015, with decreasing flows to SSA offsetting larger inflows into North Africa.
USAID announces the Trump administration dedicated $169 million to feed people facing starvation in Ethiopia and Kenya, adding to earlier assistance for those suffering from drought and conflict in the region.