Number of hungry in Ethiopia jumps to 6.4 mln-Oxfam

Number of hungry in Ethiopia jumps to 6.4 mln-Oxfam

Reuters - October 10, 2008

The number of Ethiopians needing emergency food assistance has jumped to 6.4 million from 4.6 million in June, the aid agency Oxfam said on Friday.

Drought and high food prices have both contributed to the worsening crisis in Ethiopia and other parts of the Horn of Africa like Somalia and north Kenya, aid workers say.

Oxfam, citing U.N. figures, said there was a $260 million shortfall for agencies trying to address Ethiopia's crisis. Read More.

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Can't eat, won't learn

IRIN News - October 9, 2008

Ethiopia's schools have opened for the new academic year, but severe food insecurity in some regions has kept thousands of children out of class.

"This time last year we had already enrolled 2,300 students," said Solomon Desta, director of Bashiro primary school in Bona district of Sidama zone in the Southern region. "Now we have registered 1,800."

Solomon had prepared for 2,500 children because he was forced to send some children to other schools last year as Bashiro could not accommodate them all. The school extended its registration deadline by 15 days from 1 September but still the numbers did not improve. "The turnout is the lowest of the last three years," Solomon told IRIN. Read More.