Concern Worldwide is currently responding to the food crisis in the West Africa country of Niger, whose 2009 crop failure has put its inhabitants in terrible danger. Nearly half of the countries 15 million people are desperately in need of food due to the lack of rainfall that has blighted most of last year’s crops.
Niger is one of the least developed country on earth, and also one of the poorest. Concern Worldwide front line staff have been working in Niger for many years and have recently seen villages become totally deserted because of the lack of food. The situation is so bad that the local government is appealing for urgent international aid as the migration continues in the search for food.
Concern Worldwide response team are currently on the front line trying to treat the malnutrition and over the next few months will help up to 80,000 people. Not only will they be providing nutritional support to children, pregnant women, and distributing seed and fertiliser to replace failed crops, they are also using mobile phones to help transfer emergency cash grants to up to 2,500 families for essential items.
