The Horn of Africa is on the brink of famine. The world must act

The Irish Emergency Alliance – made up of seven Irish NGOs – has launched an appeal to raise funds for the Horn of Africa, which is on the verge of famine. Trócaire CEO, Caoimhe de Barra, is just back from Somalia where she visited with comedian, actor and broadcaster Tommy Tiernan. Here she writes about what she saw.

Maryan Madey holds her malnourished daughter Deka Ali, aged one, at a camp for the displaced on the outskirts of Mogadishu in Somalia. An estimated 1.5 million children under the age of five will experience acute malnutrition by October. That is the equivalent of every child and young person under the age of 25 in Ireland. Photo: AP/Farah Abdi Warsameh

The Horn of Africa is on the brink of famine. Millions in Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia are hungry. People, including young children, are dying.

Last week, on a visit to Gedo region in southern Somalia with Tommy Tiernan, I saw at first hand the devastation that is being caused by ongoing drought, with crops failing and livestock dying. 800,000 people have been forced to leave their homes. I met several mothers who are amongst hundreds of thousands of people facing hunger and hardship in the East African country.