Horn of Africa Drought

Airlink's Impact

NGO partners supported

Responders sent

Tons of humanitarian cargo delivered

Reports

Current Situation Overview

The Horn of Africa is currently facing an unprecedented crisis, with over 31.9 million people desperately requiring life-saving assistance in the wake of a severe and prolonged drought. In Ethiopia alone, 17.2 million individuals are in urgent need, while Somalia and Kenya are grappling with 8.25 million and 6.4 million affected people, respectively. Immediate action is crucial to provide vital aid and support to these communities in their fight against this devastating drought.

According to the WHO, “Along with countering the consequences of malnutrition, countries need to prepare for outbreaks of cholera, measles, malaria and other diseases.” With this level of food insecurity in the region and clean water becoming scarce, population movements will likely increase as families leave their homes in search of food, losing access to health services and increasing the risk of disease outbreaks. People in need of medical attention face an already overwhelmed and under-resourced health system, ill equipped to provide care for all affected due to the compounded shock of drought, flooding, ongoing conflict, and COVID-19.

Challenges

A variety of ongoing conflicts and other crises make a streamlined supply chain in response to this emergency that much more challenging. Across the region, high transportation costs are a major blocker for the humanitarian community when it comes to sending supplies and responders; these costs are expected to remain high as flight capacity to the region still has not returned to pre-pandemic levels and fuel prices remain at a peak.

Our Response in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and South Sudan

Having worked across the African continent for years, Airlink is again mobilizing airline and freight forwarding partners to provide an airbridge – a reliable and sustainable transportation network that overcomes the logistical and financial challenges relief organizations face in delivering critical aid into the region. Airlink is already coordinating flights for its nonprofit partners, with a growing pipeline of requests to Airlink and coordination calls with partners underway to assess demand, collaborative opportunities, and challenges.

ADRA is operating WASH, food aid, animal feed, and veterinary support programs in response to the Horn of Africa drought. Their WASH and food aid programs will impact over 50,000 individuals in the region.
Airlink is also supporting flights for members of CADENA’s team to Nairobi where they are developing a long-term project, in addition to an emergency response program, in the Turkana region of Kenya that is expected to benefit over 15,000 individuals. With Airlink’s support, the organization is providing food supplies and medical care to families, distributing menstrual hygiene kits to girls, and building a water well to guarantee safe drinking water.
Airlink has also provided airlift to assist IMC in delivering over 1,000 pounds of medical supplies to health centers in Somalia and South Sudan – with more to come.

Horn of Africa Drought