Kenya food stocks to run out in April
By WALTER MENYA, Posted Thursday, December 17 2009 at 21:20 Kenya’s food stocks will run out in April, resulting in more people going hungry, a new study warns. The Kenya Food Security report blames the failed or poor rains, high food prices and environmental degradation for the crisis. The report also warns of increased inter-ethnic conflict over land and water. The failure of El Nino rains expected at the beginning of September, has spawned fears of poor harvests that will not meet demand after March.
As a result of the insufficient February to August 2009 long rains, humanitarian agencies have forecast a 2010 main maize harvest of 1.9 million metric tonnes, about 25 per cent below the four-year average. … The short rains from September to date, the report says, though moderately improving water and pasture availability in some pastoral areas, cannot help the country attain rapid or long-term food security. “Consecutive seasons of sufficient rainfall are required for pastoral populations to replace livestock.” … The situation has not been helped by the freak floods that have been reported in Coast, North Eastern, and Eastern regions following the enhanced rains between October and November. As the rains continue to pound some parts of the country, the report states that the government and humanitarian agencies expect more floods and mudslides, potentially affecting 750,000 people and contributing to increased incidence of disease among humans and animals. …
