Hope amid Kenya’s toughest drought

Above: Nkariyon’s community is facing high levels of food insecurity amid the current drought in Kenya. Cash transfers and drought-resilient crops are helping the community to grow and purchase food. Photo: Claire Walker/Oxfam

Not so many years ago, Nkariyon, who lives in Farakoren, Kenya, had enough food and water to keep her family healthy. But years of drought and conflict have left her with barely enough to survive. 

“There was a time we had so much livestock, we were alive, we had so much energy, now the drought has taken all,” Nkariyon said.

Kenya is experiencing its worst drought in more than 40 years. Around 4.4 million people within Kenya’s arid and semi-arid lands are facing high levels of acute food insecurity, classified as IPC3+. This has been intensified by five successive below-average rainy seasons.

In Marsabit county, where Nkariyon’s village is located, more than 55% of the population are food insecure and 15% are experiencing IPC4 – or emergency levels – of food insecurity.

Before the drought, Nkariyon’s life was very different.

“Before, we had goats and livestock as our banks,” Nkariyon said. 

“The mothers are the ones that see the children are struggling a lot.”

With support from the Australian Government through the Australian Humanitarian Partnership (AHP), Oxfam has been able to deliver multi-purpose cash transfers and drought-resilient crops, including sorghum, to Nkariyon and the Farakoren community.

“Now that we have got the money, it has helped us a lot. Now we can buy all the food and feed all our children,” Nkariyon said.

“Now you can buy rice, beans and depend on it. It has helped buy food, good food for their children. They are saying thank you … they are saying thank you very much.”

Above: Community members in Farakoren gather to share their experiences with the drought with AHP response partners. Photo: Claire Walker/Oxfam

The AUD 3 million AHP food security response in Kenya is led Oxfam Australia through its national affiliate, Oxfam in Kenya, and two independent national organisations – Strategies for Northern Development (SND) and Pastoralist Community Initiative and Development Assistance (PACIDA) – working under the umbrella of the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands Humanitarian Network (AHN) in Marsabit County. AHN, a membership network of 13 local organisations including Women’s Rights Organisations covering 10 of the worst affected counties, is coordinating the drought response within the framework of local humanitarian leadership.