Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is welcome that there will be additional funding. The concern is that the world does not seem to pay attention to the advance warning of these humanitarian crises and does not act until it sees horrific images on television or computer screens. Oxfam has stated the world must move faster than in the past to help drought stricken regions of Africa. In 2011 warnings were issued months in advance and food shortages are not the only problem. Droughts and flooding can have other health effects such as outbreaks of cholera, typhoid and diaorrheal diseases in many areas. An estimated 10.2 million people, more than one tenth of the population of Ethiopia, need humanitarian aid because of the lack of basic food after the latest failed harvests. Will the Minister of State assure us that there will be food stocks in that region? What other support can we give to the people of the region? The Minister of State has mentioned extra funding, but the hurricane coming down the track will have a negative impact on millions of people in the region.

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