Skip to content
Skip to content
News
The article is more than 13 years old
Relief Fund

Red Cross: African aid fund off to good start

The Finnish Red Cross says that its fundraising drive to help drought-stricken East Africa is off to a promising start. It estimates that 10 million people in East Africa are suffering from a severe shortage of food and water, with Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia the worst-hit.

Kuivuus ja nälänhätä koettelevat Afrikan sarvea.Yksivuotias Nasteho Ali äitinsä kanssa klinikalla Mogadishussa.
Kuivuus ja nälänhätä koettelevat Afrikan sarvea.Yksivuotias Nasteho Ali äitinsä kanssa klinikalla Mogadishussa. Image: EPA/ABUKAR ALBADRI

"Humanitarian aid is still needed in many areas to supplement work that is already being done. Now the drought has worsened significantly and we need more crisis relief," says Päivi Laurila, the FRC's Head of International Programmes.

So far the drive has collected 150,000 euros, with the aim of gathering 2-3 million euros this autumn.

FRC communications director Hannu-Pekka Laiho says the result is good for a two-week period, considering that much of the nation is on holiday.

He adds that some of the money raised during the Finnish Red Cross's annual Hunger Day event in mid-September will be added to the East African relief fund. The Foreign Ministry has also contributed to the fund.

Sources: YLE