UK sends relief to West Africa famine victims

The government of the United Kingdom announced on Sunday offering addition financial aid valued at GBP 10 million to fight hunger and drought in the region of the West African coast. The Secretary of State for International Development Andrew Mitchell in press remarks, called on the world countries not to forget this African region, which is facing a serious humanitarian crisis because of the drought, shortage of food and armed conflicts. UK led the international effort in relief of thousands of victims of the African Horn Hunger Crisis, and the time has come to offer aid to the affected areas in west of Africa, Mitchel affirmed. The International Development Department said in a press release that the financial aid would be dedicated in offering water, medical care, and sanitation to more than 31,000 children, besides offering food to more than 170,000 people for six months. This aid will allow Africans to buy food and vaccinations to 280,000 head of cattle, besides agricultural tools, and seeds for nearly half a million households. International humanitarian organization Oxfam warned since last March from the risk of starvation and malnutrition in Mali, Chad, Niger, Burkina Faso, parts of Senegal, Mauritania due to lack of rain, damage to agricultural crops, and high food prices. Oxfam said that more than eight million persons including 1,500 children are in need of international aid, to avoid any humanitarian disaster that could be worse than the starvation that hit the African Horn countries. African Horn, alternatively Northeast Africa, and sometimes Somali Peninsula; shortened to HOA denotes the region containing the countries of Eritrea, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Somalia.