News

SMS from South Ethiopia: cattle are dead, we’ll be next

Piles of grey ash - the burnt remains of cow carcasses - lie around villages in Borena, south Ethiopia.It’s a potent symbol, as Horn of Africa representative of ACT Alliance member DanChurchAid, Rikke Holm, reports by text message.

“The old men tell us that they collect the dead animals near the village and burn them to avoid diseases. One of the old men adds ironically “In a month or so you can collect us.” - Act Alliance

Millions at risk of cholera in Ethiopia, WHO warns
Five million people are at risk of cholera in drought-hit Ethiopia, where acute watery diarrhoea has broken out in crowded, unsanitary conditions, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Friday. - Reuters

ETHIOPIA: Great trek for water in the south
For many people, access to water is a mere turn of the tap away; for Abdha Aso, a 20-year-old mother of five, it involves a four-hour round trip to a muddy pond. Only a year ago, she could reach a nearby stream in 20 minutes but it has since dried up. - IRIN