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Relief food arrives as leaders ask for more

Countries
Kenya
Sources
Daily Nation
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Leaders are rushing to distribute food to starving families as the drought that has hit most parts of the country worsens.

In Turkana, each of the county’s seven sub-counties got 700 bags of maize, 300 bags of beans, rice, and 50 cartons of ujimix after 15 trucks carrying relief food arrived.

County Commissioner Julius Mathenge on Thursday told the Nation that deputy county commissioners were planning to distribute the food to worst-hit areas.

“We are yet to receive the Sh300,000 logistic funds for every sub-county that Devolution Principal Secretary Gideon Konchella promised to disburse. We can’t sit back and wait for the funds because the drought is severe and people are in dire need of food,” he said.

Kibish Deputy County Commissioner Erick Wanyonyi said it takes at least Sh250,000 to take food to remote areas like Soya, Kokuro, Loruth, Napak and Kibish per trip.

GOVERNMENT HELP

“Distributing food to villages located 400 kilometres from Lodwar Cereals Depot is an expensive venture than the allocated Sh300,000,” he said, adding that 20,000 residents were in urgent need of food in the sub-county. Mr Wanyonyi asked the national government to send GSU officers to distribute the food to areas along the border with Ethiopia and South Sudan.

In Baringo, Senator Gideon Moi, Governor Benjamin Cheboi and Women’s Representative Grace Kiptui at the weekend appealed for relief food from the central government.

Their calls came after three lives were lost in Tiaty constituency. More than 150,000 people are staring at death in Tiaty, Baringo South and Baringo North sub-counties.

In Kirinyaga, at least 70, 836 residents are starving, with Mwea East and Mwea West sub-counties bearing the brunt of drought. A Jubilee alliance activist, Mr Mureithi Kang’ara, appealed to the government to send relief food to the area urgently.