The 1984-85 famine in Ethiopia affected 8 million people and over 1 million died. The shocking images broadcast around the world inspired the Band Aid and Live Aid projects which resulted in a massive relief effort which saved millions more lives. Now another famine is spreading across the Horn of Africa, starting in Somalia, where 3 million people are now starving and more than 240,000 children are suffering malnutrition.
In 1984 the population of Ethiopia was around 40 million; today it is around 85 million. In 1984 the population of Somalia was 6.4 million; today it is 9.5 million. In 1984 the population of Kenya was 19 million; today it is 41 million. With twice as many people now living in the Horn of Africa, famine caused by drought and crop failure has the capacity to cause even more extensive devastation.
Somali refugees have been pouring over the border into Kenya. 370,000 Somali refugees are now located in Dadaab, the largest refugee camp in the world, and the number is increasing by 1,300 per day. Extremist insurgent groups in Somalia continue to prevent international humanitarian groups from providing relief to people in Somalia, and no-one is helping the people who are currently in the most need.