Aida's Story.
Aida was pregnant with her third child and with little access to health care or food, was suffering from anaemia and malnutrition. Her family live in the rural Afar region, and were supported by our partner, the Afar Pastoralist Development Association (APDA). An APDA Health Extension Worker supported Aida to travel over 22 miles to the nearest health centre where she gave birth to a healthy daughter. Aida was one of the last women fortunate enough to give birth there.
Just one week later conflict reached the town and the health centre was destroyed.
Throughout the conflict, the destruction of infrastructure has been widespread. Everything from schools, hospitals, roads and water systems have been rendered useless. The crisis has been compounded by the recent drought, and soaring inflation is driving up prices of food, water, and transport so that less is available to communities in desperate need.
For four months, Aida sheltered in a make-shift displacement camp. Survival was only possible thanks to tins of milk, dates and ground barley distributed by APDA to mothers and pregnant women living in the camp.
APDA are reaching people who cannot access aid, in places where other humanitarian agencies cannot travel to. They are providing food rations where people are without, additional supplements for pregnant and new mothers and treatment for children suffering from malnutrition. Theyu2019re working to restore water systems and deliver emergency water supplies; provide livestock support to keep herds healthy and producing milk; improve hygiene and sanitation with water purification and soap, whilst restoring latrines until services can be rebuilt.
Aida is now home safely with her husband, new baby and two children. Sadly only 2 goats have survived from their original herd, leaving limited milk supplies and no livestock to either eat or sell. Providing for her family is a daily challenge.
We were living to build our lives, now we are struggling to save our lives.
It costs £50 to support a family for 1 month with food, medicine, access to water and fodder for livestock.
If you can, please support our Emergency and Recovery Fund today, so that families like Aida’s can survive the next phase of this crisis.
