Samaritan's Purse responds to 'silent crisis' in Niger
About half of the population of Niger in West Africa is currently facing starvation, following a year of droughts which have led to widespread crop failures and food shortages.
The situation has been described as a ‘silent crisis’ by one aid agency, which estimates that around 400,000 children are at risk of dying of starvation.
Samaritan’s Purse UK is responding to the crisis by pledging to send £40,000 to support the relief efforts of the local Samaritan’s Purse team in Niger, who have been working in some of the poorest areas of the country since 2005, providing access to clean water and sanitation.
Although a poor harvest in 2009 has led to a shortage in grain supplies at a household level, imported grains are still available in local markets. The problem is that the prices of these goods remain out of range for about 50% of the population.
In response to this situation, Samaritan’s Purse intends to implement a ‘cash for work’ initiative that would identify the most needy families within the areas where local teams are already present and offer them cash to buy food at the market. In exchange, the adults of the house would agree to dig ditches and plant trees on their own and surrounding land – helping to protect and improve future crops for the local community.
“The situation in Niger is very serious indeed,” says Simon Barrington, Executive Director of 
Samaritan’s Purse UK. “The reports I have heard and scenes I have seen on TV are truly heartbreaking. The people of Niger urgently need our prayers and our support at this time.”
According to Charles Ibsen, Country Director of Samaritan's Purse Niger, states: "The situation here is the most critical it has been in the past five years. Many families have been without grain supplies since January and have had to resort to selling household capital, migrating to other countries or urban centers in search of work, and even foraging for wild seed to feed their families. It is very sad to see so many people struggling to meet their most basic need of food."
