Thursday, 19 February 2026, 16:16
REUTERS
Four years after a record drought devastated northern Kenya, failed rains are once again driving starvation, as aid cuts force humanitarian agencies to scale back their operations and feed fewer people. Sean Hogan reports.
TURKANA COUNTY, Kenya – In the barren plains of Turkana, 76-year-old grandmother Echakan Amaja survives on foraged fruit and the limited aid rations she can obtain.
Four years after a record drought ravaged northern Kenya, rains have failed again, triggering renewed hunger as aid agencies warn that resources are running out.
Amaja’s hardship has deepened after her son was killed two weeks ago in a cattle-rustling raid.
“When I received my ration, my grandchildren were here with me,” she said. “When my livestock were stolen by bandits, all my grandchildren came back home and I shared it all with them.”
Her family struggles to survive on roughly 95 pounds of food and less than one gallon of cooking oil provided each month by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).
Kenya’s National Drought Management Authority said in December last year that more than nine counties were facing emerging drought conditions, warning of sharp impacts on food security, water access and pasture availability.
Sarah Ayodi from the WFP told Reuters that around 333,000 people in Turkana County require food assistance.
“WFP is currently using internal funds to support food distributions,” Ayodi said. “The distributions will continue for three months. So far, we have covered one month and are now in the second cycle. The next cycle is in March 2026, and beyond that we do not have support for these communities.”
Save the Children has warned that at least four African countries, including Kenya, could run out of specialised life-saving food for severely malnourished children due to shortages caused by aid cuts.
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has slashed humanitarian assistance, while other Western governments have also reduced funding as part of longer-term cutbacks.
Local resident Asinyen Akol said he has never experienced a drought this severe.
“You can’t survive here,” he said. “Even trees and wild fruits are nowhere to be seen — not even a green leaf.”
