Canadian Red Cross announces significant contribution to support relief efforts in Horn of Africa

The Canadian Red Cross has committed $1 million to support relief efforts in Kenya and Somalia. This money will be used to support the Kenya Red Cross Society and the Somali Red Crescent in their efforts to help provide immediate life-saving assistance and help people recover their livelihoods.

"We are pleased to announce a significant contribution to relief efforts underway in Horn of Africa, made possible through Canadian donations," says Conrad Sauvé, secretary general and CEO the Canadian Red Cross.  "The Red Cross Movement has a strong presence in Somalia and Kenya and is actively scaling up operations to meet the needs to affected communities."

Just like in Canada, there are local volunteers rapidly mobilizing across East Africa to support the needs of vulnerable communities.  These activities include assisting in emergency first aid and delivering much-needed supplies.  Money transferred will help those affected by the drought through initiatives such as school feeding programs, borehole rehabilitation, water trucking and food distribution.

"The needs in East Africa are massive and this money will help provide emergency assistance to thousands of families," adds Sauvé. "Meeting the humanitarian needs of a disaster of this magnitude requires a massive and long-term response. Although these funds will make a tremendous difference in the lives of affected communities, much more is still needed to ensure a sustainable recovery."

To date, Red Cross efforts include deploying 14 mobile health clinics which have given urgently needed medical assistance to almost 18,000 people, providing clean water to almost half a million people and distributing over 300 tons of seeds to farmers who have lost crops.

The Government of Canada will match the donations of individual Canadians between July 6 and September 16, 2011. Those funds will go into a relief fund that is separate from the Canadian Red Cross and will be administered by the Government of Canada. Funds from the matching program will support on-going humanitarian assistance in drought-affected parts of East Africa.