Special Reports

Food Security: Lessons Learned from the 1984 Ethiopian Famine

In 1984 and 1985, famine struck East Africa. More than one million people died. Millions more went hungry. Crops turned to dust, livestock were decimated. Ethiopia has experienced other food crises, but the magnitude of the 1984 famine captured the attention of the world. Why was it so severe, and what lessons have been learned since then?

Background: The 1984 Crisis

In the radio reports below, recorded 25 years ago, VOA’s Dan Robinson describes the development of the famine and the world’s response.

Lessons Learned

Some lessons have been learned in the past 25 years, as highlighted in the videos below.

For instance, the Ethiopian government has implemented a safety net program to address the chronic need for food and anticipate emergencies. A national grain reserve can now provide a cushion in times of crisis until emergency food aid arrives.

VOA has also reported on the U.S. Agency for International Development's Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWS NET), developed to improve communication in humanitarian aid response.

Some programs, such as an ACDI/VOCA program aimed at increasing sustainability among small farmers, have enhanced agricultural productivity.

The Ethiopia Commodities Exchange, profiled in a PBS documentary, aims to improve food access and intranational trade.

But while there has been progress, some necessary changes have still not taken root.

Some critics charge that the international community has not done enough to prioritize long-term agricultural development, and agricultural productivity is hampered by the lack of private land ownership.

In addition, although the ability to transport food aid has improved, access to vulnerable populations is still hampered by road quality and armed conflict.

Food Security Today

Although a lot has been done to improve food security, millions of people in East Africa are again going hungry as a result of prolonged drought, conflict or a combination of both. FEWS NET rates Somalia, much of Kenya and parts of Ethiopia and Sudan as highly or extremely food insecure.

In Somalia, one in five children is suffering from malnutrition and 3.6 million people are in need of aid. (Oxfam)

Ethiopia’s government has appealed for nearly 160,000 tons of food aid to feed more than six million needy people. (DPPC)

Over 500,000 animals in Kenya are estimated to have died in the drought, at a cost of over $260 million to the local economy. (Oxfam)

The price of maize in Uganda in October this year is 171 percent higher than two years ago. (VOA)

Climate change seems to be exacerbating the cycle of drought; rains have been insufficient for three years in a row. Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, leading the African delegation to the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, appealed to attendees, "Africa is going to be hit hardest and it's going to be hit first."

The following video reports provide additional information on the ongoing drought and its effects.