Telling the ECSA Story

Barren lands, dried vegetation, news of locusts destroying crops, dried water wells, and rivers: this is a constant reminder as you travel through Somalia on why the world should act on climate change. Somalia has been on the receiving end of climate change, highly susceptible to the effects of climate change and extreme weather, the country has witnessed devastating droughts, flooding, and locust invasions which have left communities reeling from the successive loss of livelihoods. Already barren, the country has received below-average rainfall and extremely high temperatures which have led to most water sources drying up. Women and girls have been disproportionally affected by the effects of climate change as they now have to trek long distances to get water. In some cases, girls have dropped out of school as their families cannot afford to pay school fees due to the loss of their livestock. One of the heroes working on the frontlines to combat climate change and reduce the mit

Foibe sorts beans before cooking Twenty-seven year-old Foibe Valetti left the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in 2017 due to the ravaging war. Devastated by the death of her elder brother and his wife, she was suddenly burdened with the big responsibility to take care of five children inclusive of her brother’s son. They packed and resettled in Kavule   village, Kyangwali Refugee settlement where Foibe became fully dependent on food distributed by aid agencies and firewood from the forest reserves. Unable to afford charcoal, Foibe like other women, would walk 5-10 kilometers to fetch firewood from Bugoma forest once a week as allocated by authorities. According to her, the amount collected is never enough to complete an entire week forcing her to buy charcoal which is expensive. “I got to know about the Community Solar Kitchens through a friend in May this year. She told me CARE had constructed stoves that use the sun and not charcoal meant for the refugees. When I went to see i

This is the journey and story of one dedicated CARE DRC aid worker operating in a complex security context working to decrease cases of gender-based violence (GBV) and improve the living condition of affected populations in places such as Minembwe Health Zone, all while providing hope for a better future for his country and saving lives in the process. The year 2021 is particularly difficult for the population of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the situation remains complex and prolonged in July 2021.   Humanitarian access, whether physical or in terms of security, remains a major constraint for field actors to reach the most vulnerable populations. Armed conflicts, epidemics, natural disasters, and the socio-economic impact of COVID-19 have significantly exacerbated the context of extreme lack of access to essential services for a large majority of the population, disrupting supply chains, access to markets, and humanitarian activities, all of which have hurt household c