Telling the ECSA Story

Filomena Lamu standing in front of her old home in the Homoine district. CARE/Mauro Vombe   The devastating effects of the El Niño-induced drought in Mozambique have hit women and girls the hardest. As the worst drought in 35 years ravages, it has led to severe food shortages, forced changes in daily routines, and exacerbated existing vulnerabilities. Women, particularly those in rural areas, have borne the brunt of these challenges, with many struggling to provide for their families. In a small village in the Homoine district of Inhambane Province, 67-year-old Filomena Lamu faced the daunting task of caring for her two young grandchildren alone. Her daughter, who had left for the capital, Maputo, in search of work, had left the children in Filomena’s care.      Filomena’s days were long and exhausting, spent tending to her cassava crops and collecting firewood, which she sold in small bundles to make ends meet. “As a grandmother and primary caregiver, I struggled ...

Angelina Nyabany in her backyard garden in Mayom County, Unity State. CARE South Sudan/Kenyi Evans In Mayom County, South Sudan, conflict, flooding, and economic instability have pushed thousands into the grip of severe food insecurity and malnutrition. Families face a relentless struggle to survive. According to reports, South Sudan's Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) levels remain alarmingly high, with 46 out of 80 counties, including Mayom County, exceeding the WHO emergency threshold of 15%. Women and girls face heightened vulnerability across all aspects of food security, including availability, access, utilization, and stability. Women like 50-year-old Angelina Nyabany Wadar, a mother of three, faced impossible choices: skipping meals to feed her children, scavenging for wild foods, and watching helplessly as malnutrition threatened the lives of her little ones. Angelina was displaced by flooding that submerged her home and crops in Loath. Angelina's life took a dramatic tu...

CARE Sudan's Country Director Abdirahman visited a CARE-supported clinic. CARE International in Sudan. Abdirahman Ali, CARE Sudan's Country Director, issued this statement to draw urgent attention to the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Sudan. In his recent visit to Kassala, Abdirahman saw the plight of the internally displaced people, after fleeing conflict from Sinnar and Sinjah, with temporary homes and limited basic needs. Abdirahman was uniquely positioned to witness the unfolding humanitarian disaster firsthand while understanding the broader implications and needs.   "Muna, a 43-year-old woman displaced from Sennar, exemplifies the suffering we're witnessing," said Abdirahman Ali CARE Sudan's Country Director. "She along with her husband, who is an amputee, and five children and thousands of others fled the conflict with nothing. They now face unimaginable conditions – lack of food, clean water, and sanitation – in makeshift camps in overcrowded sc...

  Malagasy girls learning how to place reusable menstrual pads onto pants. CARE Madagascar Across the globe, the NGO CARE implements projects to support underserved communities. As part of their commitment to continuous improvement, they commissioned a study from J-PAL (Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab), a network of researchers awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in Economics. The study aimed to understand the effects of addressing menstrual insecurity on schoolgirls, their academic performance, families, and peers.     In the Amoron'i Mania region of Madagascar, menstruation was highly stigmatized and surrounded by taboos. It was seen as "dirty," leading to the isolation and exclusion of menstruating women and girls, who were forced to sleep in separate huts. The study revealed that nearly half of girls believed they deserved punishment if their brothers found out they were menstruating.     Societal norms prohibited any discussion about the topic, even between ...