Case Study: Famine (DP IB Geography)

Case Study: Famine in the Horn of Africa

• The Horn of Africa is the region in East Africa

• The famine began in this area in 2011, affecting Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia 

  • It affected roughly 13 million people in the region 

  • Roughly 250,000 people died in Somalia

  • 50% of these were children under the age of five years old

• As of 2023, another acute famine is predicted to arrive 

IPC scale

• The IPC scale (Integrated Food Security Phase Classification) measures how severe a famine is 

• In 2011, parts of East Africa, e.g. Somalia, hit phase 5, a catastrophe

• Other areas, like Kenya, hit phase 3+, where urgent action is required

Causes of the famine 

Drought

• Drought was one of the major culprits of the 2011 famine 

• The area experienced very low rainfall over several years, leading to extreme drought

• This meant crop growth was impossible 

INERT IMAGE HERE

Map of drought-affected areas in 2011 at the Horn of Africa 

Conflict

• Parts of the Horn of Africa were experiencing conflict, e.g. in Somalia 

• The Siad Barre regime was removed from power in 1991 

• Since then, there has been no leading government, causing conflict

• For years, the country has been riddled with Civil War

• Fighting caused damage to crops 

• The Al-Shabaab militant group began to rise to power 

  • This group caused a blockade of food aid during the famine

  • Al-Shabaab controlled certain areas, where aid was not allowed in 

  • Killed aid workers  

• Displaced people migrated to Kenya, as a result of the conflict

Poverty

• The countries in the Horn of Africa were already suffering under extreme poverty 

• Farmers don’t have access to technologies which may increase productivity

• High population rates and regular food shortages are a recipe for disaster 

• Food prices increased massively in 2011, like corn and maize

  • This was a result of decreased food supply globally 

  • The land was used for the growth of biofuel instead of food e.g. US corn ethanol 

Responses

• The response to the crisis was incredibly slow, roughly 6 months

  • Some donors wanted to see evidence of the crisis, rather than trying to stop it from happening

  • Early warning systems detected the crisis in 2010

  • By 2011, malnutrition was high

• Oxfam funding appeal:

  • Oxfam worked to bring people and emergency support to the area

  • Raised over $100 million 

• The UN World Food Programme (WFP), the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) supported relief efforts

• Funds from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) were funnelled into food aid and other vital areas e.g vaccination and sanitation