You are not alone, EU tells hunger victims

The European Union (EU) has assured families affected by hunger this year that they are not alone, pledging to continue supporting them as long as it can.
EU commissioner for humanitarian aid and crisis management Christos Stylianides said this on Saturday in Chikwawa where he visited hunger-stricken people in the Shire Valley.
Stylianides is on an official visit to Malawi to assess the effectiveness of his organisation’s humanitarian aid in helping communities deal with the effects of prolonged drought.

Before visiting Chikwawa, the commissioner met President Peter Mutharika in Lilongwe on Friday.
“EU was the first to react to Mutharika’s call for support and we provided 16 million euros [about K12.4 billion] to help families in need of emergency humanitarian support,” said Stylianides.
During the visit to Chikwawa, the commissioner toured some of the resilience projects being implemented through its support called Building Resilience Through Productive Asset Activities.
He also visited woodlots, vegetable gardens and nurseries in Traditional Authority (T/A) Maseya in the district.
“The evidence is in the village savings groups and woodlots, among others. I saw resilience of people who are struggling to feed their children because of forces beyond their control, but are moving forward.
“I am happy that the support is used properly. I trust our partners World Food Programme and World Vision and they are doing a fantastic job. We will continue supporting them,” he said.
According to a recent Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee (Mvac) report, at least 6.7 million Malawians are in dire need of food aid nationwide due to prolonged drought and floods during the last growing season.
In April this year, Mutharika declared a State of National Disaster caused by prolonged dry spells and floods during the 2015/16 season.
He appealed to local and international well-wishers to assist the country mitigate the impact of the crisis. 