Between July 2011 and mid-2012, a severe drought affected the entire region of East Africa. Said to be "the worst in 60 years", the drought caused a severe food crisis across Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya that threatened the livelihood of 9.5 million people.
Many refugees from southern Somalia fled to neighboring Kenya and Ethiopia, where crowded, unsanitary conditions together with severe malnutrition led to a large number of deaths. Other countries in East Africa, including Sudan, South Sudan and parts of Uganda, were also affected by a food crisis.
The food crisis in Somalia primarily affected the south. On 20 July, for the first time in nearly thirty years famine was declared. Recognition came to late for tens of thousands of people, who are believed to have died in southern Somalia before famine was declared.
But what of neighbouring countries and in particular the the towns and villages situated close to the borders of Kenya and Somalia ?.
In the rush to supply desperately needed food to refugees flooding across the border and into large purpose built camps like Dadaab, those living in neighbouring towns and villages were largely ignored.
Famine does not follow borders.
So a foundation from the UK raised money to secure the needs of those who were bypassed by the food trucks.
references from various online sources