While the "short rains" (that fall between October and December) have been a welcome reprieve in some parts of drought-stricken East Africa, they have caused severe flooding in others — including within the Dadaab refugee complex in Kenya, where hundreds of thousands have taken refuge against drought conditions.

Meanwhile, serious security concerns continue in Dadaab, including increased violence and the abduction of several aid workers. These concerns have affected the delivery of aid within the camps. Refugees will receive critical support such as food, water and medical services while full relief activities are expected to resume in the coming weeks.

The spread of infectious disease, including malaria, dengue, cholera and measles is still a major concern and area of focus in relief efforts.

In Somalia, where famine was declared in several regions, the number of people facing "imminent starvation" has been reduced from 750,000 to 250,000, according to the United Nations. This reduction is largely due to relief efforts.

At this time, it is most critical for organizations like LWR to work to ensure security for aid workers within the Dadaab camps in order to continue providing the vital services refugees so desperately need.

Lutheran World Relief recently committed $188,000 to its first long-term recovery project to address the East Africa drought. Working with two partners, the Mwakika self-help group and Paranga Community Education and Micro-Enterprise Support Group, LWR will support cash-for-work projects — where farmers have the opportunity to earn desperately needed household income by making critical improvements to their soil, farms, water systems and other infrastructure — to more than 2,500 families in Kenya.

LWR is also continuing its work with LWF in both Kenya and Ethiopia. In Kenya, LWR and LWF are working to meet the needs of thousands of refugees living in the Dadaab refugee complex by providing water to people waiting outside the camps, distributing locally sourced baby care supplies to new mothers and providing psycho-social care to 40,000 refugees.

LWR and LWF are working in Ethiopia to distribute food, including grains, wheat, cooking oil, beans and supplementary food, to households with new mothers and young children. Work in Ethiopia also includes malaria prevention and training for 1,440 farmers on improved agricultural and natural resources management, along with the provision of farming tools to begin recovery efforts.

LWR is also working with its partner in Ethiopia, International Orthodox Christian Churches (IOCC), to deliver 16,000 LWR Personal Care Kits to refugees in Ethiopia. LWR needs more Personal Care Kits to complete this shipment. To learn more about making and donating LWR Personal Care Kits, click here.