Jersey Help the People of Gambia

Action Aid UK is over the moon that the people of the tiny island of Jersey are helping provide vital relief to Gambia, who are currently experiencing extreme drought and severe food shortages.

The Jersey Overseas Aid Commission have made an amazingly generous donation to help Action Aid’s support relief to help the affected people. Charity officials on the front line are working tirelessly to provide food, water and shelter to those affected by the drought. Recent poor rainfall has left large areas of West Africa in desert like conditions, with up to 42% of the entire population going hungry.

Up to 75% of people in Gambia make their living from agriculture, meaning that there is no way to earn money, and with food prices rocketing by a massive 25% in a year, the future is looking bleak. Action Aid are working hard to offer 50,000 people food and drinking water, whilst also providing seeds, animal feed and farming products to try and ensure next year’s harvest is more fruitful.

Head of Philanthropy and Partnerships at Action Aid UK, Sujit Peris, said –

The support of Jersey Overseas Aid Committee for the food crisis in The Gambia means an incredible amount to us, and will make a real difference to the communities we are working with who are facing food shortages.The Committee have once again been incredibly generous in their support of ActionAid, and we are especially grateful for their long term commitment to supporting ActionAid’s work, particularly for forgotten crises like this one in The Gambia.

Well done to the Jersey Overseas Aid Committee for making this amazing commitment to help the people of Gambia, let’s all hope that they can stabilise their situation and their crops return next season to provide a source of food and income.