In February, the United Nations declared famine in Unity State, a northern area of South Sudan (WFP, UNICEF, FAO, 20 Feb 2017). About 100,000 people were deemed to be at immediate risk of starvation, with up to a million more classified as being on the brink of famine. The violence and food insecurity over the past four years have created the continent’s largest refugee crisis, with almost one million people seeking a safe haven in Uganda alone (MSF, 18 May 2017).

The UN has since expanded the crises category to encompass northeastern Nigeria, Somalia and Yemen - and the numbers are staggering. Not just in terms of people at risk - 30 million at last count - but funding too: $6.1 billion (ACAPS, 22 May 2017) is needed this year to avert catastrophe.