Bovine

Mining money talks the loudest in Australian politics

by Laurie Oakes

110
Please enter your password

by Lucy Kippist

210
This concern for Thomson won’t change the script

by Mark Kenny

310
Weekend Punch: Tea or coffee?

by The Punch Team

410
Eurovision can’t drown out the human rights abuses

by Claire Mallinson

510
Revenge. It doesn’t get a whole lot better than this

by The Punch Team

610
Friday dilemma: can school bullies grow out of it?

by Tory Maguire

710
“Fizzy”, “gusto”, “disco” and other words we love

by Lucy Kippist

810
Ray Beckwith: the science behind the wine

by David Penberthy

910
The world puzzles over Australia’s Prime Minister

by Mark Kenny

1010

Make boverty history

04 Oct 05:45am

Filed under: Africa, African Famine, Bovine, Cows, Malnutrition, Poverty

Unless you have been hiding under a rock for some months, you will realise that people are starving in the Horn of Africa.

A first-world cow causing misery. Pic: Flickr

The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation considers 12 million people at risk in a region that includes Ethiopia (82m), Kenya (39m), Somalia (9m), Uganda (32m) and little Djibouti (1m). The figures in brackets are national populations and imply that 12 million is only only about 7 per cent of people in the region.

But you know the risk to each and every one of them is serious when Bob Geldof is wheeled out in a suit. Geldof, in a recent press conference, felt compelled to remind people that those at risk are intelligent, creative and resilient people who are suffering enormously.

Continue reading "Make boverty history" »

Latest 2 of 47 comments

View all comments

Geoff Russell says:

10:58pm | 05/10/11

I gave the school garden example to be concrete. The Kenyan project has, according to the article linked above, touched 55,000 herders, so it isn’t insignificant. But it is precisely the scale of the Heifer projects that make them so damaging. Consider, if you will the situation in Australia during… Read more »
marley says:

06:04pm | 05/10/11

I should have done a bit of research into this article earlier. Ive just had a look at the project being funded by the Gates Foundation and Heifer International (which has nothing to do with Ethiopia) and also at one project which Heifer itself is funding in Ethiopia. This article,… Read more »

Add your comment

Facebook Recommendations

Read all about it

Punch live

Up to the minute Twitter chatter

Colgo 26 May 12 12:52PM

@seamus yeah it's now called Smooth or Soft or Douchey Dad FM or something

Colgo 26 May 12 12:44PM

It's a Sydney thing, but 95.3FM... Why? It used to be all Bohemian Rhapsody and Walk this Way; now it's Father to Son and Country Road. Wah.

_Tors 26 May 12 12:40PM

@pryorlisa There's a column in this... turning into something you thought you'd never be... I crossed the threshold with a soccer mum car!

Colgo 26 May 12 12:40PM

@davesag it's @qantasairways

See all tweets

Nosebleed Section

choice ringside rantings

From: They must pay for one’s bitter disappointments

Michael S says:

"A teacher at Geelong Grammar had criticised her for using words that were too long, which had left her confused and had made her doubt her ability to write essays. She became ''quite distressed'' when her English marks began to fall." I can sympathise. My scholastic mentors conveyed to me a causal relationship… [read more]

From: Welfare for breeders is a bonus for everyone

Change Up! says:

I have no problem paying my taxes. As a single, childless person on a very decent income, I can afford it and not have my life severely altered. Plus I understand that my taxes paying for things like schools, childcare and infrastructure is ultimately a good thing. A better community is better for me… [read more]