The drought in Kenya has escalated to worrying levels in the northern part of Kenya, and the Kenya Red Cross Society reported an escalation of the humanitarian crisis in Turkana County as families endure a severe food and water crisis.

Taking it to their social media handles on Friday, April 10, 2026, the Kenya Red Cross Society has said that lack of food has also resulted in communities being pushed to extreme survival measures, such as boiling wild fruits for up to 24 hours to render them safe to eat, as observed by field officers during a recent visit to Kenya by the Netherlands’ ambassador, Henk Jan Bakker.

“The drought in Turkana continues to push communities to the brink. During a visit, Netherlands Ambassador to Kenya, H.E. @HenkJanBakker3, saw families resorting to boiling wild fruit, an intensive process that can take up to 24 hours, to make it safe for consumption.

“In one village in Loima, out of 100 children screened, 80 were found to have moderate acute malnutrition and 20 severe acute malnutrition, a stark indication of the crisis,” the Kenya Red Cross stated.

The crisis is especially severe in certain areas of Turkana County. Health screenings carried out in a village in Loima showed that 80 children out of 100 who were screened had moderate acute malnutrition, and 20 children were severely acutely malnourished. These statistics illustrate the necessity to provide nutritional and medical assistance as soon as possible.

Water crisis

The drought has caused drying of major water sources, forcing communities to have little access to safe drinking water. The drought has exacerbated food insecurity and economic hardship, severely impacting livestock, the region’s primary source of income.

With the worsening of the situation, families are turning to unsustainable ways of coping, and the humanitarian agencies are concerned about the implications of such coping on the children and the vulnerable groups in the long run.

Kenya’s Red Cross emergency response

Kenya Red Cross Society has confirmed that, in collaboration with partners, it remains in the process of offering life-saving interventions such as food delivery, nutrition screening, and water assistance in the most affected regions.

Nevertheless, the organization cautions that the need is far greater than the resources available, necessitating greater humanitarian aid and long-term drought resilience initiatives to prevent the situation from worsening further.

On Tuesday, January 27, 2026, the Kenya Red Cross Society revealed in a statement on their social media handles that over 2 million people in Kenya are currently affected by drought and need urgent support.

“Drought continues to impact over 2 million people across Kenya. The Kenya Red Cross, along with partners, is delivering water, food, and cash assistance to help families cope. Urgent support is needed to reach more communities,” Kenya Red Cross stated.

In their statement, the Kenya Red Cross has noted that there has been a deterioration in nutrition across arid counties in Kenya. Eight counties are most affected: Turkana, Mandera, Wajir, Samburu, Garissa, Isiolo, Marsabit, West Pokot, and Baringo.

According to the Red Cross statement, there are 784,000 cases of malnourished children, whereas over 300,000 homesteads have an urgent need for water.