At least 300,000 people in Kwale County require food and water after the short rains expected last October and December failed.
Kenya Red Cross coordinator Mohammed Mwaenzi said the most affected areas are Kinango and Lungalunga where crops have wilted and livestock farmers lost animals due to the prolonged drought.
At least 90 per cent of the water pans that most locals depend on in the affected areas have dried up.
The humanitarian agency has now launched a livestock-buying and cash transfer programme as a drought-emergency response to cushion farmers from further losses.
At least 1,500 families are expected to benefit from the programme.
“We are buying the animals so that we slaughter them and give the meat back to the community. I advise them to sell their weak animals early enough so that they can have money and avoid losses,” he said.
Last year alone, he said, at least 5,000 livestock died due to the drought.
At least 250 animals have been slaughtered and distributed to the affected residents. The programme is expected to go on for the next two months, with 1,000 residents getting a cash voucher of Sh5,467 every month.
Speaking in Kinangoz during the first phase of the project, Kasemeni Assistant County Commissioner Peter Seronga said farmers should not rely on rains and should instead sell their livestock on time to avoid huge losses.
More residents of Kinango and Lungalunga are expected to benefit in the phased programme.
Abdul Nyanje, a Kilibasi resident, urged the county government to intervene and provide relief food to the affected families.
“We only afford one meal a day, so we are asking the government to come up with more programmes to salvage us from this condition,” he said.
Grace Muindi, another resident, said that because of poor rainfall she had not harvested any crops for three seasons.
“We have used all the food that we had stocked up and now depend on well-wishers. Our children are also finding it difficult to stay in school because of hunger,” she said.
Kilibasi, in a remote area that borders Taita Taveta, is one of the most affected. Others are Samburu, Silaloni and Ndavaya.
The drought has caused conflict among some pastoralist communities in Lungalunga, with animals invading farms in search of pasture.
Last September, President Uhuru Kenyatta declared drought a national disaster.
He instructed the Treasury and Interior ministries to spearhead government efforts and help affected households, including distributing water and relief food and buying livestock from farmers. BY DAILY NATION