1. Why does ActionAid need more money?
2. How is the recession impacting developing countries?
3. How has ActionAid tackled the shortfall internally?

4. What does ActionAid UK need to do?
5. What services will ActionAid prioritise during the recession?
6. How can £7million a year make a difference?

ActionAid UK raised almost £67 million last year and expects to achieve a similar amount in 2009.  However, rising inflation in many developing countries along with the drop in Sterling means that our money does not go as far.   While it is impossible to predict what will happen in the future we anticipate a shortfall of at least 10% in real terms.  

On average, ActionAid helps 19 million people each year.  A 10% drop means that nearly 2 million people could face the very real possibility of starvation and disease with no hope on the horizon.

The financial crisis will mean devastating losses.  As rich country recessions start to bite, poor countries are losing out.  It is a complex situation in which a combination of factors – rising inflation, increasing food prices, industries closing and loss of remittances – are having devastating effects on the poor.

To read more about the effects of the recession, click here

We have made cuts both in ActionAids in the UK and around the world.  In the UK we have cut £1million from our expenditure – jobs, services and campaigning work.  

In every case, our priority is to protect our work as far as possible with the poorest people.  However, we still face the prospect of having to close projects in the developing countries that lift people out of poverty and help them become self-sufficient.  Without additional funds, we will not be able to respond to emergencies when every minute is crucial to people’s survival or to help people who have lost everything because of the recession. 

Together with ActionAid’s around the world we need to raise an extra 18 million Euros a year during the recession.  In the UK our share of that is to raise just under £7 million each year.  

Click here to see where the money will go

ActionAid works with poor people in over 40 countries.   We will prioritise the services that support the most vulnerable.

This includes

• existing projects that are under threat of closure or that will have to be scaled down because of rising costs and reduced income caused by the exchange rate;
  
• new projects needed to support people who have lost their livelihood because of the recession

We need to provide urgent support before the situation deteriorates further.  If we don’t, it will become far, far harder to put right. Every person who has worked hard to become self sufficient that falls back into poverty will need to be helped in the future.

A small amount can have a very big impact.

For example, if we provide food aid now then people will not have to eat the unripe crops in their fields which could have fed them for a year, provided seed for next year’s harvest and given a surplus that they could trade for other necessities.