Is there less starving people in Africa since Live Aid in 1985 or more?

Answer 1

Probably more. Band Aid / Live Aid was about the drought in Ethiopia, but the reality was not as it was portrayed. Mengistu Haile-Mariam's Marxist government was actually facing revolt and attempted secession in parts of Ethiopia. The country probably had enough food resources to handle the regional drought, but chose to prevent its own aid resources getting through to the areas of insurrection. Those areas were highlighted in Michael Buerk's report, which St. Bob saw. Unfortunately the Marxist government was "economical with the truth". It cynically used starvation as a method of suppressing opposition. Naive do-gooders like Michael Buerk, Bob Geldoff, Midge Ure (and, let me be honest, me!) got sucked into the idea of a huge, calamitous, but ultimately ficticious, drought.

I don't knock the successors to Band Aid / Live Aid, namely Comic Relief and Sports Relief. I really do think they achieve great works. But whilst the comedians and athletes continue with the good work, whatever happened to the musicians? OK maybe they can release a "Do They Know It's Christmas?" single every few years, but I just end up with the feeling that I've been the victim of a naive hoodwink by here-today-gone-tomorrow celebs, who are trying to keep their dying careers afloat.

A final point: I am a leftist, and sympathetic both to the usual left-wing causes as well as to human suffering. It is with great reluctance that I expose my honest feelings here. But at least be aware that they are my thoughts, and not a copy-and-paste job (as immediately above).

Answer 2

Large Starvation events in Africa are precipitated by a crisis of one kind or another: drought, warfare, etc. Better UN and foreign governmental aid has prevented million-death recurrences, although the risk-events still occur.
Also remember that more than a million civilian deaths are attributed to warfare.
Here is a chronological list of some crisis events since Live Aid. (Reverse chronological order)
This is my subjective opinion, however, and no more accurate than the post below mine...but here is some hard information from REFERENCED news agencies that have a better ability to collect hard facts that your average Answers-junkie.

""Darfur: TBD -With much of Darfur inaccessible to aid workers and researchers, calculating how many deaths there have been in the past three years is impossible.
What researchers have done is to estimate the deaths based on surveys in areas they can reach.
The latest research published in September 2006 in the journal Science puts the numbers of deaths above and beyond those that would normally die in this inhospitable area at "no fewer than 200,000". "

""Droughts in Kenya: In January 1997 the Kenyan Government declared a state of national disaster after severe droughts threatened the livelihoods of two million people. Oxfam joined the Kenya Government to distribute food to about 150,000 people.

Starving Africa: The United Nations said in 1996 that about 22 million people in sub-Sahara Africa were facing starvation.

War ration: The civil war in Sudan led to 2.5 million Sudanese needing emergency food in February 1994. In the spring, almost seven million people were threatened by food shortages in Ethiopia. Despite a large relief effort and generous donations, between 5,000 and 10,000 people died.

Starvation in Somalia: World attention focused on Somalia in 1992 when more than two million people faced possible starvation. About 25,000 American troops working for the United Nations helped deliver food.

Ethiopia plight: In 1988, widespread famine caused by drought put six million of Ethiopia's 46 million population at risk of starvation.

The great famine: The largest famine to hit Ethiopia killed almost one million people between 1984 and 1985. Pop singer Bob Geldof brought about the recording of the Band Aid single leading to a concert which raised more than $100m to hlep alleviate the crisis.""

Answer 3

more,more, more. Starvation will never end as it isnt a curable illness. If you gave africa trillions it would last for about a decade before they run out and are starving again. Our priorities should be spending on medical research cure all terminal illnesses then deal with other issues

Answer 4

The only thing live aid achieved was to highlight an already know problem and make Bob Geldof the most irritating person on earth

Answer 5

More starving as a result of so many internal wars and droughts, and general poverty of course.

Answer 6

Yes one just got stood on by an elephant

Answer 7

probably more cos there is no birth control.

Answer 8

more , definitly