THE Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) is currently running two appeals, and I would urge readers to support one or both if you are able.

The first appeal covers East Africa, where drought and conflict have left 16 million people on the brink of starvation and in urgent need of food, water and medical treatment. Hunger is rife right across East Africa, and if urgent action is not taken, it will only get worse.

People are already dying in South Sudan and Somalia. In Kenya, the government has declared a national emergency and Ethiopia is battling a new wave of drought following the strongest El Nino on record.

Women, children and older people are suffering the most; more than 800,000 children under the age of five are severely malnourished. Without immediate treatment, they are at risk of starving to death.

DEC member charities are already delivering life-saving assistance in these countries, but they need more money to help reduce the scale and severity of the crisis.

Meanwhile in Yemen, which is the focus of the second DEC appeal, more than half of the country’s population - almost 19 million people - are hungry and children are dying from malnutrition.

Seventy per cent of the population are in need of humanitarian assistance, including 10.3 million people who are in acute need. Malnutrition is widespread and water is scarce.

Despite the ongoing conflict in the region, DEC member charities are continuing to reach millions of people with lifesaving aid including food, water and sanitation, cash assistance and food vouchers. But more needs to be done.

You can support these appeals by going to the DEC website at dec.org.uk - your support, however small, can help make a huge difference in the effort to help save lives.

The DEC brings 13 leading UK aid charities together in times of crisis. Appeals are launched to raise money to help those impacted by disaster, making sure that funds reach those that need them most in the world’s poorest countries.

Their priority is to deliver aid and support as quickly and efficiently as possible, and ensure that communities receive the urgent assistance required as well as long term support to rebuild their lives after a disaster.

Since its launch in 1963, the DEC has run 69 appeals and raised more than £1.4 billion - saving millions of lives and rebuilding communities devastated by disasters.