Eastern Africa: Drought traps African farmers in vicious circle

Millions are victims of the latest drought to hit Africa, reports Reuters Alertnet. As in Niger and southern Africa in 2005, the United Nations is pleading for hundreds of millions of dollars to fight the threat of a major humanitarian catastrophe in eastern Africa. But while some believe higher powers are behind the deadly droughts, agricultural experts and environmentalists say man himself is largely to blame because of years of neglect and mismanagement of land and other resources.