Guest columnist Sylvia Agaba: Tragedy in Sub-Saharan Africa needs America's help, too

Even as confidence is shaken with Russia's relentless attacks on Ukrainian cities, the United States of America is demonstrating its solidarity with the Ukrainian people financially and morally.

Thank you, America. I have always known America and Americans as generous. Back home in Africa, you are superheroes. Africans have so much confidence in you and your concern for the world. We believe that once America grows a passion, you can as well count it as done.

Like Ukraine, the countries of Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Niger and Mali in the African Sahel have refused to bow to rebels' demands, where continuous coups d'état, militias and terrorism activities have left 2.6 million internally displaced and 930,000 refugees and asylum-seekers.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change has worsened the situation, leaving 11 million people in this region starving. Among children, 1.6 million children are severely malnourished, 1 million of them under 5 years old and facing starvation. These people are running out of hope, and humanitarian agencies are running out of funding. Mothers are having to bear the pain of watching their children starve to death if the world doesn't rise to support them.

I was born and raised in Uganda, one of the countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Although my country has enjoyed relative peace for the last 35 years, this peace has not taken away pain and suffering. Millions of Ugandans continue to live below the poverty line, lacking the basic needs of life.

Through my interactions as a community development worker in the Kampala slums, I have discovered that poor hygiene practices, poor nutrition, poor health and poor livelihoods are not a result of ignorance, as many may suppose, but a lack of resources and means to do better. Imagine, then, what the situation looks like for those living in war-torn Sahel.

The media has not been very helpful in presenting the Sahel crisis. There is limited or no media reporting and coverage on the millions of civilians trapped by this conflict. Sadly, this has been the trend from majority of Africa migration issues.

News anchors and political leaders have constantly presented refugees and asylum-seekers from Africa with a negative post-migration description. Painting a picture of grasping job seekers and suppressing the pre-immigration tales of human rights abuses gives a skewed view of refugees. Statements such as "influx," "crisis," "flooding," "evasion," and "illegal immigrants" are used to describe this category of people. The negative publicity has affected the quality, level of attention, and assistance received by refugees from low-income countries. The refugee quota has drastically decreased over the years in America, and refugees are being housed and held hostage in detention centers, which is becoming a regular practice in Europe. For example, only 37% out of 379,000 applicants were granted asylum in Europe between January and September last year.

I asked my American host in Western Springs, Illinois, why there seems to be indifference in the treatment received by African refugees and asylum-seekers in the United States of America. She attributes this to donor fatigue, explaining that the wars on the African continent are never-ending.

As much as this is correct, America must not forget that just as the Ukrainians did not ask for the invasion, civilians in the Sahel did not invite this aggression. They find themselves victims of circumstances and, like the Ukrainians, desire safety, security and the response to basic needs.

None of us chooses which parents we should have at birth, their race, skin color or the region to be born. Recognizing that all human beings are equal in rights and dignity, let our actions demonstrate our impartial solidarity with those suffering from war and injustice worldwide.

I am reminded of Jesus, who even as Lord didn't choose his parents and birthplace when he took on flesh. His parents were forced to flee to Egypt saving him from a genocide instituted by King Herod, who the Bible says had ordered the killing of all the boys in and around Bethlehem 2 years old and younger. Egypt welcomed Mary and Joseph with their son Jesus regardless of their status.

We should not ignore the outcry of the thousands of lives dying from hunger in the Sahel region. Let us respond by offering hope as we share tragic stories of starvation and support initiatives: to reverse bias in the media against refugees, welcome refugees seeking asylum and send emergency relief targeted for nutrition.

• Sylvia Agaba is a graduate student in the Humanitarian and Disaster Leadership Program at Wheaton College.