Somalia's total meltdown

The search for a government -- any kind of government -- to bring order to Somalia is growing increasingly desperate as warring Islamist factions, tribal clans and bandit gangs exploit a power vacuum created by last week's Ethiopian troop withdrawal. Just when it seemed the plight of Somali civilians could not get any worse, it did. Aid workers and human rights groups are not mincing words: catastrophe is just around the corner. [...] The World Food Programme said earlier this month that it might have to suspend food distribution after two of its employees were murdered.

Fasting in Lent

Fasting from food and detaching oneself from material goods during Lent help believers open their hearts to God and open their hands to the poor, Pope Benedict XVI said. [...] The papal message for Lent, which begins Feb. 25 for Latin-rite Catholics, was released Feb. 3 at the Vatican. [...] The Vatican invited Josette Sheeran, executive director of the U.N.'s World Food Program, to help present the papal message. "Serving the hungry is a moral call that unites people of all faiths," said Sheeran, whose organization relies heavily on Catholic charities and other faith-based organizations to distribute food aid. "At this time of worldwide economic challenges, let us not forget that the food and financial crises hit the world's most vulnerable the hardest," she said. "Since 2007, 115 million were added to the ranks of the hungry to create a total of nearly 1 billion people without adequate food."

Aid Agencies Warn Millions Face Hunger in Kenya

Millions of Kenyans risk hunger this year, according to the government and the U.N. World Food Program, unless international donors grappling with their own financial crises step in to provide massive aid. The World Food Program sent out teams this week to assess the extent of the crisis after yet another rash of crop failures caused by prolonged drought; the agency says historical data suggests 3.2 million people will need aid. In many of the worst affected areas, this is the third consecutive failed harvest. WFP estimates that $135 million will be needed to tackle the crisis through the expansion of emergency projects. ''This is a very alarming situation,'' WFP spokeswoman Gabrielle Menezes said as she led a group of journalists across a field filled with dry and broken cornstalks. ''People already hit by high food prices are struggling to feed themselves.''

Sean Penn's new PSA to fight world hunger

The United Nations World Food Program unveiled this PSA during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last week. It has a pretty effective visual going for it, plus it has Sean Penn