Most people unaware of famine in parts of Africa

More than 20 million people in Africa are at risk of starving to death, yet two-thirds of Australians know very little about it.That's what an aid agency-commissioned poll has found, after people were asked about the worsening famine in East Africa.Some of the hardest-hit countries are South Sudan, Kenya, Somalia, Nigeria, Ethiopia and Yemen.Hannah Sinclair reports.

Caritas Australia CEO Paul O'Callaghan visiting a health clinic in Kenya's Kitui province Source: Mohamed Sheikh Nor

It has been described as nothing short of a catastrophe - an unfolding crisis spurred on by drought and civil unrest, with more than 20 million people on the brink of starvation.

The United Nations says the famine in East Africa is the largest humanitarian crisis since World War Two.

The C-E-O of Caritas Australia, Paul O'Callaghan, says the scale of the crisis cannot be ignored.