More than 20, 000 Kiambeere residents in Embu have urged the government to supply food relief due to the ongoing drought.
The residents are now surviving on wild fruits and seeds which they also feed their livestock.
Harriet Kagendo, a resident, said children were not concentrating in school due to hunger.
"Women, children and the elderly are trooping to water points in the region to quench their thirst," she said.
The situation has increased their despair as they rely on well-wishers for food and water.
The drought endangers the lives of residents and their livestock.
It is reported that most of the affected persons line up on the roads begging for food from passers-by.
"We have been living in this condition for the last two weeks. We have no one to help us or support us with food and water," another resident said.
Families in the region spend their days along the roads hoping to see a lorry delivering relief food.
"As you drive along the Kiritiri-Mutuobare and Gacabari-Kiritiri roads, you will notice a lot of malnutrished women trying to get wild fruits and seeds. This is all they can afford to eat," said Johnson Gitonga, a motorist.
Area MCA Lenny Mwaniki said some residents were moving out of their villages in search of food.
"The rains failed and our people did not harvest anything they had planted, most families have started moving to other places in search of food to save themselves from succumbing to hunger," said Mwaniki.
The county legislator urged the county and the national governments to consider supplying residents with relief food.
"We are expecting rains in December and before then our people will have suffered, we are urging both governments through the relevant authorities to intervene," he said.
He called on the residents to plant drought-resistant crops once the rains fall.
(Edited by N. Mbugua)
