THE town centre was alive with the sound of drums when the East African Youth Association took to the streets to raise money for children.

About 10 members of the association were out with shoppers on Saturday, to raise money for Save the Children, which will donate the proceeds to children affected by the drought in East Africa.

Jamila Selemani, the secretary of the association, moved from Somalia in 2003 and still has family there. She said the association wanted to help as soon as it heard about the drought.

She said: “We have been really pleased with the response today.

“People are saying it upsets them when they see it on the news and they want to do something. It is nice that they want to help. We just got a cheque from someone for £200.”

More than 10 million people are at risk in East Africa, due to conflict and the worst drought in 60 years.

The humanitarian crisis in Somalia has been caused by a combination of factors including severe drought, rising food and fuel prices, chronic poverty and conflict.

Jamila, of the town centre, was joined by her sister and other members of the association, from Kenya and Ghana.

Donations can be made directly at www.dec.org.uk or 0370 60 60 900.