News / Africa
Ten million affected by worst drought in decades, Somalia
20 Jul 2011 at 16:20hrs | Views
UN has declared a state of famine in some parts of
southern Somalia where the worst drought in over half a century is
already being blamed for thousands of deaths.
The announcement on Wednesday signals the need for more aid to the worst affected regions of Southern Bakool and Lower Shabelle.
The disaster threatens even greater pressure on the already overcrowded camp in Dadaab, Kenya where aid agencies admit they are struggling to cope.
Starvation
More than 800,000 people have fled the drought-stricken country to escape starvation and violence of a lawless militia in what aid agencies are calling 'the worst food crisis of the 21st century'.
The Dadaab camp was built for 90,000 - but is now home to 380,000 people with malnutrition .
The UN declared that aid agencies were now fighting a famine in the Lower Shabelle and Bakool regions of southern Somalia.
Under strict rules, a humanitarian emergency can only be termed a famine when more than two in every 10,000 people die every day and acute malnutrition amongst children is higher than 35 per cent.
Nearly 3.7 million people, more than half the population of Somalia, now required humanitarian assistance with 554,000 children malnourished in the south - equal to one in every three children.
Mark Bowden, UN humanitarian coordinator for Somalia, later warned the situation could soon spread to all eight regions in the south.
"If we don't act now, famine will spread to all eight regions of southern Somalia within two months, due to poor harvests and infectious disease outbreaks," said Bowden.
Life or death
"Every day of delay in assistance is literally a matter of life or death for children and their families in the famine affected areas."
He said the UN is appealing for $300 million in aid (£186 million) over the next two months for Somalia alone.
Violence caused by the Al Shabaab militia - who are linked to Al Qaeda - has also made it extremely difficult for agencies to operate in the area. The group who also control parts of the capital Mogadishu and central Somalia lifted a ban on food aid this month, but the UN has warned that unstable conditions in the country have contributed to the struggle of getting aid into the region.
The UN refugee agency, the UNHCR, said yesterday it was seeking further security guarantees from the armed rebels in order to deliver greater amounts of assistance and prevent more hungry people from becoming refugees.
The announcement on Wednesday signals the need for more aid to the worst affected regions of Southern Bakool and Lower Shabelle.
The disaster threatens even greater pressure on the already overcrowded camp in Dadaab, Kenya where aid agencies admit they are struggling to cope.
Starvation
More than 800,000 people have fled the drought-stricken country to escape starvation and violence of a lawless militia in what aid agencies are calling 'the worst food crisis of the 21st century'.
The Dadaab camp was built for 90,000 - but is now home to 380,000 people with malnutrition .
The UN declared that aid agencies were now fighting a famine in the Lower Shabelle and Bakool regions of southern Somalia.
Under strict rules, a humanitarian emergency can only be termed a famine when more than two in every 10,000 people die every day and acute malnutrition amongst children is higher than 35 per cent.
Nearly 3.7 million people, more than half the population of Somalia, now required humanitarian assistance with 554,000 children malnourished in the south - equal to one in every three children.
Mark Bowden, UN humanitarian coordinator for Somalia, later warned the situation could soon spread to all eight regions in the south.
"If we don't act now, famine will spread to all eight regions of southern Somalia within two months, due to poor harvests and infectious disease outbreaks," said Bowden.
Life or death
"Every day of delay in assistance is literally a matter of life or death for children and their families in the famine affected areas."
He said the UN is appealing for $300 million in aid (£186 million) over the next two months for Somalia alone.
Violence caused by the Al Shabaab militia - who are linked to Al Qaeda - has also made it extremely difficult for agencies to operate in the area. The group who also control parts of the capital Mogadishu and central Somalia lifted a ban on food aid this month, but the UN has warned that unstable conditions in the country have contributed to the struggle of getting aid into the region.
The UN refugee agency, the UNHCR, said yesterday it was seeking further security guarantees from the armed rebels in order to deliver greater amounts of assistance and prevent more hungry people from becoming refugees.
Source - Aljazeera
