Drought Exacerbates Crisis in Somalia
Somalia is undergoing its worst drought in a decade, with cattle dying from lack of water and growing numbers of children being propelled into near-famine conditions. The UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia said yesterday that some 3.2 million Somalis—some 45 per cent of the population—and 24 per cent of children under five, in some parts, are suffering from malnutrition.
An estimated 19 million people in the Horn of Africa are in urgent need of food aid. Drought and high local food prices have left 12 million people in Ethiopia and another 3.5 million in Kenya short of food supplies.