The United Nations secretary general’s special envoy for the humanitarian crisis in the Horn of Africa, former Finnish president Martti Ahtisaari, is in the Eritrean capital to assess the situation in the country, UN sources said on Thursday.
”The purpose of his visit is for him to look at the current situation in the country and see the progress made by humanitarian and recovery programmes since his last visit to Eritrea in November 2003,” said Musa Bungudu, deputy UN humanitarian coordinator for Eritrea, adding that Ahtisaari arrived in Asmara late on Wednesday.
Ahtisaari will have talks with Eritrean President Issaias Afeworki, the country’s national development minister, officials of the Eritrean relief and refugee commission and representatives from UN and donor agencies, Bungudu said.
”He will be in Eritrea until Friday afternoon, then go to Ethiopia where he will stay until next Tuesday,” he added.
Eritrea has been suffering from the effects of several years of drought, and the humanitarian situation there has been aggravated by the consequences of a two-year border war with neighbouring Ethiopia that lasted from 1998 and 2000.
UN agencies estimate that 1,7-million Eritreans or half of the country’s population will be dependent on humanitarian aid this year. — Sapa-AFP