People in drought-affected regions of central and southern Somalia need urgent help after losing most of their livestock, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Information, Ahmed Abdisalam, said on Wednesday.
”The reports we are getting are that the drought-affected areas are in a grave situation, with shortages of water, inadequate pasture for remaining livestock and the consequent destitution of many families,” Abdisalam said.
He said the worst-affected regions are Hiiraan, Galgadud, Mudug and parts of Bay and Bakol and Gedo, and urged ”our humanitarian partners to redouble their efforts to address the acute suffering of those in need”.
He said the transitional government cannot address the situation alone and appealed to the international community to provide assistance.
Mohamed Awil Janagale, the district commissioner of Abudwaq in Galgadud region, said almost all the area is affected, ”with some pastoralists losing between 60% and 70% of their livestock”.
An aid worker in the region said that the ”Deyr rains [October to December] were a complete failure in the area” and the population is facing an acute food and livelihood crisis.
He added that Dusa Mareb, Adado and Guri Eil in Galgadud region have ”the highest concentration of displaced people [from Mogadishu] in the area”. Dusa Mareb and Guri Eil host 54 000 displaced people and Adado 24 000, according to the United Nations.
A Famine Early Warning Systems Network report issued on January 10 confirmed that the Deyr rains had been below normal in most parts of central Somalia, resulting in limited grazing for animals and reduced water availability.
Reports from the field in the past two weeks have indicated severe water shortages for both humans and animals in the central regions of Hiiraan and Galgadud and pockets of Bay and Bakool, it added.
Justus Liku, the food-security sector coordinator for Care, said the agency is aware of the deteriorating food-security situation in these regions and has already sent 4 500 metric tonnes of assorted commodities to Galgadud and South Mudug.
”We are targeting about 240 000 people in Galgadud and South Mudug with our interventions,” he said. Arrangements are being made to send additional food to Hiiraan, he added.
For its part, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said it is ”putting plans in place to assist agro-pastoral communities” in areas of Bay and Bakool regions. However, Peter Goossens, WFP Somalia country director, said: ”As much as WFP wants to respond quickly, access is always an important determining factor of how fast assistance reaches to those who need it most.”
Abdisalam said the government will do everything it can to facilitate humanitarian access to the affected areas.
According to the aid worker, the most immediate needs are water and food. ”Water trucking and food distribution have to be the immediate priority.” — Irin