According to UN humanitarians, 43 million US dollars have been granted to Somalia to combat the impacts of drought, namely food insecurity.
The Somalia Humanitarian Fund (SHF) contributed $25 million to the campaign, while the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) contributed 18 million dollars to famine prevention measures, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The funds will be used to assist Somalia’s Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) for 2023.
According to OCHA, recent rainfall and improvements in food security helped escape famine. However, the need for humanitarian assistance and protection remains enormous, with 8.25 million people, or over half of the population, remaining in need.
Prolonged and harsh weather conditions continue to heighten demands and protection concerns, particularly for the most vulnerable, said to the agency, which added that over 3.2 million people had been displaced.
“Recovery from this magnitude of drought will take years,” OCHA added.
According to the humanitarians, the SHF and CERF funds aim to boost the response in places where the risk of starvation continues and to reduce additional displacements by focusing on difficult-to-access rural communities in the Bay, Lower, and Middle Shabelle regions. The SHF continues to advocate for localization, awarding 71% of SHF 2023 money to local organisations.
The CERF award, according to OCHA, supplements the SHF budget by lessening the effect of drought and decreasing related protection risks through scaled-up recovery operations in drought hotspot sites.
“This allocation demonstrates our commitment to assisting the people of Somalia,” said George Conway, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ deputy special representative. Conway is also the Somalia’s temporary resident and humanitarian coordinator. “We need to do more, which is why we keep appealing to our donors and partners.”
According to the humanitarian office, the 2023 HRP would require 2.6 billion US dollars to meet the needs of 7.6 million of Somalia’s most vulnerable people. By mid-year, just 30.5 percent had been received. Additional money are desperately required to provide critical help.