Somalia’s Famine Worsens: Its Peak May Lead to 750,000 Dead This Year

Not Yet at Its Peak, Somalia’s Famine Worsens

September 11, 2011

Foreign Policy Blogs - The natural disaster at the root of the famine striking Somalia, which has been worsened by interference by al Shabab militants and a failure to deliver aid, will only see a break when the October 2012 harvest yields its crops. In the meantime, the United Nations has declared a sixth area of southern Somalia as experiencing famine conditions.

Despite this dire news, the crisis in Somalia has not plateaued; its peak may lead to more famine zones and an estimated 750,000 dead this year.

“…Mark Bowden, the United Nations humanitarian coordinator for Somalia. “Southern Somalia is the epicenter of the famine area in the Horn of Africa. It’s the source of most of the refugees, and we need to refocus our efforts.”

Relief efforts continue but are enervated by the heinous treatment of Somalis by al Shabab, the packed conditions and spread of diseases in sprawling refugee camps and in the combination of an underfunded humanitarian response coupled with a sometimes ineffective delivery of aid.

Despite the problems with relief aid, it is often the only lifeline that people in the Horn of Africa have during this crisis. If you are interested in learning more about some of the relief efforts or would like to donate, the GFS blog provided suggestions in earlier posts.

Horn of Africa Conferences Discuss Aid and Prevention

August 30, 2011

Foreign Policy Blogs - International organizations with interests in the Horn of Africa crisis are stepping up their contributions to both alleviating the current crisis and preventing similar crises in the future. The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) pledged $350 million after an emergency donor conference held in Istanbul, Turkey two weeks ago.

The African Union Commission organized a first-of-its-kind donor conference to address aid to the Horn of Africa. Raising pledges of $356 million from the African Development Bank ($300 million) and private donors, the conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia showed the commitment of African countries to stem the humanitarian disaster plaguing the Horn of Africa.

Hand-in-hand with this commitment to alleviate the existing humanitarian crisis, the Horn of Africa situation reminds African countries that similar crises can occur again unless food security becomes a priority in each country and region of Africa.

“‘I believe that African countries need to do more to ensure that agriculture is put at the top of the national agendas,’ said Kanayo Nwanze, president of the International Fund for Agricultural Development, a UN agency. ‘Africa’s development must be made in Africa, by Africans, for Africans. Every food crop must be fully rooted in its own soil to flourish. Change cannot be imposed from outside, it must be cultivated from within.’”

Also last week, the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) held its second conference to examine the root causes of the widespread humanitarian problems brought on by the drought. FAO president Jacques Diouf drew attention to the impact that the lack of funding for long-term development in regions like the Horn of Africa has on efforts to prevent the kinds of humanitarian crises currently faced.

“He said while countries in the region had prepared comprehensive investment plans for agriculture, funding was missing. ‘Unless these plans are carried out, famine will return to shame the international community,’ said Diouf. ‘With the financial resources, technology and expertise at our disposal, it is inadmissible for 12 million people to be at risk of starvation today. We have the opportunity to help these people out of crisis by building more livelihoods more resilient to climate shocks.’”

While the recent pledges are encouraging, these pledges do not guarantee immediate release of these funds for aid projects. The international community has a long way to go to make its commitments stand and to create the conditions that will ensure that such a crisis does not happen again.