The drought in Somalia is likely to be the worst in 40 years and thousands are at risk of starvation. Despite this, billions in aid money are missing to be able to meet the problems with the drought.
Somalia's population has long been plagued by conflict, water shortages and famines. Half the country's population, 7,7 million people, are currently suffering from chronic hunger. Due to conflicts and food shortages, millions of people have become internally displaced persons.
Somalia's vital rainy seasons have been missed over the past year. If April is as dry as the previous year, the water shortage risks becoming the worst country has seen in 40 years, according to Reuters.
Despite rising needs, foreign aid to Somalia reduced. The UN has only succeeded in securing three percent of the billion investment needed in the country. Adam Abdelmoula, the UN's humanitarian coordinator in Somalia, believes that the famine has lost its news value and is therefore being prioritized away by donors. He believes that the crisis is overshadowed by other humanitarian disasters such as Yemen, Afghanistan and now by the war in Ukraine.
El-Khidir Dalum Mahmoud on the World Food program predicts fatal consequences if nothing is done. He expresses that the disaster in Somalia must be prioritized by the outside world.
- These people have lost everything. Human suffering is human suffering, whether in Europe, Africa, Asia or elsewhere. We have a disaster ahead of us, he says.
