The World Food Program (WFP) has said that $327 million is urgently needed to tackle the severe drought blighting the horn of Africa where millions of people face acute famine.
The funding requirement is to respond to the immediate needs of about 4.5 million people over the next six months and help communities become more resilient to extreme climate shocks, the WFP said in a statement on Tuesday.
The situation requires immediate humanitarian action and consistent support to build the resilience of communities for the future,” Michael Dunford, regional director in the WFP Regional Bureau for Eastern Africa was quoted as saying
WFP warned that the Horn of Africa is experiencing the driest conditions recorded since 1981, with severe drought leaving an estimated 13 million people across Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia facing severe hunger in the first quarter of this year.
It said three consecutive failed rainy seasons have decimated crops and caused abnormally high livestock deaths.
According to WFP, shortages of water and pasture are forcing families from their homes and leading to increased conflicts between communities.
“Harvests are ruined, livestock are dying, and hunger is growing as recurrent droughts affect the Horn of Africa,” Dunford said.
WFP further said forecasts of below-average rainfall are threatening to worsen and compound dire conditions in the coming months.
It said the drought has impacted pastoral and farmer populations across southern and southeastern Ethiopia, southeastern and northern Kenya and south-central Somalia.
According to WFP, the impacts are compounded by increases in staple food prices, inflation, and low demand for agricultural labor.
MG/as/APA