Somalia drought: UN estimates 43,000 deaths last year as 500,000 children likely to be malnourished
Consecutive failed rainy seasons have left the country facing a hunger crisis that could spill over into famine – risking a repeat of 2011 which saw quarter of a million deaths.
By Charlie Bell, news reporter
Monday 20 March 2023 14:40, UK
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Somalia is on the brink of famine, as millions face starvation after the worst drought to hit the region in 40 years
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An estimated 43,000 people died during the longest drought on record in Somalia last year, with half of the victims likely to have been children, according to a new report.
The figure, released by the World Health Organisation and the United Nations children’s agency, is the first official death toll announced in a drought which has affected much of the country.
Their report forecasts at least 18,000 more deaths in the first six months of this year. Last month a “food security” assessment said nearly half a million children in Somalia are likely to be severely malnourished over the course of 2023.
“The current crisis is far from over,” said the report, which was carried out by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
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Somalia is facing a sixth consecutive failed rainy season, also hitting neighbouring Ethiopia and Kenya, while rising global food prices only further complicate the hunger crisis.
Humanitarian officials say the world is looking elsewhere.
“Many of the traditional donors have washed their hands and focused on Ukraine,” the UN’s resident coordinator in Somalia, Adam Abdelmoula, said in January.
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Despite the death toll, the UN will not make a formal famine declaration. This applies when data shows more than a fifth of households have extreme food gaps, 30% of children are acutely malnourished and more than two people out of 10,000 are dying every day.
The UN and its partners describe the situation as “extremely critical” though, with more than six million people hungry in the country alone.
A mother and children displaced by drought sit outside their makeshift shelter, 2022. Pic: AP
Image:
A mother and children displaced by drought sit outside their makeshift shelter, 2022. Pic: AP
A quarter of a million people died in Somalia during the 2011 famine – now some humanitarian and climate officials are warning that trends for this year are even worse than 12 years ago.
Further compounding the current crisis is Somalia’s ongoing battle with thousands of al Shabab fighters – al Qaida’s East Africa affiliate.
Some 3.8 million people – a record high – have been displaced, according to the UN migration agency.
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Africa
Somalia
United Nations
