Photo: Halima Mohamud, a 40-year-old mother living with 8 other family members, said that their life is worsening due to the current drought.
Mogadishu 25 April: CARE is calling for urgent humanitarian support to save thousands of lives in the country. The plea comes as the humanitarian leadership in the country has declared the current dry conditions as a drought situation. Below-average rainfall is expected in the country this season further exacerbating the severe water shortages that are being experienced. According to UNOCHA, at least 3.4 million people are projected to be affected by the drought conditions by the end of 2021 of whom 380 000 are expected to be displaced.
Iman Abdullahi- CARE Somalia/Somaliland Country Director said:
The humanitarian situation in the country is dire as dry conditions have escalated to a drought . Villages have completely run out of water and are now relying on humanitarian agencies to support through water trucking which is not adequate to meet the need. Our teams on the ground have witnessed communities drinking contaminated water putting them at risk of waterborne diseases, families have already taken their children to other relatives so as to spread the load. Some parents have told us that they have already started to go for a whole day without drinking any water as they are choosing to give the little water available to the children.
Women are disproportionally affected by the drought. With many families struggling to put food on the table, many girls will be forced out of school as the families cannot afford to pay school fees, we fear that more girls will be married off early as families look for ways to cope with the current harsh economic conditions. As more water points dry up, women and girls will be forced to walk long distances to collect water putting them at risk of GBV”.
Mariam, a mother of two from Jariban district which is one of the areas worst affected by the drought said:
This Ramadan, the only thing I am praying for is rain, things have become so difficult, all the water basins in our village have dried up and without water trucking support we are receiving we would have to walk 50km to the nearest water point. I have lost some of my livestock due to lack of pasture and I don’t know how I will provide for my family if we do not receive rains soon.”
The drought conditions come as the Somalia Humanitarian Response Plan is only 15% funded, CARE is calling for donors and stakeholders to step up their support in order to prevent a catastrophe in the country. The situation is dire and requires everyone to come together and support the Somali population, CARE is also calling upon the country’s leadership to put all efforts towards resolving the humanitarian situation in the country.
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Spokespeople available in Somalia/Somaliland, contact [email protected] for media interviews
Notes to Editors
- Somalia is currently facing triple shocks of COVID 19, Desert Locust infestation and the effect of the 2019/2020 floods including the Gati cyclone experienced in Bari-Puntland. The country has been very unfortunate to suffer from a combination of crises one after the other. As the country was reeling from the 2019-2020 floods that decimated crops and pasture in the south, it was faced with the COVID-19 pandemic which greatly reduced remittances due to the global lockdowns, most families rely on remittances from relatives working in other countries. As if this was not enough the country suffered from the desert locust infestation which destroyed the few crops and pasture that had survived the floods.
- CARE is carrying out the below activities to support vulnerable and affected populations:
Ø Water trucking in Lower Juba, Somaliland and Puntland
Ø Disbursement of cash assistance in Galmudug, Puntland and Somaliland for the affected families to meet immediate food needs
Ø Supporting school feeding and rehabilitation of temporary learning spaces as well as provision of scholastic materials
Ø Provision of primary health services to the affected communities
Ø Provision of infant and young child feeding services including nutrition screening and treatment of severe acute malnutrition and moderate acute malnutrition
Ø Protection response including support for the GBV survivors with psychosocial support and clinical management of rape. There is also community engagement to raise awareness on the negative cultural gender norms.
- Founded in 1945, CARE is a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty. CARE has more than seven decades of experience helping people prepare for disasters, providing lifesaving assistance when a crisis hits, and helping communities recover after the emergency has passed. CARE places special focus on women and children, who are often disproportionately affected by disasters. To learn more, visit www.care-international.org.