Highlights:

• Ethiopia has received about 44 percent of the amount for which it appealed.
• In large parts of southern Oromiya Regional State, the most recent rainy seasons, October-November and February-May, both failed as they have in the Somali Regional State.
• There are predictions that this year’s rains in October may also fail.
• According to OCHA the operation to supply water cost at least 11 million dollars between January and March alone.

The humanitarian emergency in Ethiopia ‘remains serious’. Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned on July 22/2011. The Weekly Press release of the Ministry said Ethiopia has so far received only 44% of the mount for aid it appealed on July 11.

It is to be recalled that Ethiopian government issued an urgent appeal for $398.4 million for Humanitarian works from July-Dec. 2011 ; i.e., food assistance, health and nutrition interventions, for WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene works), for agriculture and livestock assistance, and to keep children in school. Of which $292.4 million is needed to purchase 379,785 metric tons (MT) to feed 4,567,256 people up to December 2011. [Read the appeal press statement – here, the humanitarian requirements document – here]

On the other hand, the situation in southern parts of Oromia and Somali regions could get worse if October rains fail as predicted, cautioned the latest press release of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Ministry also stated that ‘the overflow of [Somalian] refugees to parts of Ethiopia and Kenya which are already facing drought and are themselves in need of emergency food aid creates a logistical nightmare for the aid agencies and for the effort so the two governments to provide aid.’ It noted further that ‘the Kenyan authorities recently called on the UN agencies to consider, the international community should now start to think in terms of setting up aid operations within Somalia…..Serious consideration should be given to this.’

Read below Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs weekly press release, A Week in the Horn – July 22/2011

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The situation around the region

Somalia may be the worst affected part of the Horn of Africa but it is not the only area suffering. Overall, eastern Africa is experiencing the most severe drought in several decades, with an estimated 11 million people affected. North and north east Kenya, south and eastern Ethiopia and Djibouti as well as parts of Somaliland have all been affected in addition to the worst hit area, Somalia, which has also been suffering from widespread conflict. Eritrea is also believed to be suffering severely though its government has released no figures nor given any indication that its people are facing problems. Aid agencies, however, estimate it has been as seriously affected as other parts of the region. The United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organization has called an emergency meeting in Rome next Monday to discuss mobilizing aid for the region.     

Large areas of south and south east Ethiopia have been hit by the severe drought. The government has appealed for nearly 400 million dollars for emergency food assistance for those in need. According to the Ministry of Agriculture some 4.5 million people are in need of emergency humanitarian assistance; this is 40 percent higher than estimated at the time of the original appeal in April when it became clear the rains were failing again. The Disaster Pre-emergency and Response Unit and the Ministry of Agriculture are jointly assisting the worse hit areas, distributing food and special rations for malnourished children. According to Ato Mitiku Kassa, the Minister of Agriculture, a total of 380,000 metric tons will be needed to assist all those affected, including an estimated 700,000 children under five, as well as pregnant and lactating women. So far, Ethiopia has received about 44 percent of the amount for which it appealed.

The situation remains serious. In large parts of southern Oromiya Regional State, the most recent rainy seasons, October-November and February-May, both failed as they have in the Somali Regional State. There are predictions that this year’s rains in October may also fail. A third of the people in the Borana zone are currently getting some food assistance, some under the government’s Productive Safety Net Program, but the resources of the local Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Agency Office are limited, and the numbers in need are rising fast. In the Somali Regional State, the government has been trucking in water to worst hit areas. This, however, is an extremely expensive exercise. According to OCHA the operation to supply water cost at least 11 million dollars between January and March alone.

The UN Under-Secretary for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Baroness Amos, on a visit to the Somali Regional State earlier this month, commended federal and regional governments’ efforts to mitigate the effects of the drought. She also referred to the fact that needs were not limited to Ethiopians. There has been a major influx of refugees from Somalia into Ethiopia in recent months. According to the UN at least 55,000 new Somali refugees have arrived since January at Dolo, on the border with Somalia, where the UNHCR has set up a new camp to help them. Dolo has two long term camps and the third has been opened to assist recent arrivals. It is already crowded. Another is about to be opened to relieve the pressure.  

In Ethiopia alone the number of Somali refugees has reached more than 160 thousand and the number continues to rise. According to Ministry of Interior statistics, Kenya is now hosting a total of 514,000 refugees from Somalia. International NGOs involved in relief operations are warning that more refugees will be crossing the borders of Somalia to neighboring Kenya and Ethiopia. In light of the equally large number of Ethiopians and Kenyans needing emergency food aid, the overflow of refugees will certainly complicate aid operations. The Kenyan authorities recently called on the UN agencies to consider, the international community should now start to think in terms of setting up aid operations within Somalia.

Serious consideration should be given to this. The overflow of refugees to parts of Ethiopia and Kenya which are already facing drought and are themselves in need of emergency food aid creates a logistical nightmare for the aid agencies and for the effort so the two governments to provide aid. UN relief agencies are already expressing concern that their capabilities are overstretched. The long distance many have to travel to reach the camps is taking its toll. The number of people who die on their way to the camps has reached alarming levels. These are deaths that could be avoided by setting up camps closer to the areas from which the refuges are coming. 

More importantly, perhaps, there is now relative peace and stability in many areas of Somalia. This means there is a much improved opportunity for international relief agencies to carry out operations in large areas of the country, irrespective of the attitudes of Al-Shabaab. Equally, with Al-Shabaab in retreat in many areas, the relocation of Nairobi-based organizations to Somalia has become quite possible. IGAD has been calling on the UN and other agencies for some time to relocate to parts of Somalia that have seen an improvement in security. This would have several advantages. The relief this would bring to the drought sufferers is obvious. It would also go a long way to take off some of the pressure on neighboring countries. Another advantage is that it would send a message that it is after all possible for Somalia to have a semblance of stable administration if the international community would harmonize its efforts to support Somalis and a Somali government. The relocation of these agencies would go a long way to boost the morale of those who are fighting extremism in Somalia as well as deny extremists the space that has enabled them to recruit thousands of desperate youths. The relocation of UN and other agencies from Nairobi to Somalia is long overdue.

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