Foreign
By Kennedy Nnamani
SARAH Charles, Assistant Administrator, United States Administration for International Development, USAID, has predicted that following the drought in the Horn of Africa, more than 20 million people across the Horn will need emergency food assistance to meet their most basic needs in 2022.
Speaking in a special online briefing on April 26, 2022, Charles lamented that the predicted drought is more than a 70% increase from the last severe drought experienced in the region in 2016 and 2017.
“Drought is not unusual in East Africa, but a drought this severe is. The frequency and severity of droughts in the region and the scale of humanitarian needs are increasing, exposing the devastating trend of climate change that disproportionately affects the world’s poorest communities,” she said.
Meanwhile more than 1.5 million livestock have already been reported dead and crop production in the affected region has drastically reduced.
The assistant administrator also disclosed that areas like Kenya and southeastern Ethiopia, have begun to experience conflict over scarce resources.
“An alarming number of children are acutely malnourished, and we’re also seeing devastating reports from Somalia of young girls being forced to marry in exchange for food and water,” she said.
She also identified the need for support from governments, foundations and private sectors, noting that the need surpasses the efforts of traditional humanitarian donors.
While speaking on how the U.S. and the USAID are responding to the challenge, Charles mentioned that the “U.S. is announcing more than $200 million in additional humanitarian assistance from USAID and the State Department to respond to the drought in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia” bringing the total support for the region to “more than $360 million in this fiscal year alone.”
“Across the region, we’re providing critical emergency food and nutrition assistance, safe drinking water, sanitation, hygiene supplies, and medical care,” she added.
She also stated that several of USAID’s development programmes like the Feed the Future Resilience in Pastoral Areas activity in Ethiopia are working to mitigate the impacts of the drought.
In the same vein, Elizabeth Campbell, Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration, stated that refugees, conflict victims, IDPs and asylum seekers are potential victims of this menace.
“They’re especially vulnerable; they can be forced to move because of lack of access to water and basic necessities”.
She also disclosed that the Department of State is providing robust funding to these populations.
“We consider it a central priority and we’re going to continue to do our part to make sure that they’re not left out of the humanitarian aid that we are providing,” she added.
KN
Tags: Elizabeth Campbell Kennedy Nnamani SARAH Charles USAID
