3.7 Mln Somalis in Crisis: Famine Declared in Somalia

Bonn, 20 July 2011. The United Nations has declared that famine exists in
two regions of southern Somalia: southern Bakool and Lower Shabelle –
according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
for Somalia.

The declaration came after a High-Level Task Force on the Global Food
Security (HLTF) met at the UN Headquarters in New York on 13 July. The
meeting was called by the Secretary General to review the deteriorating
situation in the Horn of Africa, and to consider options for its overall
global strategy.

Earlier yesterday, while speaking at the Annual Korea Society dinner in
New York, Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon remarked, “More than 11 million
people are affected by the long spell of drought and lack of food – 11
million – in just four countries: Ethiopia, Somalia, Djibouti, and Kenya.
And we are their best and often only hope”. (
http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=5423)

“Droughts do not happen overnight,” says Luc Gnacadja, the Executive
Secretary of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). “The
UNCCD joins the calls on the international community to respond urgently
to this crisis. At the same time, we stress the need for effective long
term solutions to the root causes of famine in drought prone regions, such
as through the implementation of drought management systems and measures
to stop desertification, which means land degradation in drylands.”

Nearly half of the Somali population of close to 3.7 million is facing a
humanitarian crisis and is in urgent need of assistance. The World Food
Programme, WHO, and UNICEF have launched emergency operations.

End