Drought threatens starvation in Horn of Africa, U.N., agencies say

The United Nations and humanitarian agencies warned on Tuesday that millions of people in the Horn of Africa are facing catastrophic famine as the worst drought in more than 40 years threatens to continue to a fifth straight failed rainy season.

They noted in a joint statement that the March-May rainy season is projected to be the driest on record, destroying livelihoods and increasing a humanitarian crisis in Ethiopia, Somalia, and parts of Kenya, including the possibility of famine in Somalia.

There’s a chance that the rainy season in October and December will also fail.

Drought has combined with a global surge in food and fuel prices, which has been pushed up by the conflict in Ukraine, to affect millions of people across Africa.

According to the statement, 16.7 million people in East Africa are currently suffering from acute food insecurity, with that number expected to rise to 20 million by September.

“In East Africa, the fear of famine looms large. The World Meteorological Organization’s representative, Clare Nullis, remarked, “This is after four unsuccessful rainfall seasons.”

“We are particularly concerned that the situation is likely to deteriorate,” she said at a Geneva press conference.

Aid agencies are working to prevent a repeat of a famine that killed hundreds of thousands of people a decade ago.

The United Nations and its agencies said in a joint statement that “rapid scaling up of operations is required today to save lives and avert famine and death.”

Current drought appeals, on the other hand, are severely underfunded.”

Millions of animals have died in the region, and Ethiopia, Somalia, and Kenya have seen a considerable increase in the number of critically malnourished children admitted for treatment this year compared to previous years, according to the report.