Somalia
The U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Somalia warned on Tuesday the country was undergoing a "catastrophic emergency" due to the most severe drought in the nation's history.
Speaking during a joint meeting of the League of Arab States and the United Nations, Adam Abdelmoula said Somalia was suffering from its fifth consecutive failed rainy season with a sixth failed season predicted for next year.
He outlined the situation which has left nearly half of the Somalian population affected by drought.
"As we gather here today, approximately 7.8 million Somalis, and that is nearly half of its population, have been affected by the drought and nearly 1.3 million people have been displaced since January 2021," he said.
He added 6.7 million people were expected to face high levels of "acute food insecurity".
A rare famine declaration could be made soon, the first significant one anywhere in the world since Somalia’s famine a decade ago.
As the world is gripped by food insecurity, Somalia, a country of 15 million people shaking off its past as a failed state, can be considered the end of the line.
The nation of proud pastoralists that have survived generations of drought now stumbles amid several global crises descending at once.
01:30
UN report says around 733 million people globally faced hunger in 2023
02:27
Drought wreaks havoc on Morocco's cereal harvest
Go to video
Drought threatens millions of children as school dropouts rise along with hunger in southern Africa
01:04
Zimbabwe faces increased malnutrition amid severe drought
Go to video
Experts warn: 755,000 facing famine in war-torn Sudan
Go to video
UN experts accuse Sudan’s warring parties of weaponizing starvation