UN agencies, partners seek $116 million to support Somalis escaping violence
Mogadishu, Somalia (PANA) - UN agencies and partners are seeking $116 million to support Somalis escaping violence that erupted last month in the city of Laascaanood, displacing hundreds of thousands.
Close to 100,000 people have fled across the border and found safety in an extremely remote area of Ethiopia’s Somali region, which has been hard hit by the ongoing historic drought in the Horn of Africa, a UN statement said.
Most of the refugees are women, children, older persons and people with specific needs, who arrive empty-handed, scared and hungry. A high number of unaccompanied and separated children are among their ranks, heightening protection concerns.
“The Ethiopian Government and local communities have generously welcomed the refugees, extending any help they can, but with the continuing arrivals, resources are already severely overstretched,” said Clementine Nkweta-Salami, Regional Director for the UN refugee agency, UNHCR.
The statement said the funds will be used to purchase urgently needed shelter and relief items, such as blankets, mats, and mosquito nets.
Families will also receive monthly food distributions and emergency food assistance will be provided to meet the most immediate needs.
The partners will prioritise child protection services, prevention and response to gender-based violence, documentation, and education, given the high numbers of women and children among the refugees.
They will set up child-friendly spaces for displaced boys and girls. Family tracing and reunification services, as well as alternative care arrangements for separated children, also will be undertaken.
The statement said refugee settlements will be established at two sites, thanks to land provided by the Ethiopian authorities, and plans are underway to expand the existing government health clinics, supply medicines and medical care, and initiate nutritional support programmes.
Michael Dunford, Regional Director for the World Food Programme (WFP) underscored the critical need for funding to save lives.
“This influx of refugees is happening at the worst time possible, in an extremely remote area of Ethiopia’s Somali region which is also one of the most severely hit by the worst drought in 60 years,” he said.
Humanitarian funding for Ethiopia remains “critically low”, the partners said, and response to the drought is under severe pressure due to the rapidly escalating needs.
Ethiopia was already hosting 884,000 refugees and asylum-seekers - mainly from South Sudan, Somalia, and Eritrea – before the most recent arrivals.
They warned that as refugees continue to flee, needs will increasingly outstrip the resources available, and urged the international community to swiftly mobilize support.
-0- PANA MA 23March2023
