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Download Report (PDF | 269.03 KB) SITUATION OVERVIEW
The Horn of Africa continues to face a severe humanitarian crisis, with millions of people in need of assistance due to a combination of drought, flooding, conflict, and inability to provide for basic needs. The region has been hit by a series of droughts in recent years, leading to crop failure and a lack of water and food. The region has also been hit by heavy rains in recent months leading to flooding which has caused widespread destruction and displacement exacerbating humanitarian needs. The floods have also led to further health risks, including concerns regarding water borne diseases.
In recent months, according to UNHCR’s drought dashboard of displacement affected populations, by the end of May 2023, over 2 million had been internally displaced in Somalia and Ethiopia, while over 260,000 new refugee and asylum-seekers have crossed into drought affected areas of Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia since January 2022.
In Ethiopia, out-of-season flooding caused widespread destruction and displacement exacerbating humanitarian needs across Somali, Oromia, and Southern Nations Nationalities & Peoples’ (SNNP) regions. This has further worsened vulnerability among people already impacted by prolonged drought in areas also affected by the cholera outbreak. The rains compound ongoing efforts to respond and control the outbreak. With the Government and partner support, Oral Cholera Vaccination (OCV) campaigns took place in mid-May across targeted areas of Oromia, SNNP and Somali region. As of 15 May, over 7,400 cholera cases (including 116 deaths) had been reported. Despite Health, Nutrition, and WASH partners’ interventions in the cholera response with training of health workers, malnutrition treatment, water, hygiene and sanitation services as well as support to surveillance and rapid response teams, a further scale up in resources is required to fill the gap in partner presence, logistics, essential medical supplies, and shortage of oral vaccines. (OCHA Situation Report, May 2023.
The Somali region is the most affected by the drought, with more than 35,000 households displaced. More than 23,000 livestock have died, and nearly 100,000 hectares of farmland have been destroyed during the recent floods. A coordinated allocation of $40 million by the Ethiopia Humanitarian Fund and the Central Emergency Response Fund is being prepared to address the immediate needs of drought and flood-impacted people.
In Kenya, the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs) region continued to face immense humanitarian needs following five consecutive below-average rainy seasons. Over 6.4 million people, including 5.4 million severely food insecure people, require assistance in 2023 (OCHA Situation Report, May 2023). Additionally, the long rains in most arid counties led to flash floods which had negative impacts on the local livelihoods and critical facilities like roads. Despite the impact of the March- April-May (MAM) rainfall season 17 counties continued to experience drought conditions.
In Somalia, the effects of climate change and insecurity made the operational environment challenging.
With the Shabelle river busting its banks, widespread flooding was reported in Beletweyne and surrounding areas. The downpours in May brought respite from the extreme drought conditions, yet sustained rainfall is needed to successfully reverse the impact of the historic drought. In May, 345,000 new internal displacements were recorded, primarily due to flooding (266,000), conflict (41,000) and drought (35,000) bringing the overall number of internal displacements in 2023 to over 1.25 million (see UNHCR-led Protection and Return Monitoring Network (PRMN). The top humanitarian needs of the displaced families were shelter (76%), followed by food (12%) and livelihood (10%). The top three regions that received the greatest number of new displacements in May were Hiran, followed by Lower Shabelle and Gedo.
