Somali President Mohammed Abdullahi Farmajo has declared the ongoing drought in his country as a "national disaster" in order to "deal with the humanitarian emergency in all areas affected by the current drought.," a statement from the presidency issued on Tuesday said according to news outlet Africa News.
The president had met stakeholders at a high-level roundtable on the drought response in the capital, Mogadishu. He further impressed on small businesses and nationals in the diaspora to play a part in alleviating the crisis.
Farmajo also appealed to the international community to urgently respond to the situation "in order to help families and individuals to recover from the effects of the drought disaster to avoid a humanitarian tragedy." An estimated five million Somalis do not have enough to eat according to the United Nations. The drought has led to poor harvests and livestock deaths and fears of a period of severe hunger are rippling through the region, including in neighboring Kenya and Ethiopia.
Kenya earlier this month declared the severe drought a national disaster, calling for aid to counter the biting hunger that is posing a major risk to people, livestock and wildlife.
Aid agencies say Somalia is at risk of a repeat of the famine that killed nearly 260,000 people in 2011 if aid is not stepped up over the next two months. Initial forecasts are predicting a third consecutive poor rainy season in April.
In 2011 the humanitarian response was too slow and tens of thousands of people died before the famine was officially declared in July. This time preparations started early, with two drought warnings and a pre-famine alert issued over the past 12 months, but the U.N. says more funds are needed.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) began a series of food distributions this month, starting in locations across northern Somalia that will continue to the South-Central, including in areas affected by conflict.
ICRC says it is distributing food, cash and other essential items to 240,000 people affected by the drought in Somalia. 

Source: QNA