As of the beginning of this year, the countries of the Horn of Africa have suffered from four consecutive rainy seasons of insufficient rainfall. Severe drought has led to food crises in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs recently sent representatives to three countries in East Africa to conduct further research on the drought situation in order to find new solutions.
The countries of the Horn of Africa may face insufficient rainfall in the fifth rainy season
Martin Griffiths, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Emergency Relief Coordinator: Later this year, we may face a lack of rainfall for the fifth rainy season. We all know that water is the source of life, and after visiting these villages, we and the Kenyan government, as well as many humanitarian agencies, realized that we needed to give them hope for the future, that they were struggling to survive, that families were being torn apart because families had to be driven to livestock and separated to find water or pastures.
After the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, international oil and food prices rose sharply, which also made it worse for African families who suffered from drought and could not afford to buy food.
Martin Griffiths, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Emergency Relief Coordinator: We know that 30% of the world's grain comes from Russia and Ukraine, and we need to do everything we can to keep the grain export trade flowing.
The United Nations calls on the international community to pay attention to the drought in the Horn of Africa
The United Nations and several civil society organizations have called for the need to create a good social welfare system to help every village in the event of drought to develop the capacity to repair itself, and local governments need to prepare for disasters in advance.
Griffith also said he hoped that the international community would pay attention to the drought in East Africa and launch humanitarian relief operations to save more lives.
Martin Griffiths, Un Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Emergency Coordinator: Please help these areas, please support the (local) government's actions. In addition to the crisis in Ukraine, we hope that everyone will pay attention to the drought in the Horn of Africa, and please help us to support the local people together and improve their ability to cope with disasters in difficult times.
Source: CCTV News Client