Southern Ethiopia Struggles with Drought and Fears of Famine

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Southern Ethiopia is facing a severe drought, with livestock dying and over 100 residents hospitalized due to malnutrition, according to Reuters. After five failed rainy seasons, the region is experiencing the Horn of Africa’s worst drought in decades. Nearly 12 million people are food insecure in Ethiopia’s drought-stricken areas, according to the United Nations.

While no fatalities have been directly attributed to the drought in the Oromiya region, humanitarian workers expect that to change. Locals say aid has been insufficient and slow, with the government acknowledging the inadequacy of available resources. The situation risks exacerbating an already dire humanitarian crisis in the country.

Ethiopia received only half of the required $3.34 billion for humanitarian needs in 2022, with resources stretched thin due to the fallout from the two-year war in the northern region of Tigray, which ended last November after tens of thousands of deaths.

 

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