05 November 1999
Food Crisis Intensifies in Southern Somalia, U.N. Says
(FAO reports fighting has disrupted food production and aid) (490) Rome -- The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization says that an upsurge in inter-clan fighting in southern Somalia has exacerbated already-disrupted food production activities and assistance to civil war and drought victims. An FAO news release of November 5 said that mounting civilian casualties, destruction of property, large-scale population displacement, and a number of starvation-related deaths have been reported in the region. The extension of roadblocks and obstruction of aircraft runways are further hindering the movement of goods and food commodities, including food aid, the release said. The FAO said that about 1.6 million people in Mogadishu, Lower and Middle Juba, parts of Gedo, and Lower Shabelle are inaccessible to humanitarian agencies - and, worse, that an increase in violence against humanitarian workers has further reduced the flow and distribution of humanitarian assistance. According to an FAO/WFP (World Food Program) mission which visited the country last August, the 1999 main "Gu" season, which normally accounts for 75 to 80 percent of annual food production, has largely failed because of little rainfall, uncontrolled crop pests, and farmers' displacement. The crop failure, FAO said, followed six consecutive poor harvests since 1996, caused by similar problems. The 1999 main "Gu" cereal production, estimated at about 136,000 tons, is about one-third below the post-civil-war (1993-98) average, the FAO said. And prospects for the "Deyr" secondary season, which runs from October to January in the agriculturally important regions of southern Somalia, are not considered promising, with below-normal rains received so far. Even assuming a post-civil-war average "Deyr" harvest of 70,000 tons, FAO said, the deficit in the 1999/2000 marketing year (August-July) will be about 310,000 tons. Meanwhile, cereal prices have risen sharply in September/October compared to the same period last year, FAO noted. The food situation actually remains precarious for a large segment of the population elsewhere in Somalia as a result of the cumulative effects of droughts - despite recent rains which have improved pastures. For instance, in northeastern Somalia (Puntland), an estimated 50,000 displaced and vulnerable people are in need of urgent food assistance, while in northwestern Somalia (Somaliland) some 40,000 to 60,000 poor pastoralists in Sool and Toghdeer suffer from acute food insecurity. Where conditions allow, aid agencies are providing emergency assistance, but more funds are needed to cover Somalia's food needs until the next main harvest in July 2000. In January, the U.N. launched a Consolidated Inter-Agency Appeal (CAP) for Somalia for 1999, totaling US$64 million; as of mid-October, donor contributions amounted to around US$35 million, or 55 percent. The CAP for the year 2000 has just been launched, totaling US$50.6 million. The international donor community is urged to make generous contributions, failing which there is an increased likelihood of starvation in the worst-affected areas, FAO said. (Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State)
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