Horn of Africa crisis under the spotlight at UN summit
The crisis facing the Horn of Africa saw UN agencies gather for an emergency summit
on Monday to press for vital funds to help a region suffering from severe drought
and starvation. Famine has been declared in southern Somalia, and more than 10
million people are thought to be at risk of starvation in the region. The U.N.
is pressing its efforts to gather $1.6 billion in aid over the next 12 months, with
$300 million of that aid coming in the next three months. Josette Sheeran, Executive
Director of the World Food Programme, says she saw deep suffering during a recent
trip to the region. France's agriculture minister rebuked the world for "failing
to ensure food security," and warned that famine could be the "scandal of the century." Germany
meanwhile, said it would be donating an additional (euro) 15 million in humanitarian
aid for the worsening famine. UN aid agencies say one and a half million people
a day are receiving emergency food supplies in Somalia, despite claims by the militant
group Al Shabaab that it is blocking access to many parts of the country.
Speaking
at the summit, Rome-based U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization chief Jacques Diouf
said that a coordination conference would be held in Nairobi, Kenya, on Wednesday.
Listen