December 14, 2025 - Mogadishu: The Somali NGO Consortium (SNC) raises alarm over the rapidly worsening drought conditions, warning of an imminent humanitarian catastrophe as a sharp decline in international funding coincides with escalating humanitarian needs.
According to Integrated Food Security Classification (IPC), the drought is driving 3.4 million people into high levels of acute food insecurity across Somalia. In the projection period between October to December 2025, the food security situation is expected to worsen as the expected seasonal rainfall is likely to be below normal. Below-average rainfall and high food prices are projected to drive 4.4 million people (23 percent of the population) to elevated levels of acute food insecurity.
An estimated 1.85 million children aged 6 - 59 months are expected to suffer acute malnutrition and need urgent treatment between July 2025 and June 2026. This includes approximately 421,000 cases of children likely to suffer Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM), and 1.43 million children likely to suffer Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM).
"We are witnessing a serious convergence: the drought is accelerating precisely as a retreat in global humanitarian funding creates a dangerous and avoidable emergency. The resources required to save lives are shrinking while communities grow more desperate. Somalia cannot afford to reverse the hard-won progress of recent years," said Ms. Nimo Hassan, the Director of the Somali NGO Consortium.
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Communities are enduring severe and compounding hardships: diminishing water sources, soaring staple food prices, accelerating livestock losses, and widespread crop failure are pushing families to the brink.
"The drought is no longer a forecast -- it is a lived reality. Communities are reaching a breaking point. As the drought intensifies, so does the suffering of the communities we serve. DRC Somalia is responding in several locations, but our resources, as those of our partners, are hugely insufficient. Immediate, coordinated support is needed to prevent an even deeper humanitarian crisis in Somalia," said Filip Lozinski, the Country Director of Danish Refugee Council (DRC) in Somalia.
This crisis unfolds as several major international donors have announced significant reductions in humanitarian aid. The operational consequences are immediate and severe, directly impacting over 70% of NGOs that rely on humanitarian assistance. Life-saving programs are being scaled back or suspended, while several organizations have been forced to lay off up to 65% of their staff, crippling their capacity to respond, just as needs surge.
"National organizations like GREDO are on the frontlines every day witnessing the suffering, but also the resilience of Somali communities. We urgently call on donors, partners, and the international community to scale up life-saving assistance, invest in early recovery, and empower local responders to act faster. The time for delay has passed and we must act now to prevent a full-blown humanitarian disaster," said Alinur Ali Aden, the Executive Director of GREDO.
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As humanitarian needs escalate while the limited available resources continue to shrink, Somalia is nearing a perilous tipping point. The expanding Emergency (IPC 4) conditions signal not only deepening hardship, but the very real risk of preventable loss of life. The months ahead will be decisive, requiring urgent action to avert further deterioration and protect the most vulnerable.
"We call upon traditional donors, Gulf nations, philanthropic institutions, and the private sector to act now and mobilize resources," urged Ms. Hassan. "Every day of inaction pushes vulnerable communities closer to the edge. Somalia cannot navigate this crisis alone. The moment for global solidarity is now," Nimo concluded.
