Somalia: Puntland Vice President Meets WFP Delegation Over Drought and Aid Challenges

5 May 2026
Shabelle Media Network (Mogadishu)

Garowe — Puntland's Vice President Ilyas Osman Lugatoor on Tuesday met a senior delegation from the World Food Programme (WFP) to discuss worsening drought conditions and declining international aid, officials said.

The delegation was led by WFP Deputy Executive Director Matthew Hollingworth and included the agency's regional director for Eastern and Southern Africa, its Somalia country head, and other senior officials.

Talks focused on the impact of recurrent droughts, shrinking humanitarian funding, and efforts to deliver assistance to vulnerable communities, including support for children and broader humanitarian projects.

Lugatoor thanked WFP for its ongoing operations in Puntland and urged the agency to strengthen cooperation and coordination with the regional government.

Puntland authorities also raised the need for more direct access to allocated international aid, as humanitarian needs continue to rise in the semi-autonomous region.

Read the original article on Shabelle.

Tagged:
Copyright © 2026 Shabelle Media Network. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.

AllAfrica publishes around 600 reports a day from more than 90 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.

Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.