Horn of Africa Facing Climate-Induced Crisis #AfricaClimateCrisis

The UN Children's Fund, (UNICEF), is warning that the Horn of Africa is facing a climate-induced emergency and says the international community must act now to prevent a catastrophic loss of life and livelihoods.

The impact of the 2011 famine in Somalia hangs over the dire situation confronting millions of people in the Horn of Africa. That emergency killed 250,000 people, half of them children. Hunger and malnutrition have worsened in the region after three years of consecutive drought. But famine has not been reported in any area.

UN agencies however, say that this could rapidly change. UNICEF predicts that as many as 20 million people in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia will need water and food assistance in the next six months.

The World Food Programme estimates 13 million people across Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are gripped by severe hunger. According to Mohamed Malick, the UNICEF Eastern and Southern African regional director, children caught in this climate emergency are missing out on meals, on school and on access to lifesaving health services.

UNICEF is appealing for U.S.$123 million to provide lifesaving aid for the most vulnerable in the four countries until the end of June, 2022. It warns many children will die or end up with life-long cognitive or physical damage if the international community fails to act quickly, writes Lisa Schlein for Voice of America.