In southern Somalia, a below-average Gu 2012 crop harvest likely

April to June Gu rainfall in most parts of southern Somalia began late and was poorly distributed over both space and time. As a result, the Gu season crop harvests in southern agropastoral and inland rainfed cropping areas will likely be delayed and below-average. Agropastoral households also face deteriorating access to humanitarian assistance, high debt burdens, limited livestock holdings, and a still precarious nutrition situation. As a result, the lean season is likely to extend by one month until July and the food security of poor, agropastoral households is likely to deteriorate to Emergency levels (IPC Phase 4) starting in June. A scaling up of humanitarian assistance and activation of the contingency planning process is necessary to address unmet emergency food assistance needs in agropastoral areas over the coming months.