Attachments
HIGHLIGHTS
▪ Dry and hot weather conditions prevailed in January and part of February, prolonging the drought conditions in the eastern Horn of Africa. The March-May seasonal rains started on time in equatorial areas of the region and were earlier than normal in Somalia.
▪ From mid-March, there were heavy rains in southwest, central and parts of southern Ethiopia; most of Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, equatorial South Sudan, most of Kenya except the coastal strip, and parts of southern Somalia leading to wetter-than-normal conditions except in southern Kenya and northeast Tanzania.
▪ The heavy rains resulted in flash floods in Ethiopia (parts of Somali, Sindama, Oromia, Afar, Amhara and Tigray regions); Somalia (Gedo region); Kenya (Nairobi, Kajiado, Marsabit, Tana River, Mandera, Nakuru, Garissa counties, and the Lake Victoria region). Nearly 230,000 people in Ethiopia (OCHA) and nearly 100,000 in Somalia (OCHA) have been affected.
▪ In Somalia, the floods resulted from heavy rains in Ethiopia highlands rapidly raising water levels in the river Juba leading to riverline flooding in Gedo region. Flash floods were experienced in other parts of the country.
▪ The ongoing seasonal rains coupled with inflows from Ethiopian highlands and East Africa pose a risk of flooding along the stretch of the river Nile in South Sudan by maintaining high river water levels. Of most concern are parts of Jonglei and Unity states where flooding has persisted from past seasons and may be exacerbated by the April-May rains.
▪ Water resources have improved in northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia easing the severe water stress caused by the drought. However, the situation has not significantly improved in parts of southern Somalia and southeast Ethiopia where water points are still in a poor status.