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SITUATION OVERVIEW
Ethiopia continues to face huge humanitarian challenges, with conflict and displacement, and extended drought, floods, and disease outbreaks as the main drivers of need. Persistent food insecurity in Northern Ethiopia, as well as consecutive hazards in drought and flood affected areas, are having detrimental consequences leading to health risks and increased protection concerns - with over 20 million people estimated to be in need of humanitarian assistance across the country. The suspension of food aid countrywide, the expansion of disease outbreaks across regions - like cholera, malaria and dengue fever - and the ongoing influx of thousands of displaced people escaping from violence in neighboring Sudan and Somalia continue to strain the health and protection systems due to overlapping crises and insufficient funds and resources.
Thousands of people have been displaced by floods brought on by the recent Belg/Gu rains in Somali, Oromia, Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’, Gambella and Afar regions. According to OCHA, more than 37,000 households have been affected by floods in Somali Region and nearly 196,800 individuals across conflict-affected areas in Gambella Region.
Health risks related to complications from food and nutrition insecurity, poor WASH practices, and the spread of multiple disease outbreaks continue to threat vulnerable populations while access to services and assistance does not commensurate to the scale of needs. The ongoing cholera outbreak has spread across 74 woredas in Oromia, Sidama, Somali, and SNNP at a cumulative total of 11,960 cases while 272,400 people are affected in Oromia alone by the spread of malaria.
In northern Ethiopia, humanitarian partners continue to support IDP returns in some targeted areas of Tigray and Amhara although numbers are still low and the need to scale up humanitarian assistance is high. In Amhara and Afar regions, malnutrition continues at an alarming rate with an increasing number of children and mothers requiring supplementary and therapeutic feeding interventions.
Regarding aid misuse/diversion, humanitarian partners and government counterparts have made significant strides to put in place strengthened measures across the entire programme cycle to ensure aid reaches those more in need while it suits their needs. As part of these efforts, UNFPA has developed a Risk Mitigation Plan countrywide and strengthened accountability to affected people.
Meanwhile, over 60,600 people have crossed into Ethiopia since the onset of the situation in Sudan, mainly through Metema point in Amhara region and Kurmuk town in Benishangul Gumuz. Protection risks are reported to be high as women and girls do overnight stays in open spaces or makeshift shelters. Although humanitarian partners are providing life-saving support - including shelter, NFls, water, and protection services -, a scale up of assistance is needed to support the expected new arrivals in the following months of 2023.