Attachments
Drought Situation & EW Phase Classification
• The condition of vegetation deteriorated significantly during the period under review as evidenced by the decline in the VCI3month value from 34 to 25. The observed state of vegetation was as a consequence of the below normal performance of the rainfall through that interval with the total amount received over the six-month duration commencing July and ending in December being only 17 percent of the normal rainfall.
• Unusual livestock migration taking place continued limiting milk availability to households hence the recorded seasonal low with respect to consumption while county level estimates indicated cumulatively 56,150 livestock deaths had been reported due to drought related causes. Additionally, majority of the households continued experiencing precipitous decline in purchasing power as a consequence of the diminishing terms of trade occasioned by the rapid deterioration in livestock body condition that trekked for longer than normal distances in search of forage and water throughout the month of December.
• Elevated malnutrition rates were a major concern with the considerably pronounced food deficits as reflected through the high proportion of households (about 62 percent) that were categorized as having a poor food consumption score being the main driver with a significant percentage equally resorting to application of severe consumption based coping strategies.
Turkana Central, North and Loima remained the most affected.
• Emergency outcomes are thus projected to persist driven by the historic drought that has resulted to about 146,315 households being affected with roughly 20,050 children aged five years and below severely malnourished and in urgent need of treatment.