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Situation Overview
The ongoing impacts of the catastrophic drought suffered by the Horn of Africa continue to severely affect millions of refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs) and their host communities in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia. Across the region, climate impacts continue to exacerbate the challenges vulnerable populations face with the combination of conflict and drought – followed by rains and flooding – severely affecting their search for safety, basic necessities and a means to survive. Our responses across the region factors in the impact of extreme weather events, such as the recurring cycle of droughts and floods attributed to climate change.
By the end of September, according to UNHCR’s drought dashboard 2.3 million people had been internally displaced in Ethiopia and Somalia due to the drought and some 265,000 new refugees and asylum-seekers had crossed from and into drought-affected areas of Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia.
In Ethiopia, parts of the Oromia region have recently felt the impact of the Kiremt rainy season with heavy rainfall and floods. The Joint Government and Humanitarian Partners Flood Contingency Plan for 2023 Kiremt season had forecasted that more than 270,200 people were likely to be affected in Oromia. (Link: https://reliefweb.int/report/ethiopia/unfpa-ethiopia-humanitarian-response-situation-report-august-2023). The main needs for displaced populations include, food, shelter, and non-food items, water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), and healthcare services, especially to prevent the exacerbation of malaria and cholera outbreaks due to the floods. While in West Hararge Zone, Oromia region, seventy thousand families have reportedly lost the Meher crop due to the long dry sessions during the months of July and August which could significantly increase the number of people requiring food assistance. According to a recent multiagency assessment, IDPs hosted in West Guji have not received assistance for several months due to insecurity and funding constraints. About 159,400 people in West Guji, Oromia region, will remain in need of food assistance for the coming six to eight months, because of low crop yields due to the impact of environmental change.
In the Somali Region, over one million people are reportedly facing acute water shortages in 323 locations across Afder, Dawa, Korahe, Liban and Shabelle zones. Despite rains between April and June this year, pastoral and agropastoral communities have lost their primary sources of water, mainly surface water structures such as boreholes and river intakes in the drier months of June, July, and August. Zonal authorities are currently providing water to affected communities through water trucking, however the situation requires urgent funding to address shortages particularly in the IDP sites. (see also OCHA Situation Report, 7 September 2023 and 9 October 2023. Link: https://reports.unocha.org/en/country/ethiopia).
In Kenya, among the 23 arid and semi-arid lands of Kenya, there are ten (10) counties in alarm phase, ten others are in alert stage, while three (3) are in normal drought due to moderate off-season rains. Garissa county experienced below-average rainfall in September 2023 with only 8.60 mm compared to the long-term average of 17.1 mm. This difference suggests a drier September than usual based on historical data.
In Dadaab in September, there were reportedly 942,000 children under 5 years and 134,000 pregnant and lactating women, who required treatment for acute malnutrition compared to 884,464 children and 115,725 women, who required such treatment in August 2023.
In Somalia, the operating environment continued to be challenging. Drought, armed conflict, and clashes between clans continued to uproot thousands of Somalis from their homes. Better than expected rainfall and responses from the local population, authorities, and humanitarian community have averted the worst outcomes of the drought, yet the situation is still worrisome. It is estimated that 8.25 million people require humanitarian assistance; 4.3 million are facing acute food insecurity; and 1.5 million children are likely to be acutely malnourished from August to December 20231 .
According to the UNHCR-led Protection and Return Monitoring Network (PRMN), 61,000 displacements within Somalia were recorded in September primarily due to drought (57%) and conflict or insecurity (23%), bringing the total number of internal displacements in 2023 to more than 1.5 million. In the aftermath of the historic drought, a large-scale humanitarian response and favorable rainfall deterred famine in early 2023.
Yet, Somalia is on the verge of another climate emergency, as there is a high likelihood that El-Niño, during the Deyr rainy season that starts in October, will bring heavy rains and floods. More up-to-date information about displacement and the protection needs of the IDPs can be found at the new PRMN online interactive dashboard: https://prmn-somalia.unhcr.org/.