HIGHLIGHTS
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Nutrition assessment reveals acute malnutrition among the displaced are above the emergency threshold.
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Short-term deterioration in food security expected in agriculture dependent areas.
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Urgent boost in funding is required to sustain crucial humanitarian response.
FIGURES
No. of people in humanitarian emergency and crisis 731,000
No. of people in food security stress 2.3m
No. of acutely malnourished children under age 5 Source: www.fsnau.org (Feb-June 2015 projection) 203,000
No. of internally displaced people 1.1m
Alarming malnutrition rates among IDPs
Treatment for malnourished children is needed to avert a crisis Global acute malutrition (GAM) among internally displaced people has significantly deteriorated. According to a recent assessment by FAO’s Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit, (FSNAU), critical malnutriton rates were recorded in five settlements for internally displaced people: Baidoa, Dhobley, Doolow, Gaalkacyo, and Garowe out of 13 surveyed in May/June 2015. The situation is significantly worse in Dhobley and Doolow in southern and central regions and Gaalkacyo in the central region with GAM levels above the World Health Organisation’s 15 per cent emergency threshold. In Dhobley, GAM levels have almost doubled from 11 per cent from Deyr 2014/15 (OctoberDecember) to the current level of 20.7 per cent. The deterioration in Dhobley may, to a large degree, be attributed the high number of acute water diarrhea (AWD) and suspected cholera cases that have drastically increased since April. In Doloow where the rates remain persistently high, an indepth analysis of the response provided is underway to understand why the levels remain high. Other IDP settlements such as Bossaso, Kismayo and Mogadishu also remain areas of concern with serious malnutrition rates.
Lack of adequate funding is affecting humanitarian partners’ ability to assist vulnerable children.
On a positive side, compared to Deyr 2014/15, the nutrition situation has slightly improved among displaced people living in settlements in Berbera Bossaso, Burao, and Dhuusamareb in central and northern regions.
Disclaimer
- UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
- To learn more about OCHA's activities, please visit https://www.unocha.org/.