Somalia: Humanitarian Access Overview - Quarter 2 (April - June 2021)

Overview

In the second quarter (Q2) of 2021 the number of recorded access incidents remained at a similar level to quarter 1 (Q1).

Seventy-one incidents with an impact on humanitarian operations were documented compared to 70 incidents in Q1 of 2021. During the Q2 reporting period an 18 percent decrease in the number of reported access incidents was observed compared to the same period in 2020 during which 88 access incidents were reported. This is largely attributed to a spike in access incidents in May 2020 as a result of hostilities and movement restrictions in Southwest State and Jubaland.

Despite a stable trend of incidents in this quarter, the types of access incidents observed each month vary greatly. For instance, while physical constraints due to Gu rains made up approximately half of the reported access incidents during the month of May, no physical access constraints were reported in June. On the other hand, the number of reported access incidents related to bureaucratic impediments and interference in June was nine, the highest per month reported in 2021.

Of the 71 incidents recorded in Q2 the highest number of incidents occurred in Galmudug (13), Southwest State (12) and Hirshabelle (11). Hirshabelle and Galmudug have sat consistently within the top three states with the highest recorded incidents in both Q1 and Q2. However, there was a sharp decrease in the number of incidents reported in Jubaland between the quarters, dropping from 13 incidents in Q1 to five in Q2, while an increase was observed in Southwest State where recorded incidents rose from seven in Q1 to 12 in Q2.

No incidents resulting in the death, injury, detention or abduction of humanitarian workers were reported during Q2 whereas Q1 saw one humanitarian killed, four injured, one abducted and one detained. This is a significant decrease on last year, when in the first half of 2020 during which 11 humanitarian workers were killed, seven injured, 23 abducted and 14 were detained.