The United Nations (UN) has issued a famine warning for Somalia, noting the country’s worst drought in at least four decades. Almost half of the population is suffering from severe food insecurity. According to Adam Abdelmoula, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator for the country, more people may die unless the international community acts quickly. Reports say that the country was on the verge of widespread hunger and mass starvation, which could have claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. Drought has also killed three million heads of livestock, a major source of income in Somalia. Four consecutive rainy seasons have failed, resulting in a severe drought that has affected more than 800,000 people, as estimated by the UN.

In 2011, a drought resulted in a famine that killed a quarter of a million people. As of April 2022, nearly 700,000 people have been forced from their homes in search of food and water for themselves and their animals, and the number is growing. Prices for food and water are rising, and villages are being abandoned as people travel closer to urban areas in search of relief. According to Mr. Abdelmoula, the international community’s response is lacking, with only 18 percent of the United Nations’ humanitarian response plan having been funded.