2006-05-02 20:57:59 CRIENGLISH.com
A senior U.N. humanitarian official has urged the interim Somali government to prioritize the safe passage of aid to the Somali victims of a prolonged drought in East Africa.
A former Norwegian Prime Minister, Kjell Magne Bondevik, is visiting Somalia on the last leg of a five-nation tour to study the impact of the drought.
“Working on the security issue is so important. And we urged the (Somali) Prime Minister today to give priority to security and to access. These are the two main preconditions for the UN and other organizations working in Somalia.”
Bondevik, currently the U.N. Special Humanitarian Envoy for the Horn of Africa, says the United Nations has raised only 20 percent towards an emergency 426 million US dollar appeal for the 15 million people affected.¡±
He also says recent rains in the region are too little and too late to avoid the crisis, but with proper funding it is still possible to avoid a catastrophe.
Somali Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Ghedi has also cautioned against complacency after the arrival of some rain.
”But when it rains it doesn’t mean that the humanitarian crisis is over. The victims of droughts are still very needy”.
Ghedi has also assured Bondevik that Somali’s interim government is patching up its internal differences and will work to rebuild the country shattered by war.
At least 7.5 million people are suffering from the worst drought in a decade in parts of Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya and Djibouti, with cattle herds dying off.
Source: CRIENGLISH.com, May 2, 2006
