Risk of relapse

Somalia is facing a new food crisis. 2.9 million Somalis are in need of humanitarian help, and 70% of the population has no access to clean drinking water.

In recent years there have been some improvements in the situation for the Somali people, show new statistics. However, 1.1 million people are still displaced within their own country. Polio has also returned to Somalia, with 193 cases reported in the last year.

According to The United Nations Somalia is facing a renewed food crisis due to a lack of rain, rising food prices and continued insecurity. In a report released Friday, The U.N.’s Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit (FSNAU) said more than 200.000 Somali children under the age of 5 are acutely malnourished.

Twenty organisations, including NRC, cooperate on an initiative to prevent relapse in Somalia.

They agree that progress should be measured against minimum standards, not by gains made against an already terrible situation. With a third of the population in need of aid, Somalia is clearly in severe crisis. Neither should we compare degrees of desperation across countries. It is not right, for example, to pit Syria against Somalia and claim one deserves more attention. We should be working to reach and maintain minimum standards globally giving adequate attention to all crises at all times.

Somalia presents a unique and challenging context where destabilising factors like conflict and cyclical drought are a regular feature. While gains have been made, communities still remain only one shock away from disaster. As we learned in 2011, not heeding the warning signs of crisis in already fragile communities can lead to tragedy.

Our organisations are working on the ground and know the reality. And it’s not good. Only 12% of Somalia’s humanitarian funding needs have been met so far this year – an additional USD $822 million is still needed. Funding needs to be able to respond to uncertainty and be invested in good time. There is a very real risk that people still in need will not be reached and those already helped will fall back into crisis.

We are in a position now, to make a difference – as long as funds are available and flexible. Without action to address Somalia’s humanitarian and development needs, we are at risk of failing Somalis once more. Just because the figures may look “better”, now is not the time to be complacent.

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