Abdi Weyrah Muhumad, walks around his drought-stricken farm at Guricade village in Beletweyne, Hirshabelle state, Somalia, on 19 January 2022. FAO/ARETE/Ismail Taxta.
Mogadishu: New findings from Somalia reveal that by April 2025, around 4.4 million people might confront hunger, exacerbated by worsening drought, ongoing conflict, and elevated food prices.
An estimated 1.7 million children under the age of five face acute malnutrition through December 2025. Of those, 466,000 face severe acute malnutrition – an increase of nine per cent compared to the same period last year. Nearly two-thirds (64 per cent) of the total malnutrition burden is concentrated in southern Somalia, where drought conditions and insecurity are the worst.
“Past climate events demonstrate that children are the most affected, facing severe malnourishment and diseases that increase their risk of death and long-term developmental issues,” said Nisar Syed, UNICEF Somalia Representative Officer in Charge. “As prevention is key, UNICEF provides access to clean water and sanitation, provides micronutrients, trains caregivers to identify early signs of malnutrition and operates in remote areas. Given the recurring nature of these crises, we must emphasize a multi-sector approach while working with all stakeholders and the Government to invest in resilience, anticipatory action and a robust health system.”
The Federal Government of Somalia, along with United Nations agencies, warns that without necessary funding for humanitarian initiatives, the nation—already pushed to the brink of famine in 2022 due to severe drought, which resulted in thousands of deaths, many of whom were children—may once again see millions facing acute hunger.
Today, a joint warning from the Somali Disaster Management Agency (SoDMA), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), UNICEF, and the UN World Food Programme (WFP) highlighted a critical situation in Somalia. It referred to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis which shows that 3.4 million people are already experiencing crisis levels, or higher, of hunger in Somalia (IPC3+). This number is projected to rise to 4.4 million (23 per cent of the population) between April and June 2025, when below-average Gu rains are forecast.
“Worsening drought poses a severe threat to communities already grappling with immense hardship and ongoing conflict. Urgent action is required to save lives, protect livelihoods, and prevent further suffering,” Mohamuud Moallim, Commissioner of the Somali Disaster Management Agency (SoDMA), said. “This time, we are not only confronting the devastating impacts of drought but also compounding risks, including conflict and an unprecedented decline in humanitarian funding. These overlapping crises demand immediate, collective and well-coordinated action to strengthen Somalia’s resilience and safeguard our most vulnerable communities.”
The hardest-hit households include those with low agricultural yields who have depleted their food stocks, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and pastoralists with limited livestock and below-average earnings from livestock sales.
“Worsening drought, erratic rainfall, and ongoing conflict are eroding livelihoods, pushing families deeper into crisis,” said FAO Somalia Country Representative Etienne Peterschmitt. “FAO is responding by scaling up its support for increased agricultural production, promoting climate-smart solutions, and strengthening resilient agrifood systems. Through early warning systems and anticipatory action, we help communities prepare for shocks before they escalate, mitigating the worst impacts of food crises.”
Acute funding shortfalls have resulted in life-saving programmes being reduced or cut altogether. The United Nations called for more urgent funding to scale up food assistance, nutrition support, water and sanitation services, as well as livelihood initiatives to mitigate the impacts of the expected drought in Somalia. Today, the 2025 Somalia Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan, calling for US$1.42 billion, is only 12.4 per cent funded.
“Recurrent climate shocks, protracted conflict, disease outbreaks and widespread poverty, among other factors, have aggravated the humanitarian crisis in Somalia. Aid agencies are doing their best to save lives, but they urgently need adequate funding to meet the most critical needs at this juncture in Somalia,” said Crispen Rukasha, Head of Office, OCHA Somalia.
The IPC findings also confirm that erratic rainfall in 2024 led to low crop yields, rapid depletion of pasture and water sources, flooding of food crops, and displacement of hundreds of thousands of people.
“Recurrent shocks such as droughts are leaving millions of Somalis at risk of hunger as food prices increase and harvests dwindle. Famine was narrowly avoided in 2022 due to large-scale humanitarian support, which is needed again to provide immediate assistance while implementing longer-term solutions. However, funding shortfalls are forcing us to prioritize and reduce assistance at the worst possible time,” said El-Khidir Daloum, WFP’s Country Director in Somalia.
– global bihari bureau
