Thursday November 12, 2020
A drier than usual season linked to the La Nina phenomenon is expected in large swathes of the east and horn of the Africa region in the last quarter of this yearPlc. Photographer: Riccardo Gangale/Bloomberg via Getty Images
The greater horn of the Africa region may not realize food and nutrition security for farmers and herders amid suppressed October to December rains, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) said in its latest weather forecast released in Nairobi on Wednesday.
According to IGAD, a drier than usual season linked to the La Nina phenomenon is expected in large swathes of the east and horn of the Africa region in the last quarter of this year, hence posing risk to crops and pasture for livestock.
“The drier than usual season might impact southern Ethiopia, northern and western Somalia, eastern and western regions of Kenya, northern Tanzania, and other sparse areas around the region,” said IGAD.
“For farming communities, this could lead to poorer than usual harvests, due to reduced rainfall when crops are at the reproduction stage,” it added.The horn of African region is already battling multiple shocks like COVID-19, desert locust invasion, civil unrest and recurrent droughts that have undermined efforts to eradicate hunger and malnutrition.
IGAD said the drier than usual weather is likely to last till January, thereby complicating efforts to feed vulnerable demographics like children and the elderly.
“The resulting poor nutrition status may reduce the immunity of all age-groups, further complicating the vulnerability to the possible effects of COVID-19,” said IGAD.
It singled out nomadic communities as likely to bear the brunt of suppressed rains amid shortage of pasture and water for their livestock that could lead to widespread hunger and skirmishes.
“The overall poor food and nutrition security could increase the levels of acute malnutrition among infants and young children. Atypical cross-border livestock migrations may spark resource-based conflicts,” said IGAD.
Statistics from IGAD indicate that currently, about 29.5 million people in the horn of African region are in urgent need of food assistance due to the negative impact of climatic shocks and COVID-19 pandemic.
The bloc urged countries in the region to establish robust mitigation measures in order to avert a humanitarian crisis amid an extended drier than usual season.