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Griffiths calls for more funding in the face of an unprecedented “humanitarian catastrophe” in the face of the country’s droughts
Sep. 5 (EUROPA PRESS) –
UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths has warned that 1.5 million children in Somalia will face acute malnutrition in October as a drought in the country, the worst in four decades, is set to continue.
For this reason, Griffiths has specified that it is necessary to have “immediate access” to people in need, not just internal refugees. “We need that access and it must be safe,” she said, adding that, in the face of a “humanitarian catastrophe”, financing is essential.
In this way, he has insisted on looking for “sources of new income” to provide help to those people who are in danger, since “the clock is ticking” and the resources “will soon run out,” according to a United Nations statement.
This request comes after Griffiths has traveled to the region, after which he has concluded that, if this continues, famines will occur in two areas of the Bay region, Baidoa and Burhakaba districts, in the center-south of Somalia between October and December this year.
“I was in Baidoa on Saturday. It is the epicenter of the humanitarian crisis in Somalia. It is not the only place in need, but it is one of them. In the camps for displaced people we saw extreme hunger. In the hospital in Baidoa we had the unenviable privilege of seeing children so malnourished that they could hardly speak,” he explained.
Thus, Griffiths has highlighted that access to the most basic services in Baidoa is “limited”, while a similar situation is experienced in Banadir, not far from the capital of Somalia, Mogadishu, where minors have difficulties accessing services. doctors.
“One of the doctors told me that they are seeing an increase of 40-50 percent more (in admissions) than a few weeks ago. None of the children I saw in the stabilization center at Banadir hospital could smile,” he said. .
Therefore, Griffiths has explained that there is an opportunity to try to solve the crisis in Somalia. “But panic does not help those who need and deserve our help. It is not a strategy. Providing more humanitarian assistance is,” she has settled.
