Yesterday, the UN declared famine in a sixth region of Somalia, the Bay region, where child malnutrition is at a record 58 percent, far higher than is needed for a declaration of famine.
According to The Washington Post, the UN has received less than 60 percent of the funds it requested for famine response. In the coming months, 750,000 people are at risk of dying without an adequate response. And even if the expected October and November rains come, crops cannot be harvested until January, and the rains bring increased risk of water-borne diseases like measles and diarrhea.
For more information, read the articles on AlertNet, the BBC and The Washington Post. For a list of InterAction members responded to the crisis, see our crisis response list, and for information on who is doing what and where in the Horn of Africa, see our newest map, Horn of Africa Aid Map.
