Pope Francis called on the international community on Sunday to help Somalia, which is facing a severe drought that has already reached unprecedented levels and, according to the UN, has displaced a million people.
I wish to draw attention to the serious humanitarian crisis affecting Somalia and parts of neighboring countries. The inhabitants of these regions, who already live in very precarious conditions, are now going through a deadly period due to the drought. I hope that international solidarity can respond effectively to this emergency,” Francis said after the weekly Angelus prayer at the Vatican.
“Unfortunately, the war diverts attention and resourcesbut these are the goals that require more efforts: the fight against hunger, health, education.”
Somalia and its neighbors in the Horn of Africa, namely Ethiopia and Kenya, are facing the worst drought in more than 40 years.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Norwegian Refugee Council, more than 755,000 people have been displaced within Somalia this year due to famine, raising the number of displaced people since January 2021, when the drought began.
In this unstable country with poor infrastructure, the fight against this devastating drought is hampered by the insurgency of Islamic radicals, whose deployment in vast rural areas limits the work of humanitarian agencies.
Source: Observadora
