Somalia: AMA providing critical support amidst ongoing drought

In Mogadishu, people sit outside their makeshift homes, weak, with no energy and unable to talk at length or move much. Some of them have not had a proper meal in months. The toll of the longest and most severe drought in history has left people malnourished and on the brink of famine.

With several consecutive years without rainfall, and around half of the population requiring urgent aid, AMA visited some of the regions worst affected people.

As part of AMA’s WISH Ramadan campaign, which is designed to provide life-changing emergency relief to people in need, our teams distributed hundreds of food parcels to families in Mogadishu.

Hassan Choonara, AMA’s regional director, says that it is absolutely critical to react quickly to the humanitarian crisis in Somalia, before the country descends into a long and difficult famine.

“Thousands of people sitting in the desert have not seen rain in years and have lost all of their livestock and crops,” he explains. “We have seen children eat leaves just to have something to consume, they are completely malnourished,” he added.

The impending famine has meant that people have been forced to make difficult choices, from marrying off children to skipping meals. It has also left people unable to secure basic goods, and be forced to live in destitute conditions.

“The stark reality hit me as soon as I landed,” says Choonara. “Families are walking kilometers in the height of the drought in search of food and water, and some of them don’t even make it to the end of the journey.”

In Mogadishu, people live in makeshift tents, put together using scraps of material. The tents offer no proper shade against the beating sun.

Hospitals affected

Hospitals and the country’s healthcare services have also been badly affected by the drought.

Many hospitals throughout the country have not been able to cope with the surge of patients streaming in on a weekly basis, and can not afford to purchase the proper equipment to treat patients.

In the Banadir hospital in Mogadishu, AMA staff witnessed a baby lose its life.

“The family was in a displacement camp and the baby was sick, even the mother of the baby was malnourished,” explained Choonara, who was there as it happened. “Staff tried to save the baby but they couldn’t. There are a lot of other babies who are going through the same thing,” he added.

In an effort to assist with the ongoing crisis, AMA provided a wheelchair and various other equipment to the hospital

Ongoing fighting and the climate crisis has also added to the dire state of people in the country. With many humanitarian and aid organisations unable to enter certain areas of the country, thousands of people have been left without any form of help or assistance.

AMA is on the ground, providing emergency food packages to people on the ground.

You can help support our efforts by donating to our WISH campaign. Donations can be made through our website or by calling our offices.