'War, disease threatening aid'
2007-01-15 22:10
Nairobi - Fighting in Somalia and an outbreak of Rift Valley Fever in Kenya are threatening food security in the volatile Horn of Africa region, said famine monitors on Monday.
USAID-funded Famine Early Warning System (FEWS NET) said these factors would hamper the recovery of food production in the region, where decades of instability have worsened humanitarian conditions.
They "have already dampened prospects of recovery in the most food insecure areas of these countries and may spread beyond the current impact area," the agency said in a statement released here.
"The potential regional impact is still unknown. Pastoral areas of Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are still recovering, and, despite favourable agro-climatic conditions, many people will require humanitarian assistance for at least the next six months," the statement added.
In November, the United Nations (UN) said about two million people in the three countries were in need in humanitarian supplies after their means of livelihood was affected by a prolonged drought that was followed by devastating floods.
Kenyan authorities have restricted human and livestock movement in the northern region as they struggle to contain the RFV outbreak that has killed at least 88 people in the past month.
Humanitarian conditions pushed to the edge
In addition, Nairobi has shut its border with Somalia to prevent fleeing Islamist militants who were routed by government forces backed by Ethiopian troops after days of fighting in Somalia.
Aid groups have said shutting the frontier, effectively blocking cross-border trade and thousands of refugees, have pushed humanitarian conditions to the edge.
"While slowing the spread of the disease, these measures have negatively affected populations fleeing the conflict in Somalia and hamper movement of humanitarian relief supplies," the FEWS NET added.
"RVF represents a serious risk to regional export markets, livestock sales and consumption."
"Despite control measures, conflict in Somalia has forced population and livestock movements, and, if the disease were to spread, the civil insecurity would constrain large-scale livestock vaccination programmes," said the group.
The on-off fighting in Somalia has doubled the number of displaced people from 400 000 to nearly one million, most of whom cannot access supplies.
"Even if the security situation in Somalia improves, these restrictions are likely to remain problematic until the RVF outbreak is brought under control," FEWS NET warned.