Somalia Faces Growing Famine Threat: Aid Funding Drops Over 80 Percent

In Somalia, children are increasingly affected by hunger due to drought and food shortages. A study by Doctors Without Borders in Baidoa found that one in four children suffers from severe malnutrition. Furthermore, there has been a significant decline in aid funds provided to the country. Consecutive failed rainy seasons in Somalia have devastated agricultural lands, causing livestock loss and reducing water sources. Conflicts and security issues have also hindered people's access to food, healthcare, and humanitarian aid. Doctors Without Borders announced that funding for acute malnutrition in parts of Somalia has decreased by over 80 percent this year. In a study conducted in 14 camps in Baidoa, it was found that a third of families survive on just one meal a day, while only 2 percent can afford three meals a day. The organization has screened over 21,000 children under the age of five in Baidoa since the start of the year, with about 50 percent showing signs of acute malnutrition.