Current rainfall situation in Ethiopia

Conditions continue to deteriorate in drought-hit Somali Region with the situation in some districts considered a near-emergency as detailed in the latest DPPB/SCUK Early Warning Project Report. This situation has been compounded by the fact that some areas have not received food for three months such as in Degehabur, due to a number of factors. DPPC/WFP food interventions have now stepped up and as of 21 September, about 25 percent of food allocated in August had been sent to the very seriously affected Degehabur zone, with the rest expected to be sent in the immediate future. Relief food is also being sent to other zones based on the mid-year assessment. Brief rains in Liben zone are seen as precursors to the "deyr" rains expected in October, but any delay in the rains will have very serious consequences for the entire region. Elsewhere, main season rains are continuing in the parts of the south and east of the country that normally receive "Meher" or "Kiremt" rains, but appear to have ceased in the north of the country. In Tigray region areas of concern are Alamata and Raya Azebo districts in Southern zone, most areas of Eastern zone and the eastern part of Central zone. Eastern low-lying districts of Amhara Region, in North and South Wollo zones bordering Afar region, have not received sufficient rain and thus crop conditions are poor, but crops in most of highland and mid-land Amhara Region are reported to be doing well. In the south of the country, rains continue in parts of Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region (SNNPR), with good rain reported in Hadiya, Gurage, Kambata-Tembaro zones, although no recent rain has been received in Konso zone. In Oromiya region, some recent rain has also been reported in the pastoral zones of Borena and Guji. Though it is too early to determine whether serious drought conditions in these areas will be affected. Rain has recently shown improvement in the highlands of East and West Hararghe. Food aid distributions continue in these zones but the malnutrition rate is increasing in several parts of West Hararghe, where there are still problems providing supplementary food and properly targeting pregnant and nursing women and malnourished children.