Somalia Humanitarian Key Messages February 2015 [EN/SO]

The humanitarian crisis in Somalia remains among the largest, most protracted and most complex emergencies in the world today. About 731,000 Somalis face acute food insecurity despite improvements in some areas due to the contribution of good October to December rains, improved commercial flow in southern and central regions and the delivery of humanitarian assistance. A further 2.3 million people are on the verge of slipping into acute food insecurity, bringing the number of people in need to 3 million. Internally displaced people make up 76 per cent of the people in acute food security.

Acute malnutrition levels remain high. There are about 203,000 acutely malnourished children who require emergency nutrition supplement, access to clean water, sanitation infrastructure and better hygiene. About 38,000 children are severely malnourished and need medical treatment and therapeutic food to survive. Vaccinations to curb the current measles outbreak and eradicate polio will need to be sustained to reduce mortality among children and increase the extremely low vaccination coverage of only 30 per cent. The under-five mortality rate in Somalia is the fourth highest in the world.