Somalia on the brink of another catastrophe: the specter of famine resurfaces

Parts of southern Somalia are now facing a high risk of famine, two international food security monitoring organizations warned on Thursday. For the first time since 2022, a Somali district has reached a level of hunger considered extremely critical.

The Burhakaba district, with a population of approximately 200,000, is particularly affected. According to a report by the UN-supported Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), more than 37% of young children there suffer from acute malnutrition, an alarming figure that reflects the severity of the humanitarian situation.

Experts explain that the region is suffering the combined effects of several insufficient rainy seasons, persistent insecurity, and soaring food prices. Somalia is regularly hit by severe droughts that destroy crops and decimate livestock, further exacerbating poverty in the country.

The current crisis is also exacerbated by the reduction in international aid. According to humanitarian observers, only 12% of Somalis facing a food crisis now receive assistance, due to budget cuts in several foreign aid programs.

The geopolitical consequences of the war between Israel and the United States against Iran are also complicating humanitarian operations and international supply chains, according to analysts. This situation further reduces the ability of organizations to intervene rapidly in the most affected areas.

Somalia still bears the traumatic memory of the 2011 famine, which killed approximately 250,000 people. The country also narrowly escaped a similar catastrophe in 2017 and again in 2022. Humanitarian agencies now fear that another tragedy could loom if international aid is not increased rapidly.

IPC experts believe that Burhakaba could tip into a famine scenario in the worst plausible scenario, stressing the urgency of international mobilization to avoid a dramatic worsening of the food crisis in the country.