Drought conditions have left an estimated 13 million people facing severe hunger in the Horn of Africa, according to the United Nations World Food Program.<\/P>
People in a region including Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya face the driest conditions recorded since 1981, the agency reported Tuesday, calling for immediate assistance to forestall a major humanitarian crisis.<\/P>
Drought conditions are affecting pastoral and farming communities across southern and south-eastern Ethiopia, south-eastern and northern Kenya, and south-central Somalia. Malnutrition rates are high in the region<\/P>
WFP said it needs $327 million to look after the urgent needs of 4.5 million people over the next six months and help communities become more resilient to extreme climate shocks.<\/P>
\u201cThree consecutive failed rainy seasons have decimated crops and caused abnormally high livestock deaths,\u201d it said in a statement. \u201cShortages of water and pasture are forcing families from their homes and leading to increased conflict between communities.\u201d<\/P>
More forecasts of below-average rainfall threaten to worsen conditions in the coming months, it said.<\/P>
Others have raised alarm over a fragile region that also faces sporadic armed violence.<\/P>
The U.N. children\u2019s agency said earlier in February that more than 6 million people in Ethiopia are expected to need urgent humanitarian aid by mid-March. In neighboring Somalia, more than 7 million people need urgent help, according to the Somali NGO Consortium.<\/P>
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Source: Voice of America<\/P>
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