Insecurity forces nearly 1 mln Ethiopians to flee homes: UNOCHA

Source: Xinhua| 2018-06-29 04:45:26|Editor: Mu Xuequan
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GENEVA, June 28 (Xinhua) -- Close to one million Ethiopians are believed to be displaced due to escalating inter-communal violence since early June this year, making the country one of the fastest growing displacement crises in the world today, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said on Thursday.

According to the latest figures from the UNOCHA, as many as 793,000 people have been displaced in Gedeo zone and at least 185,000 people in West Guji zone in Ethiopia.

The massive influx in a relatively short period has created a grave humanitarian crisis. While the government and host communities have provided the majority of relief to affected communities so far, more support is required as needs rise.

This crisis also adds to millions of people in need of food and other assistance due to successive years of drought, while new waves of insecurity have hindered efforts by the government to support displaced people to return home.

Currently the displaced are mostly settled with already food insecure relatives or residing in cramped public buildings at the most densely populated parts of the country. Food has been provided by the government, while emergency shelter and non-food items have been provided by both the government and humanitarian partners.

Last week, the Ethiopian government and humanitarian partners have jointly launched a Response Plan requesting 117.7 million U.S. dollars for the coming six months to deliver immediate life-sustaining assistance and access to basic services to over 818,000 men, women and children displaced.

Though some seven million dollars has already been mobilized by government and partners, more funding is urgently needed, along with global stocks of emergency shelter and non-food items. There are fears that the situation will continue to deteriorate and that the number of displaced might increase, UNOCHA said.

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