MOGADISHU, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The UN envoy in Somalia has called on the international community to sustain assistance to people affected by conflict, 2017 drought as well as this year's devastating floods and cyclone in Somalia.
Justin Brady of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warned that although the overall food security has improved in Somalia, a significant portion of the population remains food insecure.
"We are on a positive trajectory, but the number of people in need remains high particularly among the rural populations and the urban poor," said Brady who spoke on behalf of Humanitarian Coordinator Peter de Clercq at the release of the latest food security and nutrition assessment results by FAO's Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit (FSNAU) in Somalia.
"The repeated humanitarian emergencies have resulted in many communities with little or no means to recover. Predictable multi-year humanitarian and development funding will be extremely critical," said Brady in a statement issued on Monday.
According to the UN, despite above-average performance of the Gu rains, some 4.6 million people, including 2.5 million children, still require humanitarian assistance.
Of these, 1.5 million are in crisis or emergency. Internally displaced persons (IDPs) are the most vulnerable and in dire need of immediate and long-term assistance.
Brady warned that high malnutrition rates prevail across the country, especially among the highly vulnerable IDP population, noting that the nutrition status of children under age five remains largely unchanged.
An estimated 295,000 children are acutely malnourished, among them 55,000 severely malnourished and in need of urgent life-saving treatment.
