Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Hargeisa (Agenzia Fides) - Health workers in the Republic of Somaliland have appealed with a request for food aid and clean water for thousands of families who, because of drought, have lost their livelihoods. Families living in areas of Garba dadar, Gargaara bari, Gerisa and Osoli, in western Somaliland, have lost all their livestock and they can not get regular food supplies. Others, in the areas of Gargaara and Gerrisa, go ahead with the supplies of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). Even in Ceel la helay, north of the capital Hargeisa, the situation is serious. In February, WFP distributed food aid to some 150,000 people in Somaliland, among these 38 000 were mothers and children under 5 years of age, while other 18,600 families received rations or food vouchers thanks to the program targeted to the treatment of malnourished children, pregnant women and mothers who have been diagnosed with malnutrition. Approximately 48 000 people have also had food rations through school meal programs. In the rural mountain area of Baki there are about 1800 malnourished children. The highest rates occur among displaced persons (IDPs) in the area of Burco Togdheer. The rains in the northern regions of Somalia began in mid-October 2011 but decreased ahead of time. WFP is also providing other assistance programs such as building reserves, wells and roads able to withstand any seasonal calamities. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 30/3/2012)
