FROM THE FIELD: COVID-19 just the latest crisis facing Somalia
Medical workers at a UN-supported clinic near the Ceel Jaale IDP camp in Belet Weyne, Somalia, attend to a mother and her child.
16 June 2020
Devastating floods, desert locusts and the COVID-19 pandemic constitute a ‘triple threat’, that risks reversing political and security gains made in Somalia in recent years, the United Nations is warning.
Close to 500,000 people have been displaced and more than a million affected, by recent floods in Somalia’s central regions; a severe locust infestation which threatens food security and nutrition; and at the same time, as the country is responding to the spread of COVID-19.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is calling for swift action from the international community, to avoid a major humanitarian crisis in a country whose ability to cope with disasters is significantly less than that of surrounding countries.
The pandemic has led to major disruption nationwide, including a reduction in remittances from the diaspora, a mainstay for many Somalis, and a reduction in casual labour opportunities due to COVID-19 restrictions.
In a story you can find here, put together by the UN Mission in Somalia, UNSOM, find out what UN agencies are doing in response to the “triple threat”, helping to reduce the impact on the population.
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