Insecurity preventing humanitarian access

The United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, Maxwell Gaylard, has expressed "deep concern" about the deteriorating humanitarian situation resulting from insecurity in many parts of Somalia, particularly around Baidoa, Puntland and the capital, Mogadishu.

In a press release issued on Monday, Gaylard said the fighting was preventing the UN, aid agencies and civil society groups from protecting communities caught in areas of conflict, as well as disrupting the delivery of humanitarian assistance to people already suffering from acute poverty, malnutrition and lack of access to the most basic of services.

Recent fighting in Baidoa, southern Somalia, had killed about 20 civilians and an equal number of militia, while "fierce clashes" in Puntland had left over 100 militia members dead and the area effectively cut off from humanitarian access. In Mogadishu, a wave of kidnappings had severely curtailed the UN's ability to assist about 150,000 internally displaced people and other vulnerable groups, said Gaylard. Several hundred thousand people were displaced nationwide, he added, thus compounding their vulnerability.

Meanwhile, the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation's Food Security Assessment Unit (FSAU) said in its July report that increased insecurity in the north of Gedo Region, southwestern Somalia, was hindering distributions of "much-needed food aid".

Households in the town of Luuq there were reliant on food aid for 38 percent of their calorific needs, according to a joint survey conducted by the FSAU, the USAID-funded Famine Early Warning System (FEWS Net) and the international aid agency, CARE. Restricted access had, however, prevented food aid distributions in the last four months, FSAU reported.

While some people had dispersed to neighbouring areas, the plight of those remaining in Luuq was causing the greatest concern, because although some food was available there it was unaffordable, FSAU reported.

FSAU added that food security challenges in Sanaag Region, northeastern Somalia, were increasingly becoming more evident. Production of milk - a source of protein for most people in the region - was scarce, and people were finding it increasingly difficult to afford imported foodstuffs. "It would be paramount for agencies to mount an intervention strategy before the worsening situation intensifies," warned FSAU.

While there was staple food and nutrition security in some parts of central and southern Somalia, FSAU added, prevailing insecurity in grain belts like Bay (southern Somalia) was threatening its sustainability.