Food supplies for refugees running out

Some 25,000 refugees living in Djibouti are at risk of malnutrition, the World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Thursday. It said supplies for the refuges were "rapidly running out" and appealed for an emergency 8,000 mt of food to deal with the crisis. Last month WFP cut the rations for the refugees by 20 percent in an effort to save precious resources. It said in a statement that the refugees were no longer receiving rations of corn-soya blend, a nutritious flour enriched with vitamins, while vegetable oil rations had been halved. "Refugees are now getting rations well below agreed international nutritional standards," said Fatma Samoura, the WFP Representative in Djibouti. "If we do not quickly restore normal rations, malnutrition will sharply increase in the camps." In March, WFP warned of the impending emergency, and launched an 18-month relief and recovery programme, but has so far received just 17 percent of the US $4 million needed. For the past three decades, tens of thousands of Ethiopians, Somalis and Eritreans have sought refuge in Djibouti, fleeing wars and famines. The influx has placed a massive strain on already overstretched resources. In 1999, a severe drought in the region decimated livestock herds, thereby critically affecting an estimated 100,000 people. According to WFP, food assistance for the refugees is crucial, because they have no other source of food. They cannot grow their own food due to the arid climate and water shortage in Djibouti. Rainfall in the country, which lies on the Red Sea, is both erratic and low, with annual rainfall averaging 100 mm. Moreover, there are no employment opportunities in the remote areas where the camps are located. The food shortage also threatens to delay a refugee repatriation programme planned jointly by WFP and the UN refugee agency, UNHCR. They are hoping to repatriate 2,000 Somalis in early June.