The President’s Special Envoy in charge of famine relief, Abdirahman Abdishakur Warsame, briefed a few dozen lawmakers in the 11th Parliament on the country’s drought situation on Sunday.
Warsame stated that the drought has affected 7.1 million Somalis and that all regions of the country are experiencing humanitarian conditions that require an immediate response.
The envoy also stated that people affected by the drought are fleeing their homes for internal displacement camps in major cities. 3.7 million people are believed to have been displaced by conflict, insecurity, forced evictions, droughts, and floods.
Warsame added that 1.5million children had been affected by the drought, with nearly 400,000 currently facing malnutrition.
Warsame called on members of both Houses of Parliament to prioritize the drought and demanded that part of their salaries be donated to drought victims.
Sunday’s parliamentary session was cancelled by the Speaker of the Somali Parliament, Sheikh Adan Mohamed Nur, for the second time in two weeks due to a lack of quorum.
