By Xinhua,
Nairobi : A humanitarian crisis is unfolding in Somalia with the number of people needing food aid in the lawless nation rising to more than 3.2 million this year, a UN funded report said Wednesday.
“The scale, magnitude and speed at which the crisis is deteriorating are alarming and profound,” the Food Security Analysis Unit (FSAU) said.
The FSAU called the situation in the Horn of Africa nation one of the worst in the world in recent days.
“Within the first six months of this year, the number of people requiring emergency livelihood and humanitarian support increased 77 percent, from 1.83 million to 3.25 million, affecting 43 percent of the entire population of the country,” it said.
The report said the crisis is compounded by failed rains, rising food prices, inflation, and the political chaos.
“The level of human suffering and deprivation is shocking. One in six children under the age of five is acutely malnourished, and the number is continuing to increase,” it said.