MOGADISHU (SD) – More than 3.5 million people in Somalia are experiencing acute food insecurity, United Nations (UN) said with millions others to face an emergency.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said food insecurity is likely to worsen significantly through May 2022 in Somalia, with many households experiencing widening food consumption gaps and erosion of their coping capacity.

“The delay of the October-December deyr (short) rains has also significantly affected supplementary food and income from livestock production,” UNOCHA said in its latest humanitarian bulletin released on Sunday.

According to OCHA, humanitarian agencies project that 7.7 million people in Somalia will need humanitarian assistance and protection in 2022 due to conflict in various parts of the country, recurrent climatic shocks particularly drought and floods, disease outbreaks, including COVID-19 and increasing poverty.

The widespread dry conditions have resulted in increased human suffering and livestock deaths, with severe drought impacts reported in Jubaland, Southwest and Galmudug states (central regions) and parts of Puntland.

“In addition to the more than 2.9 million IDPs in Somalia, at least 5.5 million people are reportedly vulnerable due to pre-existing shocks and recurring disasters and are among those who are likely to need humanitarian assistance and protection in 2022,” it said.