MOGADISHU (SD) – Somali government vowed to prioritize agriculture to get enough food for its population amid the country is struggling with severe drought which hit part of the regions in the country.

In a statement, Hussein Iid, minister of Agriculture and Irrigation has expressed the Somali government’s commitment to creating an enabling environment for equitable and sustainable food systems in Somalia.

“We believe this is the key to the country’s human, economic and social development,” Iid said in a Somalia, FAO, WFP joint statement issued in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, after a virtual event to mark this year’s World Food Day.

The minister noted that the government has set a plan to focus on the recurring drought which cost lives of human beings and thousands of livestock.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said the effects of climate change are being felt the world over amid an ever-growing population.

“We need to nurture the planet so that we can continue to meet the food production needs of the population in years to come. This requires us to build long-term resilience and change the way we produce and consume food,” Peterschmitt said.

WFP said its food systems interventions in Somalia interlock with its broader work to enable vulnerable communities to be more resilient in the face of natural shocks.