The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Children and their families living in Ethiopia's lowland regions of Afar, Oromia, The Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ and Somali regions struggle to survive from a severe drought which is drying up water wells, killing livestock and crops and pushing hundreds of thousands of children and their families to the brink. Due to three consecutive failed rainy seasons, the country requires urgent humanitarian assistance.
Speaking today at a news briefing at the United Nations in Geneva, UNICEF's Representative in Ethiopia, Gianfranco Rotigliano, said that “it is a drought that is affecting almost seven million people on their livelihood, on food security”. He added that “it is something which is already pretty advanced and bad, but that could worsen dramatically if the next rainy season which is due in April, after mid-April, would not come the way it should come.”
Most severely impacted regions are the lowland areas of southern and eastern Oromia and Somalis regions where around 225,000 malnourished children and over 100,000 pregannt and breastfeeding women need urgent nutrition support.
“There is a need to improve the status of the health centers, the nutritional centers where the severely acute, malnourished children can be admitted and treated correctly. And all of that is something that should be done within the next 2, 3 weeks”, said Mr. Rotigliano.
UNICEF is appealing for US$ 31 million to provide lifesaving support to more than 2 million in Afar, Somali, SNNPR and Oromia regions.
There is a significant lack of clean water and the food security is deteriorating rapidly leading to an increase in malnutrition cases.
UNICEF’s Ethiopia representative said that “the rate of acute malnutrition is already at 20%, which is well above the rate that we have in global emergencies, which is estimated to 15%.”
UNICEF, in close coordination with the local authorities, is providing life-saving assistance, including the rehabilitation of boreholes and water schemes, emergency water trucking, treatment of severely malnourished children.
“We have animals dying at an impressive rate which is increasing every month”, reported Mr. Rotigliano. “A death of an animal means lack of food for children, for families, lack of money, of course, so to buy food, lack of milk. And that is definitely something which is already happening”.
UNICEF is witnessing also major displacement out of affected areas; children are also missing out an education due to the drought.
According to UNICEF’s Ethiopia representative, “the population is moving already from the lowlands to the highlands, displacing themselves, leaving behind the small children that could not travel with relatives and coming up with children that are 11 or 12 and above that dropped out of school. So, we estimate already more than 155,000 children out of school.”
It is also projected that in 2022, an estimated 850,000 children will be severely malnourished across the four regions due to multiple causes namely conflict, drought, and economic downturn.
“We are having hundreds of thousands of children severely malnourished, so with acute severe malnutrition these are already numbers that are extremely worrisome, and we expect, of course, the mortality rate to increase”, said UNICEF’s Ethiopia representative.
-ends-
- Exterior wide shot, United Nations Palace of Nations, Geneva, UN flags flying.
- Wide shot and pan, press room UN Geneva.
- SOUNDBITE (English): Gianfranco Rotigliano, UNICEF Representative in Ethiopia: “It is a drought that is affecting almost seven million people on their livelihood, on food security. And it is something which is already pretty advanced and bad, but that could worsen dramatically if the next rainy season which is due in April, after mid-April, would not come the way it should come.”
- Medium shot, TV screen with speakers next to podium.
- SOUNDBITE (English): Gianfranco Rotigliano, UNICEF Representative in Ethiopia: “There is a need to improve the status of the health centers, the nutritional centers where the severely acute, malnourished children can be admitted and treated correctly. And all of that is something that should be done within the next 2, 3 weeks.”
- Medium shot, participants listening with TV screen to rear.
- SOUNDBITE (English): Gianfranco Rotigliano, UNICEF Representative in Ethiopia: “The rate of acute malnutrition is already at 20%, which is well above the rate that we have in global emergencies, which is estimated to 15%.”
- Medium shot, masked participants listening.
- SOUNDBITE (English): Gianfranco Rotigliano, UNICEF Representative in Ethiopia: “We have animals dying at an impressive rate which is increasing every month. And a death of an animal means lack of food for children, for families, lack of money, of course, so to buy food, lack of milk. And that is definitely something which is already happening.”
- Medium shot, back of a journalist with cameraman standing behind the camera.
- SOUNDBITE (English): Gianfranco Rotigliano, UNICEF Representative in Ethiopia: “The population is moving already from the lowlands to the highlands, displacing themselves, leaving behind the small children that could not travel with relatives and coming up with children that are 11 or 12 and above that dropped off school. So, we estimate already more than 155,000 children out of school.”
- Medium shot, masked participants listening.
- SOUNDBITE (English): Gianfranco Rotigliano, UNICEF Representative in Ethiopia: “We are having hundreds of thousands of children severely malnourished, so with acute severe malnutrition these are already numbers that are extremely worrisome, and we expect, of course, the mortality rate to increase.”
- Medium shot, participants listening and taking notes.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
No evacuation order given before Kamal Adwan Hospital strike, says WHO
One of the last partially functional health centres in northern Gaza was reportedly hit again overnight into Friday by several strikes, leaving four health workers among the casualties and the dead, according to the UN World Health Organization (WHO).
2
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences | OCHA
More than 280,000 people have been uprooted in northwest Syria in a matter of days following the sudden and massive offensive into Government-controlled areas led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is sanctioned by the Security Council as a terrorist group.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk has called on the Georgian authorities to respect and protect the rights to freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly following several nights of protests that were marred by violence, and dispersed using disproportionate, and in some cases unnecessary, force by the police in the capital, Tbilisi.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said today he was extremely concerned about the recent escalation in hostilities in northwest Syria, which further compounds the suffering endured by millions of civilians.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , WHO , OCHA
Syria escalation: Civilians face deadly attacks, health care in distress and aid access compromised
The ongoing escalation of violence in northwest Syria linked to the wider conflict in Gaza and Lebanon has left civilians dead and injured, hospitals “overwhelmed” and attacks on healthcare on the rise, the UN warned on Tuesday.
2
1
4
Press Conferences , Edited News | OCHA
Multiple unending conflicts, climate change and a glaring disregard for long-established international humanitarian law are set to leave a staggering 305 million people in need of lifesaving assistance next year, the UN’s top aid official warned on Wednesday.
Embargo Wednesday, 4 December 2024 at 0600 CET / 0000 ET
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The UN Rights Office on Friday warned about the plight of civilians in Ukraine after further attacks on the country’s energy infrastructure.
1
1
1
Edited News | ITU
An international panel has been set up to protect undersea communications cables that are crucial for international trade and security, the UN International Telecommunication Union (ITU) said on Friday. The creation of the International Advisory Body for Submarine Cable Resilience comes amid an ongoing investigation into the severing of two fibre optic cables in the Baltic Sea, in less than 24 hours between 17 and 18 November.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | ITU
An estimated 5.5 billion people have access to the internet in 2024, an increase of 227 million people based on revised estimates for 2023, the UN specialized agency for telecommunications, ITU, said on Wednesday.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | UNAIDS
Launch of World AIDS Day Report 2024—Take The Rights Path
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
A joint report issued this morning by the UN Human Rights Office and the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) paints a disturbing picture of the media landscape in the country since the Taliban takeover. UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk says.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN human rights chief Volker Türk lent his weight to growing ceasefire calls in Lebanon on Tuesday, amid reports that the senior Israeli cabinet members were due to meet on a deal to end more than a year of conflict with Hezbollah militants, sparked by the war in Gaza