Up to 3.5 million Somalis at risk from floods
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Care
Up to 3.5 million Somalis could be exposed to flooding during the Deyr rainy season, with 1 million at risk of being displaced again. The rains could worsen the food crisis after several health centres and aid programmes closed, according to CARE.
Somali authorities estimate that 2.5 to 3.5 million people could be exposed to flooding during the Deyr rainy season, between October and December 2026, according to CARE. Up to one million people are at risk of being displaced again, as forecasters anticipate heavier rains linked to El Niño.
Somalia narrowly avoided famine during the previous major drought, but health centres, food assistance and nutrition programmes that had helped prevent the crisis have since closed, CARE reports. A health centre supported by the organisation near Dhahar, where a one-year-old child was being monitored, closed at the end of September.
The 2023 El Niño floods displaced 1.2 million people in Somalia. Torrential rains can destroy crops and livestock, cut off access to markets and health centres, and force families to leave their homes. Several communities affected in 2023 are still living with destroyed homes, damaged irrigation systems and lost herds, according to CARE.
Somali authorities and their partners are preparing warning and response measures, but some of the resources mobilised in 2023 are no longer available, the organisation says. China and Ukraine have responded to Somalia’s appeal over the floods, in an aid effort already reported.
Summary produced with the help of artificial intelligence tools, under AFREEQUE’s editorial responsibility.
