U.S. Announces Additional Emergency Relief for Somali Region

November 26, 2007
No. 57/07

ADDIS ABABA – Director of U.S. Foreign Assistance and Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Henrietta H. Fore announced Monday that the U.S. is providing $2.9 million in humanitarian assistance and $25 million in emergency food aid in response to needs in Ethiopia’s Somali Region.  The Deputy Secretary visited Gode Sunday to meet with Government of Ethiopia officials and UN and NGO representatives about the Ogaden situation.  She also visited a food aid distribution site and mobile health and nutrition activities.

USAID’s Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) has committed an additional $2.9 million (over 26 million birr) in emergency relief for water and sanitation, health, nutrition, and livelihood programs to support Ethiopians in the most affected areas of the Somali Region.  This additional funding will be used to establish therapeutic feeding programs for the severely malnourished, provide clean water through the construction or rehabilitation of water systems, promote increased health awareness through community-based education programs and create livelihood opportunities for vulnerable households through an increase in purchasing power and creation of community assets. Total USAID disaster assistance for the Somali Region since August 2007 totals $6.6 million. 

In addition, USAID has provided nearly $25 million (225 million birr) of emergency food assistance to the UN World Food Program (WFP) in response to food insecurity in the Somali Region.  This contribution includes 20,000 metric tons of sorghum, 22,420 metric tons of wheat and 1,500 metric tons of vegetable oil.

The United States has provided over US $225 million (over 2 billion birr) to support humanitarian programs throughout Ethiopia this year, including the delivery of food aid, strengthening disaster preparedness, and implementing emergency nutrition, health, and water programs. 

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