The devastating drought that is ravaging several parts of Somalia has affected an estimated 4.3 million people, up from 3.2 million a month earlier, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

According to media reports, the worsening drought has caused 271,000 people to flee their homes in search of water, food, and pasture. "With the next rainy season not projected until April 2022, Somalia is facing a possible disaster," the OCHA said in its most recent drought response, which was issued in Mogadishu, Somalia's capital.

The UN Central Emergency Response Fund has provided $25 million to the drought response, and the Somalia Humanitarian Fund has matched this financing with a $6 million allocation; a second allocation is in the works, according to the statement. Additional money for priority sectors, including substantive and early funding for the 2022 Somalia Humanitarian Response Plan, is urgently needed to save lives and livelihoods.

The OCHA stated that "severe water shortages and insufficient access to sanitation and hygiene facilities have increased the danger of disease outbreaks." The drought is expected to worsen, as Somalia faces a fourth consecutive failed rainy season in early 2022, according to the report.

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