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Ethiopia Situation Report - August 2017

Countries
Ethiopia
Sources
FAO
Publication date
Origin
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IN NUMBERS

8.5 million People food insecure (Midyear Review of the 2017 Humanitarian Requirements Document [HRD])

2.25 million Households require emergency livestock support in 2017

USD 60.1 million Required for humanitarian response in Ethiopia’s agriculture sector in 2017 (Midyear Review of the 2017 HRD)

USD 20 million Needed by FAO to assist 1 million farming, agropastoral and pastoral households in 2017

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Consecutive seasons of poor rainfall in southern and southeastern pastoral areas have driven increasing humanitarian needs.
    At USD 1.25 billion, Ethiopia’s Midyear Review of the 2017 HRD is among the largest humanitarian appeals in the world.

  • A surge in food insecurity – now affecting 8.5 million people, up from 5.6 million in January – and staggering malnutrition rates in drought-affected areas are in large part a consequence of insufficient livelihoods response, which remains just 43% funded.

  • For pastoral households, keeping livestock alive is key to their own survival. Remaining livestock – especially those able to help regenerate a herd – require urgent access to feed and animal health services. In addition to emergency activities, pastoral and agropastoral communities further require resilience-focused interventions to cope with future disasters.

  • Drought impacts are unlikely to end soon. According to Ethiopia’s National Meteorology Agency, the upcoming October– December rainfall season is expected to be near normal to below normal, with potentially late onset and early withdrawal.
    This has significant potential to lead to a further deterioration in the current livelihood situation.

  • A new pest, the fall armyworm, is spreading rapidly across the country’s maize-producing areas – and threatens widespread crop damage across the western half of the country if left unaddressed. Presence of the pest has been reported in six surplus-producing regions, with 600 000 ha of maize infested.