Understanding the Somali Famine of 2011.

[PointTracker]

Taking a look at a picture of Africa, one will likely notice that the easternmost portion of the continent juts out far into the Arabian Sea. This region is known as the "Horn of Africa" (HOA) and is made up of four countries - Eritrea, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Somalia. The region is collectively home to 100 million people, with about 85 million of them in Ethiopia and about 10 million of them in Somalia.

A quick glimpse of the news should highlight that certain parts of Somalia are currently undergoing a famine. 

What is a famine, and what led to this one? What are the consequences of it, and what is being done to stop it?

Backdrop
The HOA is currently experiencing a severe drought - basically a time period over which a region will suffer from a lack of water, mostly due to decreased rainfall. In the HOA, lack of rainfall has had disastrous consequences; farming crops have failed, and livestock (farming animals, like cows, that are assets for food production or labor performance) has died off substantially. The destruction of crops and death of livestock have resulted in substantial food shortage. The few cereal grains that are available are too expensive because of their rarity; as a result, what a certain amount of money could have purchased before can only purchase a fraction of that now, which means the currency is worth a lot less - this process is known as inflation.

The decreased rainfall this year is irregular in the HOA's recent history. Between April and June, a regular rainy season for the region, the amount of rainfall in 2011 was less than a third of what the region was used to receiving from 1995-2010. The culprit is thought to be La Nina, the Spanish name for the interaction between the ocean and the atmosphere that has the ability to change the climate of a region significantly. This year's dry climate is thought to be the result of a particularly strong La Nina, which has interrupted two rainy seasons in Somalia in a row now.

Along with the drought and its subsequent strain on the Somalian economy, a militant group called al-Shabab has contributed to the plight of the famine-struck people of Somalia. Al-Shabab is a group of several thousands of young Somali men, heavily armed and embroiled in a conflict with Somalia's government to take control of the country and implement Shari'a law throughout. It is also known to have links to the militant group al-Qaeda, most famously known for claiming responsibility for the September 11th 2001 attacks on the World Trade Centers. Somalia is widely considered to be a failed state; in short, a country that for years has lacked a central government recognized throughout the country. Countless warlords and their clan-based followers fight for as much of the region as possible. Al-Shabab controls much of southern Somalia and from 2009 until July of this year, had blocked any humanitarian organizations from sending aid to Somalian people. The group appears to be concerned that allowing foreign aid will make Somalian people dependent on humanitarian organizations to sustain themselves. Having finally realized how drastic the situation was, the group lifted the ban but still charge humanitarian organizations a steep fee for their work.

What is a famine?
 As a simple definition, 'famine' can be defined as an extreme scarcity or shortage of food, but the international community has long grappled with a more concrete definition. The United Nations declared certain pockets of Somalia as famine situations in July 2011 according to the following criteria:
a) at least 20% of households face extreme food shortages.
b) acute malnutrition in more than 30% of children.
c) two deaths per 10,000 people every day.

The last criterion put into context would mean that at least 2,000 people are dying - out of Somalia's population of 10 million - every day from hunger.

While only certain pockets of Somalia are experiencing a famine, almost half of the country's population (at 3.7 million) are plunged in a food crisis, meaning that famine will arrive if more assistance is not provided. Check out the following map of Somalia's situation, as of September 5th 2011:

Source:BBC

Refugees... without refuge.
The small green squares on the map above mark refugee camps/centres. These are locations outside Somalia that Somali people are meant to flee to in order to receive assistance and food. The one near the bottom, in Dadaab, Kenya, was receiving 1,200 Somali refugees per day as of September 9th 2011. Its maximum capacity is 90,000 refugees, but the total number at the Dadaab site is approximately 500,000, making it the largest refugee camp in the world as of today. The camps' conditions are incredibly worrisome - they are highly overcrowded and lack the resources they need to deal with so many people, such as proper sanitary measures and waste management.

As a result, human waste has come into contact with drinking water, contaminating it with bacteria. When the contaminated water is consumed by people, there is a high risk of an infection called cholera. A disease of the small intestine, it causes vomiting and severe diarrhea and can kill in a matter of hours. Another medical problem is measles. Measles are highly contagious, meaning that a slight cough from an infected person will more than likely infect someone who is not vaccinated from or immune to it. Measles cause itchy rashes all over the body, high fevers and constant coughs. In developed countries, measles generally do not kill - in fact, many children are vaccinated (protected from it by medical procedures) at birth. In refugee camps, place a highly contagious virus in a hugely overcrowded area, and it is not hard to picture how widespread the problem becomes. Without proper care and nutrition in the camps, measles are killing more and more every day.

Somali people have also been subject to attacks, in the form of physical beatings, torture and rape while en route to the refugee camps. Al-Shabab militants, described above, have been beating and murdering Somali refugees, preferring that they starve rather than seek aid from Western countries. Other gangs are tracking down men and women, beating and/or killing them before robbing them of their scant supplies. Women are being raped in order to humiliate them and in some particularly brutal scenarios, a brother will be forced at gunpoint to rape his sister or face certain death. Police are attempting to clamp down on gangmembers and thieves, but the borders between Somalia and countries accepting refugees are long and difficult to patrol entirely. Women have been offered flashlights and whistles in the event they are attacked.

The international response
When it declared the famine in July 2011, the United Nations appealed to the international community to raise $2.4 billion. The greatest single country donor thus far has been the United States, contributing $450 million. The European Union has collectively donated approximately $630 million. The African Union has received contributions from 20 of its 54 members, raising $50 million. Despite the generosity of so many countries, the collective international response has fallen short by $1 billion as of mid-September 2011.

To give an idea of how the contributions are used, the following is taken from the United Nations Refugee Agency (UN High Commissioner for Refugees):

Where to from here?
Somalia is still in dire straits. Four million people are facing crisis, and 750,000 are at risk of imminent death in the next four months from starvation. There are six zones considered famines by UN standards. While the immediate problem lies in handling the famine and returning the refugees safely home, the long-term solution lies in stabilizing Somalia's broken political situation. This is not the first time Somalia has been plunged into famine, and if the real problems are not addressed soon, there is nothing to rule out the arrival of another food crisis in the near future, given this one does subside.

A few items to ponder:
* Do you think there is an obligation on the rest of the world to help out a country suffering from a food crisis?
* What would be your first step in addressing Somalia's plentiful problems?

Some further links, and credit to pieces used to write this article:
[Council on Foreign Relations - Al-Shabaab and Somalia's Spreading Famine]
[Global Post article on conditions at refugee camps - cholera, measles, overcrowdedness]
[Huffington Post article on physical attacks on refugees travelling to camps]
[Voice of America article on psychological trauma at refugee camps]

If you are interested in donating to the cause, donate directly to the United Nations Refugee Agency for Somalia here - [UNHCR Somalia]