The UN Emergency Relief Coordinator and Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs underscored the need to integrate disaster risk reduction and recovery into humanitarian action and called attention to the severe droughts in Somalia.
17 February 2011: Valerie Amos, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator and Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, called for disaster risk reduction (DRR) and recovery to be “integrated into humanitarian action to improve preparedness and enhance resilience” of populations. Amos was speaking at a press conference at UN Headquarters in New York, US, on 17 February 2011.
Amos called attention to the current situation in Somalia and Kenya, noting that severe droughts have exacerbated food and water scarcity of vulnerable communities. She stressed the need to strengthen Somalia’s capacity to respond to humanitarian emergencies related to climate change. The UN has reported that malnutrition rates among children have reached emergency levels and about 2.4 million people are in need of relief aid. Severe droughts are increasing the number of internally displaced people (IDPs) in Somalia, who are moving to refugee camps in Kenya. [UN Press Release]