The United Nations World Food Programme says an estimated 13 million people in Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia face severe hunger across the Horn of Africa.
The UN agency, on Tuesday, said three consecutive rainy seasons have failed as the regions recorded its driest conditions since 1981.
The drought destroyed crops and inflicted abnormally high livestock deaths, forcing rural families who rely on herding and farming to abandon their homes, it added.
Michael Dunford, WFP’s regional director in East Africa, said water and grazing land are in short supply and forecasts of below-average rainfall in coming months only threaten more misery.
This week, the agency said it would launch its Regional Drought Response Plan for the Horn of Africa, calling for $327 million to respond to the immediate needs of 4.5 million people over the next six months.
– The Cable