Wednesday, March 09, 2011
MOGADISHU, Somalia, March 9 (UPI) -- The U.N. World Food Program said it was doing everything it can to help Somalis affected by pervasive drought and ongoing conflict.
Somalia hasn't had a functioning central government since the 1990s and forces loyal to the current transitional government are battling al-Shabaab, an al-Qaida affiliate bent on establishing an Islamist state.
The WFP said it was providing food assistance to around 1 million people in Somalia, with about 25 percent of those living in Mogadishu.
The relief group said it recently delivered emergency high-energy food supplies to about 20 camps in the country but added it was in urgent need of financial assistance to help it get through the next six months in Somalia.
"WFP and its partners are doing all we can to feed the hungry, especially women and children, who have been forced from their homes by a combination of drought and conflict," said Stefano Porretti, WFP Somalia country director, in a statement. "They are caught in the middle, squeezed on all sides and need our support."
Source: UPI