Recommendations For Famine Relief and Prevention

SOMALIA
Recommendations for
Famine Relief and
Prevention
Presented by START
Students Taking Action Response Team
Summary of Presentation
• Location of Somalia
• Basic facts on famine in Somalia
as contributed by each team
member:
• Politician
• Social Anthropologist
• Economist/Community
Planner
• Medical Doctor Foreign governments set up feeding
• Agricultural centers in Somalia, such as the one
Engineer/Scientist pictured, in order to help the Somali
people overcome starvation.
• Team concerns and Microsoft® Encarta® Encyclopedia 2001. © 1993-
2000 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
recommendations
• What sources were used
Somalia, Africa
Somalia is located
in Eastern Africa,
bordering the Gulf
of Aden and the
Indian Ocean, east
of Ethiopia.
Microsoft® Encarta® Encyclopedia 2001. ©
1993-2000 Microsoft Corporation. All rights
reserved.
Famine in Somalia
Major Causes: War
■ One major reason
for famine in
Somalia is the
factional fighting
that has consumed
the continent of
Africa.
– As a result, many
United States troops were sent to Somalia in
people are denied December 1992 to protect food and relief
food simply because supplies and to help restore order in the
country, which was ravaged by civil war. Here, a
they are on the U.S. soldier opens a sack of food for the people.
wrong side of a war. Microsoft® Encarta® Encyclopedia 2001. © 1993-2000
Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
Facts on Famine in
Somalia Major Causes:
Weather
 A second major reason for
famine in Somalia is
weather conditions.
 Somalia is largely desert, with
sections that flood each year.
 Many scientists believe that
global warming is changing
our weather patterns, and
affects rainfall in crucial areas.
 El Nino has contributed to
severe flooding in Somalia.
Economic Concerns and
Issues
■ Somalia has a very poor economic situation:
– Agriculture is very important
■ Livestock accounts for about 40% of GDP and 65% of export
earnings, but some countries ban the import of Somali livestock.
– Livestock, hides, fish, charcoal, and bananas are Somalia's
principal exports, while sugar, sorghum, corn, qat (a mild
narcotic), and machined goods are the principal imports.
■ Nomads and semi-nomads, who are dependent upon livestock for
their livelihood, make up a large portion of the population.
– Ongoing civil disturbances and clan rivalries have interfered
with economic development and international aid
arrangements.
Political Perspectives on
Somalia
■ Somalia's economic fortunes are being driven
by its deep political divisions.
– There is lack of leadership
■ There is no permanent national government;
transitional, parliamentary national government

■ Numerous clan and sub-clan factions are currently
vying for power

– Beginning in 1993, a two-year UN humanitarian
effort (primarily in the south) was able to alleviate
famine conditions, but when the UN withdrew in
1995, having suffered significant casualties, order
still had not been restored.
Anthropology’s
Contribution
■ Civil war has been a fact of life in Somalia since 1977.
■ Many people are illiterate and face other problems:
– Only 38% of people are literate, and only 25% of women are literate.
– Life expectancy is to 41; women have an average of 6 children.
– Population counting in Somalia is complicated by large number of nomads and by
refugee movements in response to famine and clan warfare.
■ Family and community life is inconsistent:

– Periodic crop failures and losses of livestock often occur when seasonal rains fail or
when unusually heavy storms cause widespread flooding.
– During such times, a family's emergency food supplies diminish rapidly, and hunger
and starvation become commonplace until weather conditions improve and
livestock herds are subsequently rejuvenated.
– For centuries, this has been the general pattern of life.
Science and Agricultural
Weigh in With Additional
Information
■ There are negative agricultural conditions in
Somalia:
– Somalia is in Eastern Africa and is slightly smaller
than Texas.
■ The land is desert - mostly flat, rising to hills in north.
– Only 1.67% of land is arable, and only 2,000 sq km is
irrigated.
– Natural hazards include
■ recurring droughts
■ frequent dust storms over eastern plains in summer
■ floods during rainy season
– Other problems that contribute to famine include:
■ use of contaminated water contributes to human health
problems
■ deforestation and overgrazing
■ soil erosion and desertification
Medical Concerns are Also
Problematic
■ Casualties of civil war are extreme
– Many people have lost limbs; no facilities exist to make prosthetic devices
■ 200,000 people are living in displaced persons camps, where
conditions are reported as severe: high levels of malnutrition and near
starvation; widespread skin and gastro-intestinal illness and festering
war wounds.
■ Hospitals throughout country have very limited medical supplies – and
are without screens on windows to keep insects
– Little to no oxygen available and no inhalation anesthesia possible
– Insufficient doctors, nurses, and medical staff to support the needs
– Few beds, no food available to inpatients
■ Long-term disorders resulting from famine and war: pathological grief,
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and aberrant behavior in
children.
Major Concerns
■ For the health and welfare of Somalia people,

we must get them food!
■ There is little prospect of food production in

Somalia increasing this year in comparison
with last year, even if the weather is kind.
Lack of seeds and agricultural equipment
combined with insecurity means that smaller
areas will be planted, and less food will find
its way to market.
– Most of the shortfall must be made good by international
aid.
Other Major Concerns
■ Distributing food in Somalia is logistically
straightforward but requires extremely careful
planning to ensure security.
– Food relief does not move freely to all areas.
– We need strategies for moving food through the country
from ships at the ports.
■ A more general problem is the danger of attacks by

looters and undisciplined soldiers.
– Delivering food can be hazardous. An aid worker was shot
and died during a dispute during a food distribution.
– Since that time, all distributions have been done by clan
elders, not directly by the aid agencies themselves.
– While this means that the targeting of food to the most
needy, especially women and children, may be less than
optimal, it is by far the best arrangement under the
circumstances.
Conclusion and
Recommendations
■ We all agree that food is the issue and that food must be brought in from
external sources.
■ The security problems associated with food delivery by the U.N. are likely
to be greatest in the first few weeks of a major delivery program. The
dangers will lessen as food becomes cheaper and more readily available.
There are a number of elements critical to the success of such an
operation. These include:
– Sending food without waiting for the ceasefire negotiated by the U.N. to hold,
without any other additional guarantees, before Mogadishu port is reopened or
there is free access to all areas of the city.
– Sending food simultaneously to ports or airports to the north and south of
Mogadishu, so that the food relief program does not become a strategic asset to
one side only, thereby inviting attack from the other side.
– Making sure that the first shipments are heavily guarded, by deploying
professional troops from the armies to serve escort duty.
– Creating the confidence that the first deliveries will not be the last. This
confidence is just as important as the food itself; if there is the expectation that
food will become readily available, merchants will unload their stocks of food,
thereby decreasing market prices, and the motives for stealing food will be
reduced.
■ Once we have started the food deliveries, we will then need to turn to
increasing medical and economic resources.
Am I My Brother’s Keeper?
■ YES! Famine is a world-wide issue and

the United States needs to be involved in
prevention and relief of famine because:
– We are a world power and with such power
comes responsibility
– Famine results in additional disease that can
be transmitted to others
– Famine results in additional conflict between
and within nations that leads to additional
deaths and famine
Sources
■ NO MERCY IN MOGADISHU: The Human Cost of the Conflict & The

Struggle for Relief Africa Watch, Physicians for Human Rights March
26,1992. http://hrw.org/reports/1992/somalia/
■ International Famine Center
■ El Nino Update
■ Irish Potato Famine
■ World Food Program
■ All imagers were taken from Microsoft Encarta (acknowledgement on

image) and Microsoft Clip Art unless otherwise stated.

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SOMALIA

transitional, parliamentary national government

vying for power

■ Family and community life is inconsistent:

■ For the health and welfare of Somalia people,

■ There is little prospect of food production in

■ A more general problem is the danger of attacks by

■ YES! Famine is a world-wide issue and

■ NO MERCY IN MOGADISHU: The Human Cost of the Conflict & The

■ International Famine Center

■ Irish Potato Famine

■ World Food Program

■ All imagers were taken from Microsoft Encarta (acknowledgement on

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