Somaliland: Humanitarian Response Plan Somalia 2020

(MENAFN- Somali Land Sun) Somalilandsun: The below document is consolidated by OCHA on behalf of the Humanitarian Country Team and partners. It provides a shared understanding of the crisis, including the most pressing humanitarian needs and the estimated number of people who need assistance. It represents a consolidated evidence base and helps inform joint strategic response planning. The designations employed and the presentation of material in the report do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

Foreword by the Humanitarian Coordinator

Quote; Somalia is essentially a protection crisis. Armed conflict and insecurity are displacing thousands of people, and human rights violations are endangering civilians, forcing many to flee their homes and exposing them to multiple risks.

In recent years, climate-related shocks, mainly drought and flooding, have increased in frequency and intensity, exacerbating humanitarian needs and undermining resilience at the household and community levels. In 2019, just months after we successfully responded to a major drought across Somalia, abnormal Deyr rains (October to December season) triggered widespread flooding affecting over half a million people, 370,000 of whom were forced to abandon their homes. Before the floods, 300,000 people had already been displaced by drought and conflict in 2019, adding to the 2.6 million internally displaced people living in 2,000 sites across Somalia. Collectively these shocks left over six million Somalis in need of humanitarian assistance and protection through December 2019 – a 36 per cent increase compared to late 2018. Half of these people were in five regions: Banadir, Bay, Lower Shabelle, Awdal and Hiraan. Sudden onset hazards and increased caseloads of people in need have enormous implications for the humanitarian response in Somalia. When floods hit in October 2019, the 2019 Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) was about 80 per cent funded. However, additional resources were required to meet the needs of people and institutions affected; that is why, on 23 November 2019, we appealed for an additional US$72.5 million. I am grateful that the Somalia Humanitarian Fund and the Central Emergency Response Fund responded quickly with $18 million dollars. I thank ECHO and DFID for providing additional funding to sustain our response to the floods. Our immediate assistance and support for longer-term durable solutions must be inclusive and accessible to ensure that the full diversity of the affected population is reached and supported to actively participate in, and benefit from, our efforts. To this end, the United Nations and its partners are working to ensure that emergency and development assistance complement each other in line with the Government's new National Development Plan, which aims to achieve long-term recovery and resilience. The humanitarian community has mounted a robust life-saving response to the needs of millions of vulnerable Somalis. We have strengthened our relationship with the Government and our partners and laid the foundation for a stronger cooperation architecture. In 2019, we scaled up assistance across the country despite huge challenges including bureaucratic constraints, access impediments, insecurity and inadequate funding. Aid workers faced grave risks in this context. As of November 2019, 68 violent incidents had been recorded against humanitarian operations in which 12 aid workers were killed, five injured, 11 abducted, 18 arrested or temporarily detained and three expelled by authorities for alleged infractions. I am hopeful that the situation will improve in 2020 to enable us to reach more people who desperately need humanitarian assistance. Some 25 partners in the Food Security Cluster reached 2.1 million people with food assistance in 2019. Health partners provided 1.2 million people with assistance, 1.6 million people were reached by WASH partners and 1.1 million people were supported by CCCM partners. Some 627,000 children received nutrition interventions, 385,000 people were assisted with shelter activities, 700,000 people benefited from protection activities and 98,000 children were accessed by education partners. These achievements would not have been possible without the generous support of our donors. As of November 2019, 86 per cent (US$957 million) of the S1.08 billion that we requested in the 2019 HRP had been funded. While funding was skewed across clusters, with some like the Shelter and Health not as well funded as Food Security and Nutrition, I thank all our donor partners for the support given to the 2019 HRP and urge them to generously support the 2020 HRP. I am confident that this year, working closely with the Federal Government of Somalia, state authorities and all our partners,the humanitarian community will be better prepared to handle the multiple crises that we know will require our response. This HRP outlines our detailed plans for 2020 based on the critical analysis of needs and the financial requirements needed to achieve our response plans. The overall aim is to address the underlying causes of Somalia's crises, improve livelihoods and build long-term durable solutions. Unquote

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