Somalia's IDP hunger crisis: the urgent case for climate change mitigation — Opinion
Drought conditions continue to displace thousands of Somalis from their homes, yet the resources to contain the growing humanitarian crisis are dwindling. This deepens an already complex situation, with no clear remedy in sight.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Somalia hosts 3.3 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) and nearly half a million refugees and asylum seekers, displaced by natural disasters and persistent armed conflict. Aid cuts are making access to essential services extremely difficult for this population, especially for women, children and the elderly.
Somalia’s humanitarian crisis has reached a boiling point: 6.5 million people face acute food insecurity, 2 million at emergency hunger levels. Central and northern Somalia, along with Jubaland State are the worst affected. Jubaland alone hosts half a million distressed people, many of whom are still reeling from lost plantations and hundreds of livestock to prolonged drought and disease.
The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) estimates that approximately 62,000 people have been displaced by drought across five districts in Somalia since the beginning of 2026, with at least three out of every four new displacements attributed to severe climatic events.
“The positive forecasts bring hope that there will be rain in the coming weeks, but even with these rains, it is unlikely that we will see significant improvement in food insecurity and malnutrition, because this comes after multiple failed rainy seasons across the country,” notes Francesca Sangiorgi, Save the Children’s Humanitarian Director. She emphasises the damage that Somalia’s erratic rains inflict on critical infrastructure, which hampers service delivery.
Francesca’s concerns are echoed in IOM’s projection that about 125,000 more people will likely be displaced by drought in the second quarter of 2026 despite the expected rains between April and June.
Additionally, a Save the Children report estimates that 1.8 million children under five will suffer from acute malnutrition in 2026, including severe cases, while millions lose access to critical services like immunisation as foreign-funded programmes are suspended due to budget gaps.
Foreign aid cuts have left over 80% of humanitarian services unfunded, impeding people’s access to healthcare, nutrition and education in the camps. The US-Israel-Iran conflict has also diverted global attention and disrupted global trade routes, fuelling food insecurity, given that Somalia imports more than 70% of its food. A recent spike in fuel prices and the cost of staple foods like maize and sorghum has worsened the problem.
“There’s no assistance on the horizon. Nothing we’re expecting as of today. I don’t know tomorrow. There’s no sight of any assistance from any quarter or from any humanitarian actor,” says Ali Aden Ali, Jubaland’s Commissioner for Refugees and IDPs.
The spectre of devastation is evident across several IDP camps in the East African country. In Kismayo, which hosts about half a million people – the majority of them women and children – a cloud of anguish and hopelessness hangs over displaced families at risk of secondary displacement in search of the basic necessities of life.
Somalia’s situation highlights the need for strategic investment in climate change mitigation. Countries facing drought-induced displacement must prioritise disaster preparedness, post-disaster management, and climate‑resilient agriculture in the hardest-hit regions. This could boost local food production and help curb forced migration and food insecurity.
The article solely represents the views of Simpson Muhwezi, a Ugandan freelance writer and development practitioner.
