Canada is extremely concerned by the drought in the Horn of Africa and its impact on vulnerable populations already struggling as a result of poverty, insecurity and the COVID-19 pandemic. Severe drought conditions in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia could result in over 20 million people across the region needing emergency food assistance in 2022, which would be a 70% increase when compared to the severe drought in 2016 and 2017.
Today, at a high-level roundtable on the drought in the Horn of Africa, co-hosted by the European Union and the United Nations, the Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, Minister of International Development and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada, announced that Canada will provide over $73 million in funding for gender-responsive humanitarian and development assistance to meet the needs of people in these three countries.
This funding will be provided to UN agencies, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, and non-governmental organizations to address both immediate and longer-term needs. With Canada's ongoing support, these partners are helping to address hunger, acute malnutrition and other critical needs of crisis-affected populations in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia.
