VZCZCXYZ0009
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHNR #2532/01 1600617
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 090617Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY NAIROBI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2324
RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA PRIORITY 8584
RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS PRIORITY 1695
RUEHDJ/AMEMBASSY DJIBOUTI PRIORITY 4243
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME PRIORITY 4947
INFO RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA PRIORITY 3961
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHPH/CDC ATLANTA GA PRIORITY 2767
RHMFIUU/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA  PRIORITY
RUEADWD/DA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEHRC/USDA FAS WASHDC PRIORITY 1286
RUEHXR/RWANDA COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS NAIROBI 002532 
 
SIPDIS 
 
AIDAC 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR AF/E, AF/EPS, AF/PD, EB, PRM/AF, IO 
AID FOR A/AID, AA/DCHA, WGARVELINK, LROGERS, MHESS, 
DCHA/OTI 
DCHA/OFDA FOR GGOTTLIEB, PMORRIS, CGOTTSCHALK, 
KCHANNELL 
DCHA/FFP FOR JDWORKEN, JDRUMMOND, TANDERSON, DNELSON 
DCHA/PPM FOR SBRADLEY 
AID/EGAT FOR AA/EGAT, JSCHAFER, JTURK 
AFR/EA FOR JBORNS, SMCCLURE 
ADDIS ABABA FOR TIM STUFFT 
DJIBOUTI FOR JSCHULMAN 
ROME FOR FODAG 
GENEVA FOR NKYLOH 
BRUSSELS FOR PLERNER 
NSC FOR JMELINE, TSHORTLEY 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID ECON PHUM PREF PREL IGAD CENTCOM KE
SO, DY, ET 
 
SUBJECT:  HORN OF AFRICA, STATE - USAID HUMANITARIAN 
UPDATE NUMBER 7 
 
REF:  A)STATE 27057; B)NAIROBI 00968; C)NAIROBI 01238 
 
D) NAIROBI 01445  E)NAIROBI 01652F) NAIROBI 01850  G) 
NAIROBI 02089 
 
This is the seventh and last bi-weekly update cable in 
response to Ref A request for bi-weekly reports on the 
humanitarian situation in the Horn of Africa. 
Subsequently, cables on humanitarian conditions in the 
region will be transmitted on a monthly basis.  USAID 
Missions in Kenya and Ethiopia, REDSO (Somalia, 
Djibouti), and OFDA/ECARO contributed to this report. 
 
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 
 
¶1. Water availability has improved due to the recent 
rainfall, but rains were below average to poor in some 
pastoralist districts.  Livestock conditions are 
improving and prices of livestock have increased. 
However, full recovery will require several consecutive 
seasons of good rains.  In addition, longer term 
drought problems, such as low water tables and 
reservoir levels, are still a major concern. 
 
COUNTRY REPORTS 
 
¶2.  KENYA 
 
UPDATE ON THE HUMANITARIAN FRONT: According to the 
USAID-funded Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWS 
NET), most parts of the country received well- 
distributed and at times heavy rains from April to mid- 
May.  The rainy season is expected to extend beyond 
August in key maize producing areas, but projected to 
end in May in most pastoral areas.  Pasture and water 
availability have improved in most pastoral areas 
except parts of Garissa, Wajir, Mandera, Marsabit, and 
Turkana districts where rains have been poor. 
Livestock body condition is improving in most of the 
districts, particularly among browsers such as goats 
and camels.  Prices of goats have increased due to 
their improved body conditions.  Cattle prices have 
also gone up mainly becaus some households have 
started restocking, but only a few cattle with good 
body condition are available for sale. 
 
From May 22 to 24, a USAID/OFDA team comprising a 
Public Health Advisor and an Information Officer 
traveled to Garissa District, accompanied by 
International Medical Corps' Country Director, to 
follow up on reports of deteriorating health and 
nutrition status.  The team met with district 
representatives from the Arid Lands Resource Management 
Project (ALRMP) and the Ministry of Health (MOH) in 
Garissa town, and traveled to Bura, Modogashe, and 
Balabala divisions to assess conditions. 
 
Officials report that eastern parts of the district 
received average to heavy showers while rains were 
below average in northern and western divisions.  The 
 
team confirmed that conditions in the areas visited 
were dry with little pasture and few water sources. 
The Arid Lands Office reports that water tankering is 
continuing in Shimbirey, Abdi Gab, Ohi, and Alango. 
 
Health status of the population is chronically poor and 
access to healthcare is limited.  An MOH/UN Children's 
Fund (UNICEF) nutrition survey from October 2005 
indicates 18.6 percent global acute malnutrition and 
3.1 percent severe acute malnutrition in the district. 
Currently, the only facility to treat severe 
malnutrition is the provincial hospital in Garissa 
town.  USAID/OFDA has funded UNICEF and CARE to support 
immunization, primary healthcare, nutrition, and water 
activities in Garissa District.  Additional details of 
the team's findings are reported septel. 
 
DONOR RESPONSE UPDATE:  More recent non-USG pledges 
include USD 3.7 million from the GOK, USD 2.0 million 
from Saudi Arabia, and EURO 500,000 (approximately USD 
638,626) from Spain.  At present, approximately 52 
percent of the total EMOP requirement (USD 225 million) 
has been resourced. 
 
WFP EMOP Pipeline:  The cereals pipeline will break in 
July, WFP are utilizing some of their cash 
contributions for either local or international 
purchases.  This will improve the pipeline if they 
arrive in country in time.  WFP have received a 
significant GOK contribution of 7,700MT of CSB and they 
expect to start receiving 10,000 MT of CSB from the USG 
in early July.  Pulses stocks are very low at present 
but will improve towards the end of July when pledges 
totaling 15,000 MT start to arrive in Mombasa from the 
USG and Canada.  Vegetable Oil stocks are also low but 
WFP have pledges from the USG for 7,090 MT which are 
expected in mid July. 
 
 
UPDATE ON THE FOOD SECURITY SITUATION AND OUTLOOK: FEWS 
NET reports that Maize prices began rising in April in 
all major markets across the country.  The price 
increase ranged between 3 and 10 percent in key 
reference markets.  This increase is consistent with 
the long-term average trends where prices rise from May 
through July, before the long rains harvest reaches the 
market. 
 
Between March and April, seven nutritional surveys were 
conducted by various organizations, including the UN 
Children's Fund (UNICEF), Action Against Hunger/US, and 
Medecins Sans Frontieres/Belgium, which covered most 
drought-affected pastoral areas.  The survey results 
indicated alarming levels of wasting and stunting rates 
(as high as 45.3 percent and 23.5 percent in Marsabit 
and Samburu respectively). Similarly, a five-year trend 
analysis of nutritional surveys point to a general 
deterioration of nutritional status in most of these 
drought-affected pastoralist areas.  A combination of 
 
factors, including long periods of poor nutrition, lack 
of access to health services, and extreme poverty have 
contributed to this picture. 
 
OTHER TOPICS OF SPECIAL INTEREST:  The Kenya Red Cross 
Society and GOK health officials confirmed that an 
outbreak of dysentery in northeastern Kenya's Mandera 
District has claimed the lives of 13 children in the 
past three weeks.  The outbreak was caused by 
contamination of water sources in areas where carcasses 
were washed into water pans. 
 
 
¶3.  ETHIOPIA 
 
UPDATE ON THE HUMANITARIAN FRONT: USAID/OFDA continues 
to respond to humanitarian needs resulting from the 
regional drought.  On May 16, a geographic information 
systems (GIS) officer arrived in Addis Ababa.  The GIS 
officer is helping to assess and strengthen information 
management and information sharing between USG field 
programs and Washington.  The GIS officer is meeting 
with USG staff, UN agencies, and NGOs, and providing 
GIS and information management support for the regional 
response.  In addition, the GIS officer is working with 
other USAID/OFDA staff to implement a new database 
tracking USAID/OFDA programs in Ethiopia.  On May 21, 
two field monitors and a field officer departed on a 
nine-day monitoring trip in Southern Nations, 
Nationalities, and Peoples Region (SNNPR).  As of May 
24, the team has traveled to several partner sites to 
monitor three USAID/OFDA programs. 
 
As of May 22, USAID/OFDA has programmed more than USD 
6.5 million, primarily through grants to seven partner 
non-governmental organization (NGO), UNICEF, and the 
U.N. World Food Program (WFP).  In response to the 
drought, USAID/OFDA is currently reviewing proposals 
and plans to program at least an additional USD 1.8 
million before the end of FY 2006. 
 
The European Union has recently confirmed that USD 4 
million, of the USD 10 million designated for the Horn 
of Africa, will be given to Ethiopia for the drought 
emergency.  Denmark has also made a recent commitment 
of USD 700,000 to UNICEF for Health and Nutrition. 
 
USAID's Pastoral Livelihood Initiative (PLI) partners 
continue to implement approved emergency response 
activities. Partners have vaccinated more than 1 
million animals, and treated over 1.2 million 
livestock.  More than 200 community animal health 
workers (CAHW) have been trained or utilized in these 
campaigns.  Support to commercial off-take of animals, 
via revolving funds, will continue until the end of May 
¶2006.  Animal feed has been provided to maintain over 
15,000 animals for breeding stock.  Partners have 
repaired or rehabilitated 59 water points, 11 motorized 
and non-motorized deep boreholes, and 21 hand-dug wells 
 
in Somali Region. 
 
DPPA/WFP PIPELINE AND DONOR RESPONSE UPDATE:  As of May 
16, the Government of Ethiopia's (GOE) Disaster 
Preparedness and Prevention Agency (DPPA) has reported 
food allocations dispatched for Somali Region of 91 
percent, 59 percent, and 0 percent for February, March, 
and April respectively.  The reported dispatches for 
Oromiya Region are slightly higher, at 98, 98, and 60 
percent for February, March, and April respectively. 
Food dispatches and distributions continue to be 
hampered in Somali Region due to rains and instability, 
the latter having escalated recently, which is impeding 
mobility in specific areas. 
 
The DPPA/WFP cereal pipeline remains healthy into 
August, largely because DPPA is two months behind on 
distributions.  The European Union has also announced a 
commitment for 80,000 MT of locally purchased food, 
which should take the pipeline through September and 
possibly into October.  The belg (local term for short 
rainy season) assessment, due out in July, will provide 
a more detailed picture of food and non-food emergency 
needs for the remainder of 2006. 
 
UPDATE ON FOOD SECURITY SITUATION AND OUTLOOK:  Rains 
continue to fall across Somali Region, providing much 
needed relief in the hardest hit areas. 
Unfortunately, rains have caused localized flooding, 
which has delayed food distributions in some areas. 
The overall forecast is still predicted to be below 
normal for the season, especially in the southern and 
eastern zones of the region. 
 
Prices have increased to all time highs following the 
bombings in Addis Ababa on May 12.  The price of teff, 
the most popular grain, has spiked by as much as 25 
percent in the last two weeks, creating further 
pressures on urban populations and the poorest of the 
poor.  Compounding the problem is the GOE's recent 
price increase for petroleum products by approximately 
20 percent three weeks ago.  The GOE has announced that 
further increases are planned gradually, in three month 
intervals, as the government is currently cash-strapped 
and can no longer afford subsidizing fuel.  The 
additional increases will have a large effect on the 
transport sector, and subsequently on all other sectors 
reliant on transport.  Trends indicate prices will 
continue to inflate until the fall harvest. 
 
¶4.  SOMALIA 
 
UPDATE ON THE HUMANITARIAN FRONT: According to FEWS 
NET, March to May rains across southern Somalia have 
performed quite well this year, with normal to above 
normal levels observed since March 1.  In some areas, 
rain started falling in February, resulting in a 
somewhat extended season.  These rains have improved 
drought conditions, helped replenish water supplies, 
 
and rejuvenated pastures.  However, the deficits from 
past failed seasons are still quite large, and longer- 
term drought problems, such as low water tables and 
reservoir levels, remain a concern.  Rainfall levels 
have been lower in May, reducing flooding and 
increasing road access, especially for delivery of food 
and other humanitarian assistance.  On May 30, the Food 
Security Analysis Unit (FSAU) of the UN Food and 
Agriculture Organization (FAO) will announce 
preliminary assessments of the current rainy season. 
 
DONOR RESPONSE UPDATE:  The European Commission (EC) 
announced an aid package of Euro 70 million (USD 
89,430,218) for the Somalia Recovery Program (SRP). 
According to an EC press release, the SRP will provide 
immediate support to address Somalia's governance and 
security challenges, including consolidation of the 
Transitional Federal Institutions, and support to 
delivery of social services, particularly education and 
water and sanitation, as well as rural development and 
food security.  The program includes Euro 18 Million 
(USD 22,996,652) for EC air operations into Somalia. 
This is particularly important as other organizations 
depend on the EC flights for transport in and out of 
Somalia to provide aid in the most remote regions of 
the country.  In addition, the European Commissioner 
for Development and Humanitarian Aid announced his 
visit to Somalia in mid-June, the first by a European 
Commissioner in 10 years.  In the last two weeks, 
Somalia received donations of USD 4.8 million from the 
Netherlands, and USD 3 million from Saudi Arabia. 
 
FOOD PIPELINE UPDATE: In the last two weeks, WFP has 
successfully delivered 18,100 MT without incident to 
Merca, El Maan, Kismayo, Bosasso, and Berbera.  WFP had 
some space on one of their vessels and offered this to 
CARE who loaded an additional 1,400 MT to EL Maan.  In 
early June, WFP plans three more vessels to transport 
an additional 18,500 MT.  CARE is planning to send an 
additional consignment of 850 MT on May 26 to Merca. 
 
Both WFP and CARE's pipelines are healthy for the next 
two months, but road access is a problem.  The areas 
currently inaccessible by surface transport are parts 
of lower Juba, Gedo, and all of middle Juba.  WFP is 
still looking for funding for their proposed air drop 
operation to these areas. 
 
¶5.  DJIBOUTI 
 
UPDATE ON THE FOOD SECURITY SITUATION AND OUTLOOK: 
According to FEWS NET, overall food security is 
improving due to recent rains and consistent food aid 
deliveries to affected zones.  There is, however, a 
need for coordinated provision of emergency 
interventions to avoid duplication of efforts and 
ensure proper targeting.  Food and income derived from 
animals are not expected to improve significantly in 
the short-term, and full recovery will require several 
 
consecutive seasons of good rains. 
 
The increased tension along the border between Ethiopia 
and Eritrea is creating a massive rural exodus to the 
Djiboutian side of the border of pastoralists escaping 
the military mobilization by both countries.  This will 
increase the competition of already limited natural 
resources as the carrying capacity on the Djiboutian 
side is very low.  Eldar and Manda markets in Ethiopia 
are already distorted and pastoralists in that area are 
having difficult using these markets efficiently. 
 
WFP's EMOP is facing a shortfall of approximately USD 
2.8 million.  However, WFP received multilateral 
donations from Luxembourg of USD 3 million; Ireland of 
USD 3.6 million; Canada of USD 5.2 million, and an 
estimated 1,240 MT of food aid from the USG, which is 
expected to arrive at the end of June.  This 
contribution is part of USD 2 million announced by 
Assistant Administrator for Democracy, Conflict, and 
Humanitarian Assistance Mike Hess, during his visit to 
Djibouti in April. 
 
CONCLUSION 
 
¶6.  The rains in the last few months have stabilized 
the situation in the region to a certain extent and 
conditions are not as dire as compared to the beginning 
of the year.  Based on this, REDSO/FFP and USAID/Kenya 
will now transmit the bi-weekly humanitarian reporting 
cable on a monthly basis. 
 
BELLAMY