Somalia: will aid efforts fail marginalised again?

Nisar Majid, a research associate at the London School of Economics and Political Science, writes about the burgeoning famine crisis in Somalia, and the lack of sufficient aid for that country's minority groups.

- Nisar Majid

Somalia is facing a humanitarian crisis of enormous severity and magnitude. This follows four failed rainy seasons, protracted conflict, political instability, and the impact of rising global food prices - the latter made significantly worse by the war in Ukraine and the disruption to global food and fuel markets.

There's a strong possibility of famine being declared later this year, and this dire situation is predicted to continue well into next year.

Up to 7,1 million people in Somalia are considered in need of urgent humanitarian assistance; that's nearly half of that country's population. Each of the previous two famines in Somalia saw roughly 250 000 people die. Most of the people who die during famine largely come from marginalised and minority groups in the country. Experts are worried that the death toll this time could meet or even exceed this level.

I've studied and highlighted many of the issues with the humanitarian response in Somalia. Judging by discussions I've had with experts and observers close to the ground, I'm dismayed that, once again, not enough aid is reaching marginalised and minority groups within the country, by either the government or aid agencies.

In a report that I've put together with colleagues, a mix of academic and humanitarian experts, we reveal that many of the problems that our research team highlighted eight years ago remain today.

In particular, the humanitarian community's failure to help the most vulnerable groups in southern Somalia remains an unresolved challenge. These groups, who are marginalised because of Somalia's social hierarchies, suffered the highest levels of mortality in the 1991/92 and 2011 famines.