August 12, 2017 - The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) disclosed that two million animals have been lost to a “devastating” drought in Ethiopia. The drought had devastated Ethiopian herders’ livelihoods as it exhausted pastures and water sources. It also said the current food and nutrition crisis in Ethiopia was significantly aggravated by the severe blow to pastoral livelihoods.
“For livestock-dependent families in Ethiopia, the animals can literally mean the difference between life and death – especially for children, pregnant and nursing mothers, for whom milk is a crucial source of nutrition.
“With up to two million animals lost so far in Ethiopia, FAO is focusing on providing emergency livestock support to the most vulnerable pastoralist communities through animal vaccination and treatment, supplementary feed and water, rehabilitating water points, and supporting fodder and feed production”.
FAO stressed that supporting the Ethiopian herders to get back on their feet and prevent further livestock losses was crucial in the Horn of Africa country, where hunger had been on the rise.
“The drought has led to a significant number of animals dying or falling ill, particularly in the southern and south-eastern regions of Ethiopia, as other areas recover from previous seasons’ El Niño-induced drought,” the UN agency warned.
It also said that drought-hit Ethiopian pastoralists were facing reduced milk production, rising malnutrition, and had limited income-earning capacity and severely constrained access to food.
Abdoul Bah, FAO Deputy Representative in Ethiopia, said “Some 8.5 million people – one in 12 people – are now suffering from hunger; of these, 3.3 million people live in Somali Region.
Source:- Nigeria pmnews
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