People who fled from Wollega in Oromia and are now sheltered in a camp near the town of Haik in the Amhara region are facing severe famine, Deutsche Welle Amharic reported, citing witnesses and residents. With no food aid reaching them, the report said that many are being forced to beg for survival.
A displaced person told DW Amharic that the 15 kilos of flour distributed a few weeks ago had run out, leaving residents facing severe food shortages and starvation. Due to insufficient funding, some have been forced to beg.
Similar conditions are affecting other displaced persons camps, including the “Lege Amara” shelter in Mekane Selam town, southern Wollo, where no aid has reached the camp for months, DW reported. Conditions for those displaced from the Oromia and Benishangul-Gumuz regions have worsened significantly, with people dying from starvation, according to the report.
Starvation and disease are rampant in the camps, with people suffering from hunger, cold, and illness. DW reported that three displaced persons have died from hunger-related complications in the past few days, according to witnesses.
At the beginning of August, 15 kilos of flour were distributed to the displaced persons. According to one witness, the cost of transport was deducted from this amount, and they had little food. The mother of five children displaced from East Wollega told DW that she is struggling to support her family. She explained that her husband, who used to provide for them, lost his job and has been unable to find new work.
Head of the South Wollo Zone Disaster Prevention and Food Security Office, Ali Said stated that he had notified the regional government about the need for relief grain but has not yet received a response.
Berhanu Zewdu, Director of the Disaster Pre-Warning and Response Agency of the Amhara region, said that the number of Western aid agencies assisting people in shelters has decreased. He added that, since there are no NGOs helping those living within the community, the government is working to fill the gap.
