The United Nations on Tuesday warned that Somalia’s hunger levels and acute food insecurity have steeply risen, almost doubling since last year, putting millions of children at risk of malnutrition.

An Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) monitoring analysis report found: “Worsening drought, conflict and insecurity, and soaring food prices have driven a sharp deterioration in food insecurity.” From February to March, “6.5 million people are estimated” to be facing food insecurity. This estimate includes more than 1.8 million children under the age of five.

In a joint press release, the UN agencies and the Somali government warned that almost half a million children are “likely to be severely malnourished,” emphasizing the drought’s scale and its impact on agriculture, farming, livestock and displaced populations.

They further stressed the rapidly worsening situation: “The drought emergency in Somalia has deepened alarmingly… Urgent life-saving assistance is essential to save lives and prevent a collapse of pastoral and farming livelihoods, as the coming months are critical, with no rains expected at least until the next Gu rains in April-June.”

The press release emphasized the importance of humanitarian aid in addressing the food insecurity crisis. It cautioned that inadequate funding is forcing aid agencies to “reduce rations” due to “critical funding shortfalls.”

The statement called on donors to “act urgently to scale up life-saving assistance,” and recommended enhancing “Early Warning and Anticipatory Action” to “mitigate the impact of predictable food shocks.”

The humanitarian situation in Somalia has been severely impacted by political instability, civil war, and militant conflicts. Further exacerbating the humanitarian crisis, the country faces severe effects of climate change, resulting in droughts, famine and population displacement.

Under Article 2 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, states are obligated to take measures, individually or through international assistance, to “achieve progressively the full realization of the right to adequate food.” Somalia ratified the covenant in 1990.