Reacting to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis for Somalia, which shows 5.4 million people are projected to face acute hunger, including 26,000 at risk of famine in Baidoa, Bay region, Juliet Moriku Balikowa, Oxfam Somalia Country Director said: 

“One in four people in Somalia is now going hungry while Baidoa and surrounding areas in the Bay region remain at a real risk of famine. Hunger is worse than it was this time last year, and the arrival of El- Niño-related rains will push communities deeper into hunger.  

“Across the country, Oxfam staff and partners are witnessing families who have run out of ways to cope.  Crops have failed, water wells have run dry, and livestock are dying due to lack of pasture.  

“Families have barely had time to recover from years of drought and now they face yet another threat of devastating floods. Parents are now being forced to choose between food and water and between selling their animals or feeding their children 

“Just as needs are growing, aid is collapsing. Somalia’s $852 million Humanitarian Response Plan for this year is less than a third funded. In 2022, aid was scaled up – with 92% of UN appeal funded, famine was averted but only after an estimated 43,000 people had already died. Late money costs lives. 

“None of this is a surprise. The warning signs have been there for months. Governments and donors did not heed those warnings. World leaders must stop looking the other way and urgently scale up support, both for immediate relief and for longer-term recovery, before the floods turn a hunger crisis into another catastrophe.

Contact information:

Abdiaziz Adani | abdiaziz.adani@oxfam.org  | +252634411020  

Fatuma Noor | Fatuma.noor@oxfam.org | +254723944682 

Notes to editors:
  • A new risk of Famine arises as El Nino flood flooding exacerbates acute food insecurity and malnurtiton- Link to IPC figures  
  • From October–December 2026, the population in AFI Phase 3 or above is projected to rise to 5.4 million, including nearly 26,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Baidoa who are likely to face Catastrophe (IPC AFI Phase 5). 
  • Oxfam’s assessment identifies the Shabelle and Juba river basins, flood-prone urban settlements and displacement sites among the areas at greatest risk from heavy rainfall and flooding 
  • Oxfam is preparing to respond in Baardheere, Baydhaba, Belet Weyne, Burhakaba and Gaalkacyo, where communities are expected to be among those most affected. The organisation needs US$2.79 million to reach 128,000 people with life-saving cash assistance, clean water and sanitation, and protection services.