Сомали столкнулась с острым кризисом недоедания, который усугубляется продолжительными засухами, продолжающимися конфликтами, экономической нестабильностью и хрупкой системой здравоохранения. Регионы Байдабо и Мудуг, где работает организация «Врачи без границ» (MSF), являются примерами кризиса, разворачивающегося по всей стране, где тысячи детей находятся под непосредственной угрозой серьезного недоедания и его опасных для жизни последствий. 

Хроническая нехватка финансирования нанесла ущерб гуманитарным усилиям, что вынудило сократить или закрыть жизненно важные программы в области питания. Надвигающаяся угроза засухи, вызванной Ла-Нинья, в 2025 году может подтолкнуть и без того уязвимые сообщества к краю пропасти. MSF настоятельно призывает доноров и гуманитарные организации принять немедленные меры для предотвращения широкомасштабных страданий, поскольку последствия могут быть катастрофическими.

Последняя надежда отца спасти своих детей

Калимоу Мохамеду Нуру ничего не оставалось, как пойти на отчаянную авантюру. Со своими сыновьями-близнецами, слабыми от голода, их крошечными телами от повторяющихся приступов рвоты и диареи, он занял достаточно денег на один день путешествия — сумму, на которую ему потребовались бы месяцы — и отправился в изнурительное путешествие в Байдабо. Дорога была длинной, жара неумолимой, но обещание бесплатной медицинской помощи в региональной больнице Бэй было его последней надеждой. 

"I had to take a loan of about $130 and travel 300 kilometres to Baidoa to find free medical care," says Kalimow, whose twin sons received treatment for severe acute malnutrition at the MSF-supported Bay Regional Hospital. "They were so small, and we could barely afford enough food. They kept falling ill."

Kalimow's story--marked by poverty, distance, and the absence of local services--echoes the harsh realities that prevent countless families from accessing care. In Somalia, life-saving treatment has turned into a privilege accessible to only a few.

Недоедание, круглогодичный кризис в некоторых районах Сомали

In Baidoa and Mudug, malnutrition has become a persistent, year-round crisis, not a seasonal challenge. "We're seeing high malnutrition rates, not just during the usual lean seasons," says Jarmilla Kliescikova, MSF medical coordinator in Somalia. "This is a chronic crisis that demands sustained intervention." 

In 2024, MSF teams treated 18,066 severely acute malnourished children across its projects in Somalia, a significant increase from the previous year. In Mudug, admissions to outpatient nutrition programmes surged by 250 per cent, driven by both rising needs and expanded outreach efforts. Baidoa also saw a rise in admissions throughout 2024, underscoring the growing desperation of families seeking care.

Yet, these efforts barely scratch the surface. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), an estimated 1.7 million children faced acute malnutrition in 2024, including 430,000 suffering from severe acute malnutrition. MSF's interventions, while critical, reached only about one per cent of the total malnourished population, highlighting the overwhelming vast scale of the crisis and the pressing need for broader support. 

Conflicts and climate change have driven massive displacement, forcing people into regions with already scarce resources. Repeated droughts have devastated agriculture, leaving families who once depended on farming and livestock unable to sustain themselves. In the displacement sites, the prevalence of severe and moderate malnutrition is alarmingly high, while overstretched health centres struggle to cope.

Дефицит финансирования вынуждает сокращать важнейшие программы

Adding to the crisis, funding shortages have dealt a devastating blow to the humanitarian response. According to UNOCHA, only 56 per cent of Somalia's humanitarian funding needs were met in 2022--a figure that plummeted to just 40 per cent by 2024. In Baidoa, for example, several nutrition programmes have scaled down since 2023, and across both regions, essential services like therapeutic feeding centres and basic healthcare are being reduced or discontinued. 

"The closure of these programmes has left a devastating gap," says Mohammed Ali Omer, MSF head of programmes in Somalia. "Children in desperate need of life-saving therapeutic food are being turned away. And only a few communities benefit from vaccinations leaving them vulnerable to preventable diseases leading to vicious cycle of malnutrition. This is not just a crisis--it's a catastrophe unfolding in real time."

As Somalia struggles with ongoing dry spells, an even greater threat looms on the horizon: a La Niña-driven drought expected in 2025. La Niña is a climate phenomenon that cools ocean surface temperatures and disrupts global weather patterns, often leading to reduced rainfall in East Africa. With water sources depleted, and food production crippled by previous droughts, the impact could be catastrophic forcing more families from their homes and driving malnutrition rates even higher. As droughts become more frequent and severe, the window for recovery shrinks, while soaring food prices push survival further out of reach for the most vulnerable. 

Надвигающийся кризис, который все еще можно предотвратить

Without immediate and sustained support, thousands of children face not only starvation but also weakened immunity, increased vulnerability to diseases, and irreversible developmental harm. The healthcare system, already struggling under relentless demand, risks total collapse as outbreaks and complications surge. MSF urgently calls on donors and governments to act now--before the 2025 drought strikes. There is an urgent need to scale up nutrition treatment, expand food distribution, and strengthen healthcare services to save lives while there is still time.

"Humanitarian assistance in Somalia is already dangerously low, and now, with reports of further funding cuts--including reductions in U.S. support--the situation will only worsen, putting more lives at risk," says Omer. "The cuts to the nutrition programmes are coming at the worst possible time. Malnutrition rates are soaring, displacement is rising, and the need for aid has never been greater,"he says. "Reducing support now is not just irresponsible--it's deadly. The time to act is now. For the children of Baidoa and Mudug, every moment counts in giving them a chance to survive."

allAfrica.com