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The Kebele government announced that the drought caused by the 2015/16 crop season intensified in the Wagkamla National Administration Area of the Sehara Sayem Special Region, killing two people in Biraza Kebele last week.
The regional government told VOA that drought conditions are worsening and said more than 5,000 animals have died.
The chief administrative officer said more than 46,000 people in the area are in need of urgent food aid, and the problem has been exacerbated by the refusal of vehicles bringing food to the victims to come to the area due to safety concerns, as well as the failure to repair the fracture in the Tekeze Bridge, he said.
The Wagakumla National Administration has been given the responsibility to monitor the road problem and Amara District Disaster Preparedness and Food Security Commissioner Dicken Tesif Battabour said they are ready to send food aid if the problem is resolved.
Mr. Maled Bray, manager of Bilaza Kebele in Sahara Sayem District, said the drought that occurred during the 2015/16 harvest season and the ongoing famine are still killing people.
It will be recalled that in December last year, Ato Mehret, director of the coordination office of the regional disaster prevention and food security committee, told VOA that six people and more than 10,000 livestock died due to famine caused by lack of rain in the region during the last harvest season.
The official said at the time that more than 400,000 people living in the region’s 26 districts needed urgent food assistance and more than 1.2 million animals lacked fodder, but he said not enough aid was entering the region.
Sehala Sayemt District Administrator Mr. Sisay Bru explained to VOA today that while the region has a large livestock population, the numbers are decreasing due to losses caused by the drought. Sisay said thousands more animals have died recently.
The chief executive cited the exacerbation of the famine as a result of security concerns, the refusal of vehicles carrying relief supplies to come to the area, and the failure of the damaged Koze Bridge to be repaired.
The Amara District Disaster Prevention and Food Security Commissioner, Deacon Tesfo Battabur, admitted that the food aid had not yet been delivered and the lack of repairs to the Koze Bridge was an obstacle. He said the commissioner pointed out that the development zone management had been ordered to fix the road problem and they were ready to send the food aid if the problem was solved.
Although we called the Chief Administrator of the Waghhemla National Administration, Ato Hailu, for comment, we are unable to include his response as the call was unreachable.
Roland Kobia, the European Union’s ambassador to Ethiopia, told VOA last month that international partners are failing to help impoverished citizens in different parts of the country.
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