FGS inks $45m deal with IOM to support drought-displaced Somalis

GOOBJOOG NEWS|MOGADISHU: The World Bank will provide $45 million to support the thousands of drought-affected Somalis who have fled to three major cities in the country.

This follows the signing of an output agreement between the Ministry of Public Works and Reconstruction and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The fund is being provided by the World Bank under the ongoing Somalia Urban Resilience Project Phase II (SURP-II) and will be administered by IOM.

The funds will benefit internally displaced people in Mogadishu, Garowe and Baidoa. According to IOM, 1.3 million Somalis have been displaced by drought-related conditions since January 2021. This adds to a further one million who were displaced during the 2017 drought.

The Ministry of Public Works said through IOM, the government will ‘provide much-needed nutrition and health services along with shelter support, water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services, and multi-purpose cash transfer for the newly arriving IDPs in Mogadishu, Baidoa, and Garowe which are receiving high numbers of families seeking refuge from the ongoing severe drought in the country.’