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“Starvation and death”: Ethiopia’s Tigray region faces famine, says official
FILE PHOTO: A worker walks past sacks of coffee beans at a storage unit within the Tilamo cooperative of Shebedino district in Sidama, Ethiopia November 29, 2018. Picture taken November 29, 2018. REUTERS/Maheder Haileselassie/File Photo
The Tigray region in Ethiopia, ravaged by war, is on the brink of a humanitarian disaster comparable to the 1984-85 famine that prompted the global fundraising event Live Aid, according to a statement by a regional leader, the president of Tigray’s interim administration, Getachew Reda.
His message conveys that the spectres of “starvation and death” loom over the northern region. Despite this, federal authorities deny the existence of a famine.
The conflict between the federal army, its allies, and Tigrayan forces, which lasted for 24 months until November last year, is estimated to have caused hundreds of thousands of deaths, disrupted agriculture, displaced hundreds of thousands, and decimated vital infrastructure, leaving Tigray highly vulnerable. Additionally, drought and a locust infestation aggravated the situation, exposing 91% of the region’s population to the risk of starvation.
Despite these dire circumstances, the Federal Disaster Risk Management Commission in Ethiopia rejects reports of famine, asserting that the government is actively mobilizing efforts to support those affected by drought.
The interim administration urges both the federal government of Ethiopia and the international community to intervene urgently to save lives.
Local officials had previously said hundreds of people had died of hunger in recent months. A recent UN report described an “escalating food security crisis” in Tigray.
