PRESS CONFERENCE BY SECRETARY-GENERAL’S SPECIAL ENVOY FOR HORN OF AFRICA

Despite some relief due to the recent rainy season, the crisis in the Horn of Africa was far from over, and it was the responsibility of the international community to do something about it, Kjell Magne Bondevik, Special Humanitarian Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Horn of Africa, told correspondents this afternoon at a Headquarters press conference.

He said the main problem was raising public awareness about the silent tsunami going on in Kenya, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia and Djibouti.  “So many of the TV cameras are focused on Darfur, Afghanistan and Iraq.”  But, he added that, in the Horn of Africa, “people have the same value as we have, the same rights as we have, and they are suffering”.  He said rich countries had a responsibility to help alleviate the crisis, because he was convinced the drought was partly a consequence of climate change, which was a consequence of the modern way of life.  The next drought in the Horn of Africa was coming.  It was not a matter of if, but of when, and to what extent.  That was a heavy burden in addition to poverty and underdevelopment.

The humanitarian situation in the Horn of Africa was very serious, he continued.  An estimated 8 million people were in need of assistance, mainly food and water, and 15 million more were at risk.  In some districts of Kenya, 30 per cent of the children were malnourished.  The situation in Somalia, which had experienced 15 years of civil war, was of special concern.  Getting aid to the struggling population was a major challenge.  The Islamic Court Union had taken control of Mogadishu and warlords had control in other parts.  The ongoing violence made it very difficult to establish security and access, but a recent ceasefire was encouraging.

When people were at risk, the number one priority was saving lives, he said.  It was also critical to establish a link between the emergency and immediate humanitarian assistance on the one hand, and the medium- and longer-term development projects on the other.  The best possible coordination would make the United Nations efforts as efficient as possible.  None of those efforts would be possible without funding.  In 2006, the international community had donated $420 million and there was about $42 million in pledges, but donations needed to be increased.  The United Nations had launched a regional appeal in April 2006, for about $425 million, but that was way too low.  “It’s an important part of my mandate to get donor countries to contribute more,” Mr. Bondevik said.

When asked what the advantage was when it came to multilateral versus bilateral aid, he said it was important for countries to contribute both ways.  But, he wanted there to be more activity through United Nations agencies in general, such as the World Food Programme (WFP), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).  The Secretary-General was also encouraging Member States to contribute multilaterally and work more through the United Nations.

Responding to a question on how he planned to raise awareness after almost 40 years of crisis in the Horn of Africa, Mr. Bondevik said that was the main challenge, but it was a moral duty.  Food security, better water distribution, better infrastructure and more health-care centres were crucial.  Only then could new catastrophes be better handled.  The main responsibility was on the authorities of the countries themselves, but the international community must recognize the suffering and contribute economically to end it.

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