UN Urges Int'l Support for Ethiopia Drought Battle

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and UN aid chief, Stephen O'Brien, said the international community must show “total solidarity” with Ethiopia, as it faces yet another drought challenge.

"Let's be clear: that solidarity is not a matter of generosity. It is a matter of justice and of self-interest,” Guterres said on the sidelines of the 28th Summit of the African Union in Addis Ababa on Sunday, according to a UN press release.

"We need to act now before it is too late,” said O'Brien, calling on the international community to join the Ethiopian government in funding the 2017 Humanitarian Requirements Document.

The document seeks $948 million to assist 5.6 million people, whose lives, livelihoods and wellbeing depend on support from relief partners. 

"Livestock are already dying; pastoralists and farmers are already fleeing their homes in search of water and pasture; children—more often girls—are dropping out of school to [help] with household chores, and hunger and malnutrition levels will rise soon if assistance does not arrive on time, particularly among women who are more likely to suffer from health problems and malnutrition during droughts,” O'Brien stressed.