Two separate UN alerts warn that 750,000 people could die in the famine and 80% of all Somali refugees are children. The famine continues to spread, although perhaps more slowly and with the rate of refugees leaving Somalia now being reduced. (PHOTOS & Sources - UN) Children are bearing the brunt of the Horn of Africa crisis and constitute the majority of all Somali refugees in neighboring Ethiopia, the United Nations reported today. The latest demographic data shows that people under the age of 18 account for 80 per cent of the 121,000 refugees in four camps in the Dollo Ado area of south-eastern Ethiopia, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Female Led Households: In Kobe camp, children comprise 88.6 per cent of the estimated refugee population of more than 25,000. Most families are female-headed households with large numbers of children, including young relatives or orphans, Adrian Edwards, a spokesperson for UNHCR, told reporters in Geneva. “We remain concerned about the high mortality rates due to severe acute malnutrition and diseases,” he said. “Also worrying is the number of separated or unaccompanied children.” The number of unaccompanied children could be as high as 2,500 in the four camps in Ethiopia. “We are carrying out a screening this week in refugee camps in Dollo Ado to better understand the scope of the problem and determine what may be in the best interest of these children,” Mr. Edwards added. Dangerous for Men to Travel: Women in the camps have told UNHCR staff that it is not safe for Somali men to travel because they feared that armed group might forcibly conscript them. Men have also been opting to remain in their villages in Somalia to protect whatever property their families may have, care for those too sick to travel and to tend to any remaining livestock. “Some families simply have no means for everyone to travel together, so women and children are sent first. However, over the past few weeks our staff have observed that there are more single men arriving from Somalia to join their families,” said Mr. Edwards. Focus on Aid Being Delivered in Somalia: By the end of August, UNHCR had reached almost 220,000 people with emergency relief and aims to assist an additional 180,000 by the end of this month. According to UNHCR Somalia representative, Bruno Geddo, it is crucial that aid be distributed in large amounts and as quickly as possible inside Somalia to maintain the recent downward trend in the number of refugees arriving in Ethiopia and Kenya. Mr. Geddo, who recently visited Dollow on the Somalia-Ethiopian border and Mogadishu, said that internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Somalia had expressed to him their desire to remain in their own country rather than cross the border in search of assistance. Related REPORTS – “One Child Alone Against Death” - diplomaticallyincorrect.org/films/blog_post/one-childalone-against-death-photo-tells-the-story/33862 By Ambassador Muhamed Sacirbey

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