Devastating floods threaten to worsen food insecurity across eastern Africa as heavy rains lash a region that less than a year ago was in the grips of drought, warns the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).

Climate change continues to wreak havoc in Eastern Africa, a region with minimal emissions yet which bears the brunt of the global climate emergency. Five consecutive failed rainy seasons from 2020 to 2022 resulted in a devasting drought that pushed millions into food insecurity and malnutrition as livelihoods were destroyed at a massive scale – damage that will take families and communities many years to recover.

Now that nascent recovery is being swept away by floods. Since the start of the October-December rains, rainfall 140 percent above average has destroyed property, infrastructure, and crops, and washed away livestock. Scores of lives have also been lost.

Nearly 3 million people have been affected, with more than 1.2 million forced to leave their homes. Somalia, Ethiopia, and Kenya are bearing the brunt of this crisis, closely followed by Sudan, South Sudan, Burundi, and Uganda. Unfortunately, the rains are expected to persist until early 2024.

“Eastern Africa is being lashed by the extremes of climate change – from no water to too much water is resulting in a catastrophe. Severe floods are causing devastation, illustrating how an erratic climate continues to punish the region. With more rain forecast, I fear that the worst is yet to come,” said Michael Dunford, WFP Regional Director in Eastern Africa.

WFP has provided food and cash assistance to nearly 580,000 people affected by the floods across the Horn of Africa, in addition to those supported through our pre-existing relief operations.

In Somalia and Burundi, WFP provided anticipatory assistance to 230,000 people prior to the floods, including through early warnings and cash transfers. People were able to use this information and money to prepare – either moving or buying essential supplies. Anticipatory action initiatives like this mean fewer people need humanitarian assistance after disasters hit.