Shamso, 3, is shown recuperating from a bout of severe diarrhea at World Vision's Maternal and Child Health Hospital in the Waajid district of Somalia. The 3-year-old and her family fled Mogadishu this summer because of ongoing violence. Thanks to the treatment she received at the clinic, Shamso is now fully recovered.
© 2007/World Vision staff

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reports that 173,000 have fled the conflict-torn city in the past two weeks.

Nearly $1 Million to Meet Needs

"Thousands from Mogadishu have already reached areas in southern Somalia where we operate," says Graham Davison, World Vision's operations director in Somalia. "Many women and children are arriving with nothing and require urgent assistance. With fighting continuing in the capital, it is likely these figures will increase in coming weeks."

Our staff estimates we will need nearly $1 million to supply plastic sheeting, medicines, water, critical non-food items, and psychosocial support to meet the immediate needs of 20,000 internally displaced people.

Children Bear Heaviest Burden

"We are calling on our donors and the international community to help us respond quickly," explains Marie Bettings, World Vision's emergency response officer for Somalia. "Children, who constitute more than 46 percent of Somalia's population, bear the brunt of this crisis."

Our staff also is concerned about how the ongoing fighting will affect our relief operations in Somalia — one of the most impoverished counties in the world — where we have worked since 1992.

"There must be unhindered, protected access for humanitarian workers trying to deliver aid in Mogadishu and surrounding areas," Davison says. "Civilians are in urgent need and must be reached with supplies quickly, wherever they are."

World Vision's current development projects in Somalia include food security, supplementary feeding, school feedings, health, education, water, sanitation, advocacy, and relief programs.

Rate this article