ADDIS ABABA, Dec. 1 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has warned that the humanitarian needs in Ethiopia continue to be high amid a mix of conflict and natural disasters.
The agency said in its latest Ethiopia humanitarian response situation report issued late Thursday that the humanitarian needs in Ethiopia continue to be high and are mostly caused by the combined effects of inter-communal violence, disease outbreaks, conflicts, and climate change.
"Food security continues to be a major concern across the country amid the ongoing pause in food response, high malnutrition rates and recent reports of drought-like conditions in the northern regions," it said.
Hosting almost 916,000 refugees and asylum seekers, the East African country is also the third-largest host nation in Africa, the UNFPA said, adding that of those in need of help, women and children make up half, and individuals with disabilities make up 17 percent.
It further warned that an estimated 5 million people are reportedly affected by drought-like conditions in Amhara and Tigray regions.
In the Amhara region, the humanitarian situation merges previously existing needs due to the conflict in the north of the country, with drought in some parts of the region, disease outbreaks, an incidence of malnutrition and the influx of returnees and refugees from Sudan, it said.
Meanwhile, the UNFPA said the continuing crisis in neighboring country Sudan is further compounding the humanitarian situation in Ethiopia as a growing number of refugees, asylum seekers, and Ethiopian returnees enter Ethiopia from Sudan. ■
