SOMALIA / CLIMATE FOOD INSECURITY

STORY: SOMALIA / CLIMATE FOOD INSECURITY
TRT: 03:55
SOURCE: IFAD
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 14 FEBRUARY 2023, ROME, ITALY / FILE

SHOTLIST:

14 FEBRUARY 2023, ROME, ITALY

1. Wide shot, IFAD Governing Council
2. Med shot, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President of the Federal Republic of Somalia
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Alvaro Lario, President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD):
“The horn of Africa is experiencing the longest and most severe drought on record, high prices of food, fuel and fertilizer are worsening the situation. I am proud to stand here today with the President of Somalia, and to recognize that through the generous contributions of several IFAD members, Somalia will be able to access IFAD resources once more. This comes at a critical time when Somalia is facing critical challenges to its food security.”
4. Med shot, audience
5. Wide shot, President of the Federal Republic of Somalia speaking at Governing Council
6. Wide shot, press conference room
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President of the Federal Republic of Somalia:
“This recent engagement is an opportunity for a new dawn for Somalia, addressing major food security priorities in the country, by investing in very selected priority areas.”
8. Wide shot, press conference
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President of the Federal Republic of Somalia:
“The challenges are many and what’s required in order for Somalia to reach self-sufficiency is not limited to the support of IFAD only, but IFAD is starting now the process of transitioning from humanitarian aid to development. This is the beginning.”
10. Wide shot, IFAD President Alvaro Lario at press conference
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Alvaro Lario, President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD):
“If we just invest in the humanitarian aid, we give just the food and not the means, the investments for creating the opportunities, to actually add the jobs, add the investments, add the resources to invest.”
12. Wide shot, press conference
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Alvaro Lario, President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD):
“So, the only way is to invest in medium term, which in the case of food systems means investing in the entire value chain, how food is produced, how food is commercialized, how food is stored, not just handing food.”

FILE - MAY 2022, VARIOUS LOCATIONS, SOMALIA

14. Wide shot, desert
15. Wide shot, camels strolling in desertic landscape
16. Various shots, goats shading under small tree
17. Wide shot, woman feeding goats under tree shade
18. Various shots, market in Mogadishu
19. Wide shot, street in Mogadishu
20. Various shots, gas station
21. Close up, fuel pump

FILE - DECEMBER 2022 – SOMALIA

22. Aerial shot, view of project, IFAD supported project site with growing banana trees and solar panels
23. Wide shot, electrical cabinet
24. Various shots, solar panels
25. Med shot, operator switching electricity
26. Wide shot, piping
27. Close up, sprinkler
28. Wide shot, people looking at sprinkler next to palm tree
29. Various shots, project site

STORYLINE:

As Somalia continues to experience an historic drought, pushing millions of Somalians into acute food insecurity Alvaro Lario, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), announced today (14 Feb) that it will substantially strengthen its support to Somalia and resume its direct investments after loan arrears resulted in a three-decade long suspension.

Speaking during IFAD’s 46th session of the Governing Council, Lario said, “this comes at a critical time when Somalia is facing critical challenges to its food security.”

SOUNDBITE (English) Alvaro Lario, President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD):
“The horn of Africa is experiencing the longest and most severe drought on record, high prices of food, fuel and fertilizer are worsening the situation. I am proud to stand here today with the President of Somalia, and to recognize that through the generous contributions of several IFAD members, Somalia will be able to access IFAD resources once more. This comes at a critical time when Somalia is facing critical challenges to its food security.”

The President of Somalia, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, welcomed the re-engagement.

SOUNDBITE (English) Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President of the Federal Republic of Somalia:
“This recent engagement is an opportunity for a new dawn for Somalia, addressing major food security priorities in the country, by investing in very selected priority areas.”

SOUNDBITE (English) Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President of the Federal Republic of Somalia:
“The challenges are many and what’s required in order for Somalia to reach self-sufficiency is not limited to the support of IFAD only, but IFAD is starting now the process of transitioning from humanitarian aid to development. This is the beginning.”

The President called on governments not just to invest in immediate aid for countries like Somalia.

SOUNDBITE (English) Alvaro Lario, President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD):
“If we just invest in the humanitarian aid, we give just the food and not the means, the investments for creating the opportunities, to actually add the jobs, add the investments, add the resources to invest.”

SOUNDBITE (English) Alvaro Lario, President, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD):
“So, the only way is to invest in medium term, which in the case of food systems means investing in the entire value chain, how food is produced, how food is commercialized, how food is stored, not just handing food.”

According to the Integrated Phase Classification, 5.6 million Somalians are currently experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity, including 214,000 people considered in a catastrophe situation due to an unprecedented drought, not seen in decades. Projections show that as many as 8.3 million Somalians could face high levels of acute food insecurity between April and June 2023. This includes preventing loss of life of approximately 6.7 million of the most vulnerable people.

Despite the arrears and the suspension of loans, IFAD has been actively mobilizing grants from donors to Somalia and channelling resources for rural development projects in the country. Since the early 1990’s, IFAD has channelled about US$40 million to Somalia. There are two ongoing projects at the moment. A project in Puntland, for example, helps pastoralists and agro pastoralists rehabilitate irrigation systems, improve livestock health, use drip irrigation, restore degraded rangelands and use solar energy.

IFAD provided extraordinary support to Somalia under its Crisis Relief Initiative to help the country withstand the impacts of the war in Ukraine by responding to urgent needs for seeds, fertilizers, goats and sheep, irrigation and renewable energies, and rehabilitation of water sources, thus protecting the livelihoods of about 72,000 people.

IFAD’s renewed direct investments are now made possible thanks to Belgium, Germany, Italy and Sweden which supported Somalia in clearing its arrears to IFAD. The arrears prevented Somalia from benefiting from IFAD’s highly concessional loans and grants since 1991, when the civil war started in Somalia.