- The three multilateral agencies had focused their support to trade facilitation, digital convergence and energy projects in the bloc.
- Development partners have pledged $8.7 billion to address alarming hunger in the Horn of Africa.
Development partners have pledged $8.7 billion to address alarming hunger in the Horn of Africa. Nearly all countries in the drought-prone region have been severely impacted by climate change, making food security a significant constraint.
The impact is more severe in Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya and Djibouti but extends to South Sudan, Sudan and northeast Uganda. The regional body took the resource mobilization option after worsening drought and starvation. Kenya cabinet secretary Prof Njuguna Ndung’u said, “The year 2022 witnessed more than doubling of commitments from $4 billion by the end of 2021 to about $8.7 billion by February 2023.” The partnerships will focus on innovative pathways in livestock resilience, trade facilitation and scaling up digital integration.
The $8.7 billion was pledged by the African Development Bank (AfDB), the European Union (EU) and the World Bank, among others. The three multilateral agencies had focused their support to trade facilitation, digital convergence and energy projects in the bloc. However, the Nairobi meeting changed from trade integration to the weather calamity that left millions of people on the verge of starvation. “It is important to mitigate the effects of drought first by complementing ongoing development interventions and humanitarian assistance.”