Monday November 13, 2023

NAIROBI – Kenya is grappling with the aftermath of floods caused by ongoing El Nino rains that have killed at least 38 people and displaced about 30,000 across the east African country in the last two weeks, according to the Kenya Red Cross (KRC).

The most affected are residents in arid and semi-arid areas like Tana River, Makueni, Wajir, Isiolo, Marsabit and Mandera counties, who were still recovering from the effects of the worst drought in 40 years.

In Tana River County, River Tana broke its banks and flooded homes, farms, schools and places of worship, displacing hundreds of residents, who have sought refuge along the roadside waiting for the water levels to subside. A similar situation has engulfed Garissa County, where businesses, farms and homes are submerged, disrupting lives.

“Our business premises have been flooded for the last three days after heavy rains. We are stranded and sources of livelihoods have been cut off,” Jacob Otieno, a mechanic, told a local television station.

The KRC put the number of those displaced by floods in the main town at 2,000, and across Garissa County at 20,000, a majority of the people currently living in camps.

Mohammed Abdikadir, KRC regional manager, said the number of those affected is growing faster. “We are facing a humanitarian crisis as thousands in northern Kenya are in need of assistance. The number is growing faster as rains continue,” Abdikadir told the local television station, adding that in some areas, road access has been completely cut off by floods, marooning entire communities.

The KRC noted that 18 counties out of the 47 in Kenya have been affected by the floods.

In Isiolo County, hundreds of residents have lost their livestock that include goats and sheep, to raging floods, which also rendered them homeless.

It is a double tragedy for the residents in the county and others like Makueni in eastern Kenya, who were rebuilding their lives after a prolonged drought that ended in April. Some 2 million animals, including goats, sheep, cows and camels, died during the drought, according to the National Drought Management Authority (NDMA).

In its October report, the NDMA said at least 2.8 million people in 23 regions that were severely hit by drought were still in need of food assistance. The number had declined from the initial 4.4 million due to heavy rainfall recorded during the March-May season, which boosted food production.

The NDMA had expected conditions in the arid areas to improve with the onset of the October-to-December rainy season. However, with the ongoing heavy rains, the situation is likely to worsen as the crisis transitions from drought to floods.

As the rains grow in intensity, more areas are expected to be affected, leading to more deaths, destruction and displacements.

“Heavy rainfall from #ElNino is causing widespread flooding in Kenya, disrupting essential services & endangering lives. @KenyaRedCross is providing relief, but urgent humanitarian assistance is needed due to the threat of further flooding,” the International Federation of Red Cross Africa said in a post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

Kilifi County at the coast and Budalangi, in Busia, western Kenya, are among areas that are on high alert due to possible flooding.

Kenya has formed a National Emergency Response Committee to attend to the flood crisis. “Working with our development partners, counties, and other key agencies, we are distributing food and non-food items to tens of families affected to reduce their suffering,” Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua said on Friday.

Kenya and neighboring Ethiopia and Somalia are among the countries in the Horn of Africa predicted to experience heavy rains and flooding between October and December, affecting millions of people.

The IFRC noted that with 146 million people across 23 African countries already facing prolonged hunger, the heavy rains from El Nino intensify the threat.

Monday November 13, 2023

RIYADH — Saudi Arabia’s Investment Ministry held a number of roundtable meetings with many African countries to strengthen investment relations.

The roundtable meetings, which were held on the sidelines of the Saudi-African Summit in Riyadh, witnessed the presence of a number of presidents and ministers.

This was in addition to the participation of private sector’s representatives, and a number of companies from the participating countries.

The meetings included the Saudi-Chad roundtable meetings, with the presence of Chad’s President Mahamat Déby, and Saudi Arabia’s Investment Minister Eng. Khalid Al-Falih.

The Kingdom’s Minister of Environment, Water, and Agriculture Eng. Abdulrahman Bin Abdulmohsen Al-Fadhli, in addition to the attendance and presence of a number of officials from different African countries.

Furthermore, the Saudi-Somalia roundtable meeting was held with the presence of Somalia’s President Dr. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, and Saudi ministers Eng. Al-Falih and Eng. Al-Fadhli.

The roundtable meetings touched on ways advancing the investment relation between Saudi Arabia and the two countries, in addition to enhancing efforts to develop the economic and investment ties between the Kingdom, Chad and Somalia.

It has also discussed ways of developing qualitative investments, and enabling the private sector to benefit from the investment opportunities in both countries.

The meetings also included the Saudi-Nigeria roundtable meeting, which witnessed the attendance of Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Saudi Investment Minister Eng. Khalid Al-Falih, and Saudi Commerce Minister Dr. Majid Al-Qasabi.

The Saudi-Nigeria roundtable meeting was followed by the Saudi-Tanzania roundtable meeting, with the presence of the Tanzania’s Minister of Livestock and Fisheries Abdallah Ulega and the Saudi minister Eng. Al-Falih.

On the other side, Saudi Arabia and Mauritania signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at encouraging investors in both countries.

The MoU also aimed to encourage the expansion of investments, as it will also contribute in enhancing the investment cooperation between the two countries and create the legal investment environment in Saudi Arabia and Mauritania.

It is noteworthy that the roundtable meetings, held on the sidelines of the Saudi-African Summit, will establish a strategic cooperation between Saudi Arabia and the African countries in various political, economic, investment, security, and cultural fields, in a way that strengthen the common interests, and achieves the development and stability.

Monday November 13, 2023

MOGADISHU: Heavy rains that triggered flash flooding in Somalia have caused around half a million people to flee their homes and killed more than 30 people, a minister said on Sunday.

The Horn of Africa nation has been lashed by unrelenting downpours since the beginning of the month due to the El Nino weather phenomenon, inundating homes and farmland.

The disaster comes on the heels of a record drought that has left millions of Somalis on the brink of famine.

“Half a million of people have fled from their houses due to the flooding,” said Information Minister Daud Aweis, warning that 1.2 million others could be affected.

He said government officials had confirmed the deaths of 31 people but “it is possible that the toll could be higher.”

The bulk of destruction is in Gedo region in southern Somalia and central Hiran region where the seasonal Shabelle River broke its banks, submerged roads and washed away properties in Beledweyne town.

Around 200,000 people were displaced from Beledweyne when the river overflowed in May.

Somalia is considered one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change but is particularly ill-equipped to cope with the crisis as it battles a deadly Islamist insurgency.

The UN humanitarian agency, OCHA, last week said that the country was facing “once-in-a-century flooding” and warned that 1.6 million people could be affected.

OCHA said the situation had been exacerbated by the combined impact of two climate phenomena, El Nino and the Indian Ocean Dipole — a climate system defined by the difference in sea surface temperature between western and eastern areas of the ocean.

El Nino is typically associated with increased heat worldwide, as well as drought in some parts of the world and heavy rains elsewhere.

El Nino last occurred in 2018-2019 and was followed by an exceptionally long La Nina — El Nino’s cooling opposite — which ended earlier this year.

Between October 1997 and January 1998, devastating floods caused by El Nino led to more than 6,000 deaths in five countries in the Horn of Africa.

At least 1,800 people died in Somalia where the Juba River burst its banks.

From October to November 2006, flooding caused by unseasonal rains left more than 140 people dead in Somalia, with many drowned but others killed by crocodiles or succumbing to a malaria epidemic.

At the end of 2019, at least 265 people died and tens of thousands were displaced during two months of relentless rainfall in several countries in East Africa.