HC

MOGADISHU — The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said Tuesday it has intensified efforts to contain the spread of the desert locusts in Somalia that pose a huge threat to food security. In its desert locust situation update, FAO said an increasing number of hopper bands are forming in central …

ROMA — People in four food insecurity “hotspots” inside Burkina Faso, northeastern Nigeria, South Sudan, and Yemen, need help urgently to avoid sliding into famine, UN humanitarians said on Friday. “We are concerned that they may be facing an elevated risk of famine if the situation would further deteriorate over the …

DJIBOUTI — The European Union has approved an additional €17.2 million through the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (EUTF) to support COVID-19 preparedness in Somalia, Sudan and South Sudan. Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen said the additional funds will be directed towards supporting vulnerable people and strengthening health …

BOSSASO — Police in Bossaso town have arrested two men in connection with the rape and killing of a small girl in the area. The two admitted raping and killing Naimo Abdi Mohamed whose body was found in the city’s Raf and Raaho neighborhood. One of the suspects, Mohamed Abdi …

MOGADISHU — Having scraped money together following medical studies abroad, Somali doctor Abdullahi Sheikdon Dini opened Mogadishu’s first advanced diagnostic laboratory in January. Its arrival could hardly have been better timed because, just two months later, the coronavirus epidemic reached the Horn of Africa country. Since then Medipark Diagnostics, which …

BELEDWEYNE — The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) has handed over Personal Protective Equipment and sanitary supplies to the administration of the Hiran region in Beledweyne district. The donation will support efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in about thirty camps for Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs in the …

MOGADISHU — Turkey’s state development aid agency has donated 300 beehives to help boost the livelihoods of farmers in Somaliland, an area of the Horn of Africa country Somalia. In a statement, the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) noted that farmers in Hawd, Somaliland were trained on modern bee-keeping techniques …

WARSHEIKH — Locust swarms have invaded War-Sheikh district and surrounding areas in the Middle Shabelle region, residents told Radio Dalsan. The swarms have also invaded farmlands in Bakaaroole, Shiiqyaale, Ruunsheegow, and the neighboring regions and were spreading fast. Locals said it was the first time the locusts arrived in the …

MOGADISHU — Somalia and the UN on Saturday lauded the role played by Somali women in peace, security, and governance as the world celebrated the 20th anniversary of UN Security Council Resolution 1325. Hanifa Mohamed Ibrahim, minister of women and human rights development, said the government should now create new …

NAIROBI — Somalia’s economic growth is forecast to contract significantly due to the negative impacts of COVID-19 (coronavirus), locust infestation, and extreme flooding. The economy is projected to contract by 1.5 percent in 2020, down from an earlier estimate of 3.2 percent before the pandemic. The latest World Bank Somalia …