U N I T E D   N A T I O N S
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Integrated Regional Information Network for Central and Eastern Africa

Tel: +254 2 622147
Fax: +254 2 622129
e-mail: irin@ocha.unon.org


HORN OF AFRICA
IRIN-HOA Weekly Round-Up 338
29 July - 4 August 2006


CONTENTS:

DJIBOUTI: New five-year vaccination strategy
ETHIOPIA: Thousands suffer from flooding in the south
ETHIOPIA: Food shortages to persist in the south
SOMALIA: Neighbouring states urged not to fuel discord
SOMALIA: Four more ministers resign from government
SOMALIA: First commercial flight in 11 years
SUDAN: Deaths of aid workers threaten Darfur operations
SUDAN: Escalating violence displaces 25,000 in North Darfur
SUDAN: SPLM, Congress party recommit to peace agreement

See Also:

SOMALIA: More aid workers needed in Mogadishu - ICRC at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=54965


DJIBOUTI: New five-year vaccination strategy

The Djibouti government is to adopt a five-year strategy to improve 
vaccination coverage against diseases such as polio across the country, 
according to a senior government official.

"The time to expand the vaccination campaign is now," Abdallah Abdilahi 
Miguil, the Health Minister, said at a workshop in the capital, Djibouti 
City, over the weekend. While the average number of vaccinated children 
had risen to more than 80 percent, he added, the threat of polio 
remained serious, especially after cases were reported in neighbouring 
Somalia.

[Full story at: 
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=54917]


ETHIOPIA: Thousands suffer from flooding in the south

Ethiopian authorities have begun to deliver humanitarian aid to 
thousands of people affected by flooding along the banks of the Awash 
River in the south of the country, the Disaster Prevention and 
Preparedness Agency (DPPA) said on Wednesday.

"The river has been increasing its flow since 12 July and has now 
flooded some of its banks," said Ato Teshome Erkineh, head of early 
warning at the DPPA.

[Full story to: 
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=54942]


ETHIOPIA: Food shortages to persist in the south

The drought-related food shortages in areas of southern Ethiopia will 
continue for much of this year mainly due to erratic rainfall, the 
United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said.

The affected areas are the Somali Region and parts of the Oromiya 
Region. WFP said livestock herds decimated or weakened by the lack of 
pasture and water in these areas would also take time to recover. [Full 
story at: http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=54922]


SOMALIA: Neighbouring states urged not to fuel discord

A regional bloc spearheading efforts to restore peace in Somalia has 
urged neighbouring states to refrain from doing anything that might 
exacerbate the crisis, amid reports of the presence of foreign troops 
and arms smuggling.

The call was made at the end of an extraordinary meeting in Nairobi on 
Tuesday of foreign ministers of the Intergovernmental Authority of 
Development (IGAD) countries to discuss developments in Somalia after 
the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) took control of the Somali capital, 
Mogadishu, and surrounding areas.

[Full story at: 
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=54941]


SOMALIA: Four more ministers resign from government

Four more ministers resigned from the Somali Transitional Federal 
Government (TFG) on Tuesday, days after 18 others quit claiming that 
Prime Minister Ali Muhammad Gedi had failed to promote reconciliation in 
the strife-torn nation.

"We have resigned because the prime minister refused to heed our call to 
resign after a majority of MPs [members of parliament] voted against 
him," Said Hassan Mire, the Deputy Minister for Rural Development, said.

[Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=54924]


SOMALIA: First commercial flight in 11 years

As a sign of improved security in Somalia's capital, the first 
commercial flight in more than a decade left Mogadishu's newly reopened 
international airport on Sunday.

The city, considered one of the most dangerous places in the world, is 
under the jurisdiction of the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), which 
controls much of southern Somalia.

[Full story at: 
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=54902]


SUDAN: Deaths of aid workers threaten Darfur operations

Escalating violence in the volatile Darfur region has left more aid 
workers dead over the past two weeks than during all the previous years 
of conflict, jeopardising one of the world's largest aid operations, a 
United Nations official said on Thursday.

"During the second half of July, we lost more aid workers than over the 
previous two years," said Mike McDonagh, senior humanitarian affairs 
officer at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 
(OCHA) in Khartoum.

[Full story at: 
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=54962]


SUDAN: Escalating violence displaces 25,000 in North Darfur

Violent clashes between Sudanese government forces, allied militias and 
rebel groups have displaced 25,000 civilians in North Darfur State, 
United Nations officials said on Tuesday.

"Over the past three weeks, we estimate that more than 25,000 people 
have been displaced in North Darfur, 18,000 of whom have newly arrived 
in various IDP [internally displaced persons] camps," Turid Laegreid, 
head of the sub-office of the UN Office for the Coordination of 
Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) for North Darfur, told IRIN.

[Full story at: 
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=54921]


SUDAN: SPLM, Congress party recommit to peace agreement

Sudan's ruling parties have re-affirmed their commitment to the 
Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed more than a year ago, saying 
it holds the key to peace and prosperity in the vast East African 
country.

"Our country is passing through a critical stage, but we will go ahead 
and build democratic systems where political violence will vanish in the 
history of Sudan," said Pagan Amum, Secretary-General of the southern 
Sudan People?s Liberation Movement (SPLM).

[Full story at: 
http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=54918]


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