US provides over $181 million to avert famine in Tigray

The United States is providing more than $181 million to deliver food, water and aid to feed more than three million people facing famine in the Ethiopia’s Tigray region.
The aid, provided through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), will provide enough food to feed three million people for nearly two months, a statement from USAID read, adding that the fund will also provide seeds, tools and fertilizers to help farmers replant crops.
The agency will also provide safe spaces and psychological support for women and girls as well as case management for survivors of gender-based violence, according to the statement.
“The already dire situation in Tigray is deteriorating at alarming speed. As a result of the conflict, nearly 90% of Tigray’s population — as many as 5.2 million people — need urgent assistance,” USAID said, calling on other donors to “urgently step up” and increase contributions.
Thousands of people have been killed since the conflict erupted in November last year, 2 million have been forced from their homes and 91% of the population of nearly 6 million are in need of aid, according to the latest report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
USAID in the statement called on the Ethiopian government to remove what it said were barriers that prevent aid workers from saving lives and said all parties to the conflict must take immediate steps to protect the workers.
The United States has contributed nearly $487 million in humanitarian assistance since the crisis began, according to the statement.

Edited by Olajumoke Adeleke