Somalia May Have Normal Rains In Coming Months

Tens of thousands of Somalis have already died and more than 3.2 million others are on the brink of starvation after months of drought have seared the impoverished Horn of Africa country, which has already been devastated by two decades of ferocious factional fighting.

Giving the Greater Horn of Africa climate outlook for the September through December season, the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said forecasts indicate a possible return to normal to above-normal rainfall conditions in southern Somalia, but a risk of below-normal rainfall remains over northern Somalia and adjoining regions.

September to December constitutes an important rainfall season after the March-May rains in southern Somalia and other equatorial parts of the region, including Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda and northern Tanzania, but rainfall in northern Somalia during this period is typically lower than in the south.

The number of Somalis in need of humanitarian assistance has increased from 2.4 million to 4 million in the past eight months, with 3 million of them in the country's south, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

UN leaders have repeatedly appealed to the international community to rush food aid to the drought-stricken country.