Insufficient rain during the last short (Belg) rainy season of February to May this year has unexpectedly changed the humanitarian need context in Ethiopia, reports Relief Web, one of the biggest humanitarian portals in the globe.

Despite optimistic forecasts at the beginning of the year, increasing water and pasture shortages were reported in parts of the country, leading to deteriorated livestock production and productivity, deepening food insecurity and rising malnutrition, the report said. The Belg harvest is expected to be significantly less than the projection in the 2015 Humanitarian Requirements Document (HRD).

 
Planned to start on 8 June in Somali region and 22 June elsewhere in the country, the mid-year humanitarian needs assessment is expected to confirm an increased number of relief food beneficiaries in the second half of the year. Ad hoc requests were coming from Afar, Amhara, Oromia and SNNP regional authorities for increased food aid, according to Relief Web.