UNHCR Regional Update #32 Ethiopia Emergency Situation, 31 May 2022

Key Developments

ETHIOPIA

Between 1 April to 31 May, 1,270 trucks transporting 49,235 metric tons of humanitarian cargo and 644,483 liters of fuel arrived in Mekelle. This includes 32 UNHCR trucks transporting fuel, core relief items (CRIs) and medicines. These supplies are however still not enough to meet the immense needs of the affected population in the region. According to OCHA, 100 trucks with humanitarian supplies are needed daily, to attain the scale needed. Lack of fuel to sustain relief operations in Tigray remains a critical bottleneck hindering onward distribution of relief supplies from Mekelle to other areas. Currently, priority for use of fuel is given to the distribution of food supplies.

On 22 May, WFP stated that over 10,000 tons of food and other critical supplies had arrived in Tigray. The convoys that arrived include the largest so far, involving 163 trucks. In addition, WFP and partners will continue to scale up deliveries with the return of over 100 trucks that had been in Tigray since July 2021.

Ethiopia Response

The humanitarian situation across northern Ethiopia continues to seriously impact refugees, the internally displaced and host communities. Civilians have endured over one year of conflict with extremely limited basic services and assistance available, leading to a significant escalation in humanitarian needs with ongoing new displacements. The security situation remains volatile, affecting civilians and constraining humanitarian actors on the ground, despite the announcement of a humanitarian truce.

On 13 May, UNHCR’s Regional Director for the East and Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes (EHAGL) conducted a virtual donor briefing on the Northern Ethiopia situation for key donor partners, including some representatives of Permanent Missions in Geneva, donors at the regional level and some donor capitals. The Regional Bureau Director provided a briefing from her recent missions to Sudan, Ethiopia, and Eritrea, highlighting the current humanitarian situations as well as UNHCR’s response. Also discussed were UNHCR’s efforts in contingency planning and preparedness.

Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees