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11 Mar 2024


MICRONESIA DROUGHT LEAVES THOUSANDS DESPERATE FOR FOOD - UNICEF

11:38 am on 11 March 2024
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Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific Editor
@KoroiHawkins koroi.hawkins@rnz.co.nz

The FSM national government said that with the help of partners it had mobilised
emergency relief supplies for affected communities. Photo: Facebook / Office of
the President, Federated States of Micronesia

Thousands of people are being impacted by drought in the Federated States of
Micronesia.

The four states - Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae - have all been experiencing
drier than normal weather since December last year with the US National Weather
Service predicting things are likely to worsen under current El Nino conditions.

According to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), people in affected
communities are in desperate need of food and water.

UNICEF's Micronesia field office chief Cromwell Bacareza said its estimated
16,000 people - 40 percent of those being children - are in dire need of food.

He told RNZ Pacific severe drought conditions in the North Pacific are a grim
reminder of the climate vulnerability of small island states.

"Many families are struggling to provide adequate nutrition to their children
because agriculture is also affected and the reports that we receive a lot of
those taro patches are ruined by the drought," Bacareza said.

"It's not an isolated incident but rather a grim reminder for everyone of the
impacts of climate change on vulnerable communities, particularly the small
island states.

"Rising temperatures, changing weather patterns, and more frequent extreme
weather events are all contributing to the severity of the droughts in the
region."

Last month, the FSM national government said that with the help of partners it
had mobilised emergency relief supplies for affected communities.

The government said it had dispatched over 13,500 cases of water and over 13,100
sacks of rice to Pohnpei, Yap, and Chuuk.

"In solidarity with FSM's relief endeavors, the International Organisation for
Migration provided 500 jerry cans, 27 hygiene kits, and deployed assessment
personnel with a reverse osmosis (RO) unit capable of producing 360 liters per
day, funded by USAID. UNICEF contributed 754 buckets and 587 wash kits
containing essential sanitation items.:

The Australian vessel Reliant dispatched 116,000 liters of fresh water for
drought response in Pohnpei, while the US Coast Guard aided in transporting
relief supplies and RO units to Kapingamarangi and Nukuoro," the Office of the
President said via a statement.

Tags:
 * Federated States Of Micronesia

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