The Norwegian Refugee Council has warned of a severe shortage of clean water in Somalia where more than 300,000 people are facing life-threatening deprivation as a humanitarian funding gap exposes entire communities to deadly epidemics.
Hundreds of thousands of Somalis have been deprived of safe drinking water in recent months after funding cuts forced the reduction or suspension of trucked water and sanitation services exposing populations to preventable diseases such as cholera and acute watery diarrhea.
More than 300,000 people mostly displaced families living in overcrowded camps and rural communities have lost access to clean water following the reduction or cessation of support with funding allocated for water and sanitation representing less than 12 percent of humanitarian needs.
In early 2025 the United Nations appealed for 1.42 billion dollars to assist 4.6 million people but only 17 percent of this target has been met forcing humanitarian organizations to reduce their response by 72 percent and reach only 1.3 million beneficiaries at a cost of 367 million dollars.
“Reducing the humanitarian response in Somalia does not mean fewer people will need help it means more than three million Somalis will be left to fend for themselves,” said Mohamed Abdi NRC country director.
The health crisis is worsening with more than 6,550 cases of cholera and acute watery diarrhea reported between January and July 2025 including nine deaths. Over 1,000 new cases were recorded in the last month alone with nearly two thirds of the latest cases severe and half involving children under five.
This situation comes amid a drastic reduction in vital services with more than 150 health facilities closed and in Southwest State the number of mobile health teams falling from 74 to 25 depriving large swathes of the population of access to care.
Hawa Ali a displaced mother of eight living in Baidoa says families now have to walk for hours to find water which is often dirty and insufficient for drinking or cooking exposing children to disease.
The worst affected regions include Bay Bakool Gedo Galgaduud Hiraan Mudug and Lower Shabelle where many communities relied on water supply systems managed by humanitarian organizations that are now decommissioned due to lack of funding.
The drought has also dried up wells and reduced borehole yields pushing the price of water to nearly double from 70 to 130 dollars for 10,000 litres making access unaffordable for many families. In Puntland around 800,000 people are without water while in Somaliland approximately 650,000 people are in urgent need of assistance.
“Somalia is on the brink of collapse due to the combined effects of ongoing conflict climate extremes and a sharp decline in international aid,” said Mohamed Abdi. “We see the human cost of inaction every day the suffering of children too weak to walk empty jerrycans and preventable deaths from waterborne diseases. This is a man-made disaster that can still be prevented,” he added.
About The Author
