UN agencies pay one-day visit to Somali capital

The United Nations has conducted its first inter-agency assessment mission to the Somali capital of Mogadishu since the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) assumed control in southern Somalia.

A statement from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) received here Wednesday said the one-day mission, which took place on Tuesday, allowed agency representatives to meet with TFG leaders, civil society organizations, staff of UN agencies and other humanitarian partners to discuss humanitarian priorities, coordination and the way forward for humanitarian operations in the country.

"The need for unrestricted access to all civilian populations in need of assistance in Somalia is one of the humanitarian community's stated priorities," said the statement.

According to OCHA, concern has been expressed over the situation of several thousand of displaced Somalis currently waiting at the border between Kenya and Somalia, which has remained closed for nearly two weeks.

"Residents and displaced persons, who would normally cross the border to Liboi (on the Kenyan side) for medical care, have been unable to do so. As a result, a number of people suffering from dysentery, diarrhoea, and malaria are reportedly going untreated," the statement said.

However, OCHA said 356 metric tons of food aid from the World Food Program (WFP) was distributed to 6,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) and 12,000 residents of Dobley by Somali non- governmental organization Wajir South Development Association ( WASDA).

Source: Xinhua