Aid cuts jeopardize health and nutrition services for Somali children

More than 200 health and nutrition centres have already ceased operations in Somalia because of reduced humanitarian funding, and projections suggest the number could rise to 618. The loss of these sites forces mothers and children to travel farther for care, delaying treatment and increasing the severity of illness. UNICEF spokesperson James Elder noted that admissions to stabilisation centres for severe acute malnutrition have risen 32 per cent compared with the previous year, a change driven by the disappearance of community‑based nutrition services rather than a surge in new cases.

Humanitarian needs are surging as the country confronts multiple crises. This year, about 1.9 million children are projected to be affected by malnutrition, with almost half a million facing the life‑threatening severe acute form. Nearly one million children under five risk losing access to nutrition programmes. Decades of civil war have produced mass displacement and chronic food insecurity, while the ongoing US‑Iran conflict has pushed up fuel and fertiliser prices. In addition, severe droughts in the north and the approach of extreme flooding linked to a strong El Niño pattern threaten to further destabilise food supplies.

The United Nations continues to deliver critical services: cholera vaccinations have reached over a million people, education programmes support over 100,000 young students, and child‑recruitment rehabilitation efforts remain active. Between 2021 and 2025, UNICEF assisted more than 2.25 million children with severe acute malnutrition, achieving a 97.6 per cent cure rate in 2025. However, the spokesperson warned that the same funding cuts that have closed facilities now jeopardise the ability to sustain these results, emphasizing that withdrawing resources at a time of heightened pressure risks higher future costs in money, security and lives.