Who We Are

Save Somalia: Humanitarian and Refugee Awareness Campaign is an initiative of the Friends of Somalia and Somali Americans through Somalia American Community Association. The campaign started July 2009, the month that also commemorates the Save Somalia: Humanitarian and Refugee Awareness Month.

The mission of the campaign is to be the voice for the millions of Somalis who are experiencing the worst humanitarian and refugee crisis in the world (UN, 2009) in an effort to save lives and alleviate needless suffering. Our goal is to educate the public, engage the U.S. Congress, establish student clubs, and partner with key institutions to appeal for help.

Situation Snapshot

To give you a brief background on the situation, according to most recent report:

• Nearly a third of the country is expected to experience famine.
• 3.2 million Somalis, about 45% of the entire population, are suffering from hunger and malnutrition and are in dire need of emergency humanitarian assistance.
• 8% of the population is suffering from acute malnutrition, that is, more than the 1% of the global threshold for an emergency food crisis.

Health problems associated with acute malnutrition include marasmus (wasting of fat, muscle and other tissues); cretinism causing limited mental and physical growths; brain damage; blindness; infection; and death particularly among children under five years old and adults with health problems.



Gerry Simpson of Human Rights Watch and Refugee Researcher concluded on his recent visit to refugee camps, “The refugee crisis worsens with every day of delay and continued paralysis and unresponsiveness puts the well-being of all the refugees - new and old - at grave risk." Over a quarter million Somali refugees in Kenya are living in overcrowded and inadequate refugee camps developed for 90,000 refugees. Thousands more refugees are living in similar conditions in Ethiopia and Yemen.

The humanitarian and refugee crisis in Somalia can no longer be ignored. We believe that a concerted effort from individuals like you is critical in order to curb the needless suffering and death.

Yet, there is a global silence on this staggering human suffering.

The Friends of Somalia and Somali Americans are taking several steps to help the situation. One such step is to urge the members of the U.S. Congress to sponsor or support:

• An appropriation request to provide emergency food aid to Somalia.
• The development of a plan to provide protection and assistance to refugees in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Yemen, and the internally displaced people.
• The development of a comprehensive strategy that deals with the full range of humanitarian and refugee crisis in Somalia.

For more information or if you would like to join the campaign, please contact:

Ahmed Elmi, M.P.H.
Chairman
Phone: 202.415.0327
Email: chairman@sacausa.org