Walter Cronkite school of
journalism at Arizona state
university.
>> For the first time in nearly
eight years, a cabinet member
has visited Somalia.
The U.S. Ambassador to the U.N.,
Linda thomas-greenfield's visit
to Mogadishu comes as the region
faces one of the world's most
acute humanitarian crises,
caused by ongoing conflict,
climate change, and covid.
Across the horn of Africa, 24
million people are extremely
food insecure, and in Somalia,
humanitarian agencies worn that
more than 8 million people are
on the brink of famine if more
aid is not delivered soon.
In the moment, Nick schifrin
interviews the ambassador the to
U.N., but first, he looks at at
the urgent crisis in Somalia.
Nick: Across the arid landscape
of southern Somalia,
families are on the move, to try
to escape death by starvation.
They set up tent cities, this
one in baidoa.
Bundobo hassan left her home
after her livestock was killed
by drought.
>> We just survive on what
people give us, we just eat what
we have.
Nick: Somalia faces its worst
drought in 40 years.
The last five rainy seasons have
been dry, ravaging crops,
killing millions of livestock,
and pushing more than one-third
of the country's 17 million
residents into "Acute food
insecurity."
Current estimates say the crisis
could be worse than the 2011
famine that killed more than
250,000 people.
>> The level of human suffering
that these communities go
through is beyond comprehension.
Nick: Victor chinyama is unicef
Somalia's spokesperson.
>> The capacity of families and
communities to withstand these
climatic shocks gets eroded
every single year, and that is
why now you have large numbers
of people that have been
displaced and are looking for
help.
Nick: Helped to save the most
vulnerable.
Already, hundreds of children
have died.
The U.N. Says thousands more at
risk of dying, and 1.8 million
could be malnourished through
July.
>> We are potentially looking at
a generation that could be lost.
Nick: But somalis don't only
need food, they need peace.
Al Qaeda linked al-shabab, which
the us calls a terrorist group,
wants to establish an islamic
state, and controls large swaths
of rural areas.
>> It's almost impossible for us
as humanitarian actors.
Nick: Sashwat Saraf is the east
Africa regional emergency
director for the international
rescue committee.
>> It is so insecure, that no
humanitarian actor or agency
would be able to go into those
geographical pockets to provide
humanitarian services.
Nick: Somalia's hunger
catastrophe is exacerbated by
the conflict 3000 miles away.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine
blocked Ukrainian exports, and
deprived the horn of Africa its
major source of food.
At current funding levels,
humanitarian agencies say famine
could arrive, in a matter of
months.
>> Today, what we have is a 50%
funded appeal for the region,
and we still don't have enough
financial resources to be able
to meet the increasing needs
that we're seeing in the region.
Nick: More money is also what
the U.S. Ambassador to the U.N.,
Linda thomas-greenfield, asked
for in an unannounced trip to
Somalia this past weekend.
>> The United States is asking
other donors and the world to go
bigger and be bolder.
Nick: And ambassador Linda
Thomas Greenfield is back in
Washington, and joins me now.
Thanks very much.
Welcome back to the "Newshour."
What will the impact be if
Somalia does not get the
additional funding it needs
ahead of what's expected to be
another failed rainy season in
the coming months?
>> We want to do everything you
can to avert this next round of
failed rainfalls, which should
happen sometime around the
March, April timeframe.
What we need to do is get more
donors to support the people of
Somalia.
I announced $40 million when I
was there in addition to the
$1.3 billion that we have
provided already, but more is
needed to be done by more
people.
We have to be much more
ambitious.
We have to be more aggressive.
We have to save lives.
Nick: Knows numbers that you
just cited, more than $1.3
billion of assistance from the
U.S. Since last October, makes
the U.S. By far the largest
donor.
But the united nations says the
European union has only funded
10% of its humanitarian response
plan to Somalia.
Does Europe need to do more?
>> Everybody needs to do more.
Traditional donors like the
European union and others in
Europe who are already provided
funding.
But we're also calling on
nontraditional donors, donors
who might not otherwise think
about engaging on Somalia to
also contribute to this effort.
This is about humanity.
There is no reason for people to
die of hunger.
We have the tools that we need
to support them.
We just need the resources.
Nick: There is a term, as you
know, that humanitarian workers
use -- compassion fatigue.
Are donors, do you think,
too distracted by Ukraine?
>> I don't think so.
I hear compassion fatigue being
used all the time.
I heard, when I was in Africa
concern that resources are being
, redirected to Ukraine.
All of the funding that we have
provided to Ukraine is new money
and we're still funding other
humanitarian needs.
And we encourage other countries
to do exactly the same.
We can't be fatigued about
people dying.
We can't lose our sense of
humanity, our compassion for
people.
It is important that we not
watch another child die of
hunger.
Nick: Nearly 1 million of the
somalis who need assistance live
under territory that's currently
controlled by al-shabaab.
The U.S. Trains somali is the
knob -- that is the elite
counterterrorism force.
And also local militias have
, been fighting al-shabab.
But many experts say that at the
core of the long term problems
that Somalia faces is bad
governance.
This government is unelected.
There are senior officials who
used to be senior members of
al-shabab.
Why does the U.S. Support this
government?
>> You know, president hassan
sheikh was president previously.
And interestingly, what he has
said in this term is that he has
learned so much since he was out
of government.
We have been impressed with that
strategy he has put forth to
engage with the other regions of
Somalia.
He is looking at how he can move
forward political
reconciliation, and he has tried
to be more inclusive, including
bringing in those people who
have turned their backs away
from osha -- from
al-shabab, and who are prepared
to work with this government to
do right by the somali people.
He is fighting to take territory
away from al-shabab, and he has
been extraordinarily successful
with our help, with the help of
the African union transitional
mission.
Nick: Why not condition U.S.
Assistance, more on performance?
>> Weekend condition
humanitarian assistance and
allow people today, we have to
support the humanitarian
imperative that Somalia puts in
front of us.
Also, if they are going to beat
al-shabab, they have to be
trained.
We worked to train their
soldiers so that they do abide
by humanitarian and human rights
rules.
And we are working to push
Somalia for the first time,
closer to a more inclusive,
closer to a democratic
government.
Nick: Some experts I spoke to
today urge the U.S. Government
to speak to al-shabab to
actually come up with a
negotiated settlement to what
many see as a civil war.
Do you agree?
Amb. Greenfield: You know, I
heard president hassan sheikh
speaking on another channel a
few weeks ago and he said,
you're asking me to speak to
terrorists.
You are asking me to speak to
people who are responsible for
slaughtering our people.
He wants to get rid of
al-shabab.
We have designated them
terrorists.
We would not asked, in the
United States, to negotiate with
terrorists.
Al-shabab is responsible for the
deaths of thousands upon
thousands of somalis.
It is responsible for this
country being in the situation
that it's in right now.
Nick: Finally, ambassador, in
time, I have left many African
capitals do not like talk of a
great game between the U.S.,
China and Russia in Africa. But
the Chinese foreign minister
just visited five African
countries. China, of course,
pours billions of dollars into
infrastructure development in
Africa.
Russian foreign minister sergey
lavrov just visited south
Africa, whose foreign minister
just called Russia a friend.
The U.S., as you pointed out, is
by far the largest donor to
Africa as a whole.
But does your assistance
sometimes fail to match your
influence?
Amb. Greenfield: Yes, China is
spending billions of dollars on
infrastructure.
It is not a gift, it is
basically a yoke that is putting
many countries in debt. But
countries have made these
decisions and they will work
with having to deal with the
consequences of these decisions
down the road.
Our message to Africa is we want
to be your partner.
We want to help you build a
future for your next generation.
And we want to do that together
with you.
Nick: Ambassador Linda
thomas-greenfield, thank you
very much.
Amb. Greenfield: Thank you.