Mogadishu, Jan 19 (IANS): The UN humanitarian agency has said that it allocated $35.7 million to support the El Nino flood response in Somalia since October 2023.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Thursday that $25.7 million came from the Somalia Humanitarian Fund (SHF), a multi-donor country-based pooled mechanism supporting most urgent life-saving interventions in Somalia, while $10 million allocation was from the Central Emergency Response Fund, Xinhua news agency reported.

"These allocations aim to provide early action and response to save lives and mitigate the impact of floods on the most vulnerable communities in 10 regions of Somalia," OCHA said in SHF's latest report for the fourth quarter of 2023 released in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia.

The heavy Deyr (October-December) rains in Somalia killed more than 118 people and devastated one-fifth of the harvest in south-central Somalia, according to the UN. The heavy rains also adversely affected about 1.5 million hectare of farmland in Somalia.

The report said a total of 35 projects were monitored through field visits by OCHA and clusters, third-party monitoring and outsourced remote calls.

"These regular checks ensure that partners deliver relevant and timely services to those most in need while complying with the agreed procedures."

According to OCHA, the SHF will hold an advisory board meeting in February in Mogadishu, which will focus on providing the strategic direction of SHF in 2024, including setting the principles governing allocations.