Oxfam Canada

Published purpose

With the Ethiopian military removal of the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) government, in December 2006, open conflict erupted between the Ethiopian-supported Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and remnants of the Islamic Courts regime in Somalia. For two years, the ongoing conflict has caused a severe degradation of the humanitarian situation across the country. Over 600,000 people have been forced to flee the fighting in and around Mogadishu. Overall, an estimated 1.3 million Somalis have been displaced from their homes and between 3.2 and 3.5 million are in dire need of food, clean water and sanitation services, healthcare, shelter, and protection. With CIDA support, Oxfam Canada and its partners are helping to provide clean water, proper sanitation facilities, and hygiene awareness for up to 200,000 conflict-affected people in the Afgooye corridor area of Somalia. Some of the specific project activities include rehabilitating or constructing 45 water points as needed; rehabilitating or constructing 550 pit latrines as needed; distributing sanitary protection kits, soap, and jerry cans to hold water; and implementing community hygiene awareness campaigns.