The number of people in need of humanitarian assistance is expected to drop to 1.5 million by January next year, according to the National Drought Management Authority.
This is due to the projected El Niño rains from October which are expected to improve the current food situation and water availability.
The number of people in need of humanitarian assistance currently stands at 2.8 million from 4.4 million in February when the drought situation was at its worst.
In its monthly report, the authority said that the food situation in the 23 arid and semi-arid lands counties had improved greatly due to the March-April-May rains.
NDMA said that the food security situation was expected to significantly improve with the onset of the October to December rainfall.
“The number of people in need of humanitarian assistance during October 2023 to January 2024 period is expected to reduce to approximately 1.5 million,” the report says.
The report said that despite the March-April-May rains, some counties were still feeling the full effects of the drought with pregnant women and minors being the most affected.
The authority said that the acute malnutrition analysis conducted in July showed that the situation had improved in most arid counties compared to the same analysis period last year.
As per the report, the number of children aged six to 59 months requiring treatment for acute malnutrition decreased from 970,214 in February to 945,610 reported in July 2023.
“However, malnutrition levels have remained elevated in most arid counties due to the cumulative negative effects of the prolonged drought,” authority said.
The report said at the height of the drought, cases of human-wildlife conflicts were reported across different counties with the Kenya Wildlife Service failing to compensate those affected.
NDMA said that in areas neighbouring Tsavo National Park and Shimba Hills National Reserve in Taita Taveta, Kilifi and Kwale counties, elephants destroyed crops and prevented farmers from accessing their farms.
The jumbos also camped at water sources, preventing households and livestock from accessing water and posed a safety threat to schoolgoing children.
The report said that stray elephants destroyed more than 300 hectares of sorghum in Tigania West in Meru county, while more than 1,000 hectares of farmland were destroyed in Kitui and in Kibwezi.
“In Kitui county, approximately 54 heads of sheep and goats were lost to hyenas and leopards in Kitui South, Kitui East and Mwingi Central sub-counties,” the report said.
