Only 20% of an emergency $426 million appeal to prevent a catastrophe for millions of people in the drought-hit Horn of Africa has been raised. Kjell Magne Bondevik, the UN special humanitarian envoy for the Horn of Africa, said 8 million people in the Horn need immediate aid and 7 million more are at risk if if donors do not come up with the funding.

Bondevik was speaking as he wrapped up a five-country tour to assess humanitarian needs in Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenyan and Somalia. "In general we are still in a very critical situation. The recent rain is too little, too late to avoid the crisis, but with proper funding, it is still possible to avoid a catastrophe." says Bondevik.

In Wajid, recent rains have turned the parched landscape green, but local officials said no one should be fooled that the crisis is over. Accompanied by heavily armed battle wagons called "technicals" full of Kalashnikov-wielding militiamen, Bondevik visited feeding centres and refugee camps in Wajid.

The area is a base of operations for foreign aid agencies working in the worst-affected areas in the southern and central areas of the anarchic country one of the toughest places in the world to deliver humanitarian assistance. - Reuters