[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1137 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1137
Expressing concern for the drought and endemic food insecurity plaguing
the Horn of Africa and calling for greater humanitarian and
agricultural assistance to the region.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 24, 2022
Ms. Bass (for herself, Mr. Carson, Mr. Connolly, Mr. Espaillat, and Mr.
Evans) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Expressing concern for the drought and endemic food insecurity plaguing
the Horn of Africa and calling for greater humanitarian and
agricultural assistance to the region.
Whereas, in the Horn of Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia are undergoing the
worst drought in 40 years and one of the greatest food insecurity
emergencies in the 21st century after four consecutive seasons with
below average rainfall;
Whereas the drought in the Horn of Africa has caused widespread livestock
deaths, rampant crop failures, and rising food prices, which have
exacerbated gender-based violence and maternal mortality, and led to
societal disruptions like families fleeing their homes and radically
declining school attendance;
Whereas, according to the World Food Programme and the United Nations Office for
the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, approximately 7,200,000 people
in south and southeastern Ethiopia are severely food insecure as a
result of the drought; the number of Kenyans needing food aid has
quadrupled in under 2 years with 3,500,000 now facing hunger; and in the
upcoming months, there is a serious risk of widespread famine in
Somalia, where nearly 6,000,000 are experiencing acute food insecurity
and over 81,000 are already facing famine conditions;
Whereas the World Food Programme estimates that the ongoing drought in the Horn
of Africa places up to 20,000,000 people at risk of starvation through
2022 without humanitarian intervention, and the World Food Programme has
therefore called for swift increases in support from world partners due
to shortages in food aid;
Whereas the nations of the Horn of Africa were able to persevere through the
drought of 2016 and 2017 due to the early scaling-up of aid, but amidst
other competing humanitarian crises globally, the existing supply of
food assistance is insufficient to prevent starvation during the present
hunger emergency in the Horn of Africa, where food assistance needs are
over 70 percent higher than the 2016 to 2017 drought according to the
Famine Early Warning Systems Network;
Whereas, in addition to the compounding challenges of four consecutive seasons
of failed rains, recent global supply chain complications along with
high fertilizer and crude oil prices--due in part to the COVID-19
pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine--have raised food prices,
worsened acute hunger, and diminished capacities to deliver aid to the
Horn of Africa;
Whereas the United States is the largest bilateral donor of international food
assistance among world nations, and like other Sahel and sub-Saharan
states, countries in the Horn of Africa have been among the greatest
recipients of direct United States food aid in recent years; and
Whereas this mounting crisis in the Horn of Africa requires global attention and
a shared commitment to foreign assistance--both urgent humanitarian
assistance and long-term agricultural development aid--to avert
thousands of deaths: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) expresses deep concern for the latest years-long
drought in the Horn of Africa and the ensuing food security
crisis and severe socioeconomic disturbances it caused;
(2) acknowledges the role that climate change plays in
increasing the frequency of extreme weather events like
droughts, and pledges to take coordinated, international action
to adapt to and avert further global warming;
(3) reaffirms the effectiveness and instrumentality of
United States international food assistance for meeting
humanitarian obligations, cultivating enduring self-reliance in
developing nations, ensuring the stability of global financial
markets, and mitigating the likelihood of conflict in
accordance with our national security interests;
(4) emphasizes the importance of funding urgently needed
humanitarian assistance for hunger-stricken regions of the
world, supporting the development of sustainable agricultural
sectors in developing nations, and assisting with the
international resettlement of refugees escaping droughts and
extreme hunger; and
(5) urges the Biden administration, the Department of
State, and the United States Agency for International
Development to immediately offer technical and material
assistance, as appropriate and to the extent allowable under
Federal law and congressional appropriations, to support
affected East African nations, international organizations, and
nongovernmental organizations in their efforts to alleviate
hunger and deliver food aid to communities impacted by the
drought in the Horn of Africa.
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