UN top relief official John Holmes has allocated some 10 million U.S. dollars to boost the aid response in Somalia where the humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate.

A statement from the Nairobi-based OCHA Somalia said on Wednesday the 10 million U.S. dollars in CERF funds will be allocated by the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator to prioritize life-saving programs, including water and nutrition, livelihood support and funding for the UN Humanitarian Air Service.

UN agencies and their humanitarian partners have requested a total of 919 million dollars to support those in need in Somalia in 2009. But to date, only 18 percent of the appeal is funded

The funds allocation came as the United Nations has warned that the humanitarian situation in Somalia is dire, and getting worse.

Four consecutive seasons of poor rainfall, continuing conflict, massive displacement and extreme hyperinflation have severely exacerbated the humanitarian situation in the country, resulting in a significant increase in acute malnutrition rates in most southern/central parts and is now well above the emergency thresholds of 15 percent.

"Internal displacement continues to increase with some 1.1 million people internally displaced since 2007 alone, bringing the total number to 1.3 million," OCHA said.

In addition, approximately 476,000 Somalis have fled the country, which has had a significant impact on the region. There are some 230,000 refugees in Kenya alone.

In Ethiopia, for example, where the caseload of Somali refugees totals 30,000. The UN refugee UNHCR agency has to open a third refugee camp in mid-2008 to accommodate the influx, and a fourth camp is planned for 2009.

In Djibouti, which hosts 10,000 refugees, UNHCR was only 15 percent funded in 2008. Meanwhile, there are 5,000 Somali refugees in Eritrea even though it does not share a border with Somalia.

Some 30,000 Somali refugees have entered Yemen since 2007, and in 2008 more than 50,000 people attempted to cross the gulf sea, many of whom died in the attempt.

The CERF funds allocated for Somalia are part of some 75 million dollars in allocations made by the UN's Emergency Relief Coordinator through a process to support underfunded programs in emergency situations around the world.

The biannual allocations are based on a combination of urgency of humanitarian needs, combined with an analysis of the funding levels for humanitarian programs.

(Xinhua News Agency February 11, 2009)