Uganda short of disaster relief funds as El Nino rains take toll

Uganda announced Wednesday that it is in dire need of 9.4 million U.S. dollars to help mitigate the effects of the El Nino rains across the East African country.

Musa Ecweru, minister of state for relief, disaster preparedness and refugees, told reporters that the El Nino rains have reached a destructive level and the peak of its effect is expected in early December.

"It is unfortunate that El Nino has come when the Ministry of Finance is facing some financial challenges," Ecweru said.

At least 1,500 people have been displaced, while one person was killed and hundreds of hectares of gardens were flooded, according to the disaster ministry.

"Water logging, flooding and landslides are expected to intensify in the coming days because the ground in most places is prone to flooding and landslides are now saturated after weeks of torrential rains," Ecweru said.

Apart from opening drainage channels and procuring the necessary relief aid, the government has also put the army on standby to help people should the rains become more destructive.

The latest severe rains in Uganda occurred in 2007, when floods hit the northern and eastern parts of the country, destroying crops and property and washing away bridges. About 300,000 people were affected and over 60,000 people were displaced. Endi