Garissa County Governor Nathif Jama has called upon the national government to intervene and offer urgent aid as more than 30,000 families grapple with food and water shortages, owing to the severe drought that has hit the North-Eastern part of the country.

In a crisis leadership meeting held on Tuesday, October 28, 2025, Governor Jama confirmed that more than 18 out of 30 wards in Garissa County need urgent humanitarian assistance due to the drought that has lasted four seasons in a row, putting human life and livestock at risk.

Call for urgent assistance

”We are sounding an alarm that the situation of the drought is extremely biting. It is becoming extremely hard for the pastoralist communities and for many settlements. At the moment, we are saying that 18 out of our 30 wards are severely hit. We are tracking water to more than 200 settlements,” Jama said on Tuesday, October 28, 2025.

On his part, Garissa Assistant County Commissioner Sebastian Okiring has urged partners across the board to join efforts and save the lives of both the affected residents, livestock and wildlife.

”The community has not recovered from the first drought, neither has it recovered from the second, third and even the fourth, so it is a situation that is getting dire, and a lot of support is required so that we safeguard our people, our livestock and our wildlife, so we call upon all partners to come in and actively engage so that we can be able to alleviate this situation,” Okiring said.

Wet season kicks in

The Garissa drought situation is reported amid the ongoing heavy rainfall reported in most parts of the country. The Kenya Meteorological Department has also issued a warning over expected heavy rainfall and strong winds in several parts nationwide, as a weakening storm system named Chenge moves toward the East African coast.

According to the weatherman’s statement posted on X on Sunday, October 26, 2025, Chenge is a low-pressure system over the southwest Indian Ocean currently moving westward at a speed of 11 km/h.

“Chenge, a weakening system over the SW Indian Ocean, is moving west at 11 km/h about 500 km north of Madagascar with winds of 55 km/h, gusts up to 75 km/h, and pressure near 1000 hPa,” the department said.

Members of the public are advised to remain cautious as the country experiences wetter than usual days.