ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Children's Fund, or UNICEF, said Thursday that funding shortfall is hampering its humanitarian response amid mounting humanitarian needs across Ethiopia. The UNICEF said in its latest Ethiopia humanitarian situation report that its 674.3 million U.S. dollars Humanitarian Action for Children (HAC) 2023 Appeal for Ethiopia remains 72 percent unfunded, as humanitarian needs persist among vulnerable populations across the East African country, particularly those in hard-to-reach locations. Amid mounting humanitarian needs in Ethiopia, as of Sept. 30, a total of 24,929 confirmed cholera cases had been reported in Ethiopia's longest cholera outbreak on record, said the UNICEF, adding that 327 people had died across 10 regions. The continued influx of refugees and Ethiopian returnees due to the Sudan conflict has posed an additional pressing humanitarian concern in Ethiopia's Amhara and Benishangul Gumuz regions, UNICEF said. As of Sept. 30, more than 83,000 people had crossed into Ethiopia from Sudan since the conflict erupted in April.
