Britain's Department for International Development (DFID) announced on Wednesday an additional 50 million dollar package to help Ethiopia cope with the ongoing humanitarian crisis.

In a news release, the British embassy said the support would go towards meeting the most pressing needs on the ground and would include direct food distribution, medical support, special nutritional support for mothers and children, and the supply of potable water.
Some 20 million dollars of the donation would go to assist food insecure households by providing food and cash transfers and 16 million dollars to the World Food Programme (WFP) for humanitarian needs in east Ethiopia's Somali region.
Wednesday's donation brings Britain's contribution since May 2008 to about 100 million dollars, the release said.
The WFP on Monday issued an appeal for nearly half a billion dollars to assist 9.6 million Ethiopians affected by drought and high food prices, for the next six months.
"The Horn of Africa region is facing the worst humanitarian crisis since 1984, and Ethiopia is caught in the middle," said WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran.
An estimated two million of the 9.6 million people needing assistance live in the Somali region of Ethiopia, where it has not rained for three years, the UN said.