Southern African leaders have launched a $5.5 billion humanitarian aid appeal as the region faces acute grain shortages due to El Nino-induced droughts.

Leaders from the region’s bloc, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), met Monday to deliberate on the crisis following widespread drought and flooding that has left millions without enough to eat.

In a communiqué released after the virtual meeting, leaders from 15 SADC member states agreed to launch an appeal to help affected populations.

The leaders said the SADC Regional Humanitarian Appeal will augment domestic resources in response to the impact of El Nino weather patterns.

El Nino resulted in warmer and drier conditions, leading to record-breaking droughts across the region in 2023 and the beginning of 2024.

SADC executive secretary Elias Magosi said the humanitarian appeal will be revised in August as more member states finalize their assessments on the impact of El Nino and look toward an expected change to the La Nina weather pattern later this year.

"Summit called member states to be proactive and strengthen anticipatory action programs to mitigate climate risks such as the La Nina phenomenon, which is projected for the 2024-2025 season,” Magosi said.

Magosi said the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the Food and Agriculture Organization have pledged a combined $43 million toward the humanitarian appeal.

Angolan President Joao Lourenco, who chaired the Monday meeting, appealed to the international community to respond.

“This is a very important step taken by the organization (SADC) by launching this humanitarian appeal and we hope that there will be good feedback on the part of the international community of support to help us overcome this difficult moment that the region is facing," Lourenco said.

El Nino has resulted in widespread crop failure within Southern Africa and has resulted in national emergency declarations in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe.