Famine is set to spread to two new southern Somali regions with millions of people reeling from extreme drought, the top UN humanitarian aid official for the war-torn nation warned on Wednesday.

"We are anticipating that two more areas of southern Somalia will be included," Mark Bowden, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, told AFP.

Middle and Lower Juba are expected to be added to five other regions already declared by the UN to be in famine, including parts of the war-ravaged capital Mogadishu, he said.

"These areas were anticipated, and we are waiting only for the statistical analysis to confirm," Bowden added.

The UN has described Somalia, where a civil war has been going on since 1991, as facing the most severe humanitarian crisis in the world.

Last month, the UN declared famine in the southern Bakool and Lower Shabelle regions of southern Somalia. It later spread to three further areas, including the Afgoye corridor, the world's largest camp for displaced people.

Famine implies that at least 20 percent of households face extreme food shortages, acute malnutrition in over 30 percent of people, and two deaths per 10,000 people every day, according to UN definition.

"It (the famine declaration) stimulated a rapid increase in international funding and support," said Bowden, adding that up to $280 million of funds pledged had already been received.

Of the $1 billion requested for Somalia, 57 percent has been met, the UN official said, including $350 million promised last week by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.

African leaders will also meet Thursday to pledge funds to tackle the crisis.

"The initiative is very welcome," Bowden added. "It provides encouragement for traditional donors to have the involvement of Africans helping Africans in this crisis."

Some 12.4 million people in the Horn of Africa, including parts of Ethiopia, Djibouti, Kenya and Uganda, are affected by the worst drought in decades in the region and are in need of humanitarian assistance, according to the UN.

Al-Qaeda affiliated Shebab gunmen pulled out of positions in Mogadishu earlier this month, but continue to restrict aid into areas they control in famine-hit southern regions.

Access to the worst affected areas remains severely limited, an assessment released Tuesday by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warned.

"Most of southern Somalia remains inaccessible to the majority of humanitarian organizations, making the provision of humanitarian assistance challenging," the agency said.

"Emergency conditions could persist well into the first quarter of 2012 in southern Somalia, and recovery may not start until the next harvest in August 2012," it added.

Bowden said measures were being taken to ensure food aid shipped to Somalia reached those in need following reports earlier this month that some supplies were stolen and offered for sale.

"There are always concerns in such a high-risk environment, and we are continually assessing the situation," Bowden said, adding there were concerns militiamen were stealing food from starving people after distribution.

Confirmed cases of cholera are also on the rise, including in Mogadishu and the Shebab-held port of Kismayo, while suspected measles cases have increased by over 660 percent compared to the same time last year, OCHA warned.

"It is feared that the measles outbreak could lead to serious illness and a high number of deaths," especially among displaced people whose "health is already fragile" the assesment read.

earlier related report
Drought and famine in the Horn of Africa: a timeline
Addis Ababa (AFP) Aug 25, 2011 - The drought in the Horn of Africa is affecting 12.4 million people, according to the United Nations, which says that the continent is facing its most serious food crisis since the famine in Somalia in 1991-1992.

-- FEBRUARY 2011 --

- 17: Malnutrition has increased in the last six months in southern Somalia and more than 30 percent of the population remain in crisis, UN under secretary general for humanitarian affairs, Valerie Amos, says after a visit to the region.

-- JUNE --

- 9: The Dabaab refugee camp in eastern Kenya is facing a humanitarian emergency due to severe overcrowding, mainly with Somalis who have fled fighting back home, Doctors Without Borders says.

-- JULY --

- 13: UNICEF delivers food and medical aid by plane to Baidoa in central Somalia, which is controlled by the Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab.

- 19: The death rate among drought-stricken Somalis arriving at a refugee camp in Ethiopia has reached several times above levels seen in emergency situations, the UN refugees agency says.

- 20: The UN officially declares famine in the southern Bakool and Lower Shabelle regions of southern Somalia.

- 22: Somalia's insurgent Shebab say a ban on foreign aid groups remains in force and rejects the UN declaration that parts of the country had been hit by famine.

- 24: The International Red Cross says it has handed out 400 tonnes of food in drought-hit parts of rebel-held southern Somalia.

- 25: The World Bank pledges more than $500 million (345 million euros) to aid the region, as United Nations aid chiefs meet in Rome to discuss ramping up relief efforts. Non-governmental organisations criticise the donors' efforts.

- 27: The World Food Programme begins airlifting emergency supplies to Mogadishu.

- 29: The UN says $2.4 billion is needed to help victims of the drought.

-- AUGUST --

- 1: Tens of thousands of Somalis have already been killed by the famine and hundreds of thousands are threatened, according to the UN's Amos. In the Dabaab camp the UN children's agency UNICEF launches a mass vaccination against polio and measles.

- 2: Uganda may become the next country to fall victim to severe food shortages, the UN food agency warns.

- 3: Famine has spread to three new regions of Somalia. The three areas are the Afgoye corridor IDP settlement, the Mogadishu IDP community and in the Balaad and Adale districts of Middle Shabelle.

- 5: At least five people are killed when an armed gang raids a camp in the Somali capital and steals relief food.

- 6: Rebels says they have abandoned their positions in Mogadishu. On the 9 the government offers an open amnesty to remaining Shebab fighters.

- 10: The UN says about half the Somali population, about 3.7 million people, are now at risk from famine.

- 11: The US says it will increase its aid to $580 million.

- 17: Members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation promise to donate $350 million dollars to Somalia.

- 19: Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan visits Mogadishu.

- 24: Famine is set to spread to two new southern Somali regions, the top UN humanitarian aid official for the country warns.

The European Union says that the international community has a moral obligation to help the Horn of Africa, on the eve of a pledging conference organised by the African Union in the Ethiopian capital.

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