10 May 2005, Dambas - Some of the few animals that survived the drought grazing under a tree. During the past decade, the frequency of drought has been increasing with shorter recovery periods, having an intense impact on the pastoralists who are among the region's most vulnerable population. Of the more than 8 million people in need of humanitarian assistance in the Horn of Africa, 1.6 million are children below the age of five years, threatened mainly by malnutrition. The loss of the animals, a prime source of meat and milk and the main financial assets of the pastoralists, has created a continuous cycle of poverty and hunger.