Somalia’s President Sharif Ahmed will join foreign ministers from the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation — formerly known as the Islamic Conference — in Istanbul on Wednesday.

The meeting will discuss the humanitarian crisis in Somalia and call for increased world assistance for the drought-stricken country as well as the wider Horn of Africa region.

The UN says more than 12 million people in the Horn of Africa urgently need food aid. But the situation has become far more grave in Somalia where militants have banned aid organizations from distributing food in areas under their control.

Turkey’s prime minister and foreign minister are to travel to Somalia on Thursday.