Sahel Food Insecurity and Complex Emergency - Fact Sheet #5 (FY) 2013

HEADLINES

• The second round of Presidential elections took place on 11 August without incident. Ibrahim Boubacar Keita won the presidential runoff with 78 per cent of the vote and is due to be sworn in by Mali's Supreme Court on 4 September. Legislative elections are to be held in the near future though the precise date remains unclear.

• UNICEF continues to engage with the government as well as technical and financial partners in the planning and development for Early Recovery and long-term development strategies to help Mali build back better.

• UNICEF is playing a key role in the return of basic social services in the North and is supporting a mapping exercise to better understand access and functionality of basic social services in 36 priority commune areas where high numbers of displaced people or refugees are expected to return.

• Addressing the needs of teachers and students and improving the quality of teaching are fundamental investments on which UNICEF continues to focus for the 2013 – 2014 Back to School initiative to build a better education system across Mali. Providing hardware such as desks, books and teaching manuals remains a central component of UNICEF’s support for Back to School. Training on peace building, psychosocial support and pedagogy of large groups are included in Ministry of Education’ strategy.

• SMART methodology nutrition surveys are nearing completion in all regions of southern Mali, with results expected to be made available in September.

• A donor conference in Bamako is being planned for mid-September, and will follow-up the progress made since the donors’ conference in Brussels in May.

• UNICEF requires $91.9 million to provide urgent assistance to children in Mali. So far, only $32.7 million or 36 per cent of the required funding has been received. The sectors that are most under-funded are WASH and Child Protection, requiring $17.7 million and $7.1 million respectively. (See page 14 of this report for details on funding needs for all sectors)

Installation tardive de la saison et prolongement de la soudure pastorale au Sahel

MESSAGES CLÉS

• Les perturbations observées dans l’installation de la saison n’ont pas permis les améliorations espérées de la situation alimentaire dans la zone pastorale. La régénération des pâturages attendue en juillet n’a pas partout eu lieu au Sahel ce qui a limité l’augmentation de la production laitière.

• Toutefois, la situation alimentaire ne s’est pas dégradée dans les zones affectées suite à l’assistance alimentaire fournie par les gouvernements, le PAM, les ONGs et les transferts sociaux pendant le Ramadan. Les ménages pauvres ont continué à faire face jusqu’en septembre à une insécurité alimentaire de type IPC 2 à IPC 3 notamment à l’est du Niger, au nord-est du Nigeria et dans la région de Kidal au nord du Mali.

• Au nord-est du Nigeria et en Centrafrique l’insécurité alimentaire de type crise IPC Phase 3 va persister jusqu’en septembre suite à la dégradation continue des services publiques, le mauvais fonctionnement des marchés, la faiblesse des revenus, et les difficultés de conduite de l’assistance humanitaire.

• Avec la normalisation de la situation pluviométrique en août, les conditions de sécurité alimentaire seront en nette amélioration à partir octobre avec les récoltes. On assistera à une généralisation de l’insécurité alimentaire minimale de type IPC phase 1 dans toute la région excepté en République Centrafricaine où le stress IPC Phase 2 persistera notamment au nord.

Stressed food insecurity in localized areas persists as maize prices increase across the country

KEY MESSAGES

• Poor households in areas where the harvest was affected by flooding, prolonged dry spells, and early cessation of rainfall are expected to run out of their food stocks by the end of August. Households in these localized areas in the northern, central, and southern regions of the country are currently facing Stressed acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 2) outcomes.

• National staple maize prices have started rising seasonally. Between June and July 2013 average prices increased by approximately 14 percent, which is higher than the average month-to-month increases during this period.

• According to the Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee (MVAC) annual food security assessment report, a projected 1.5 million people will face food consumption deficits from around October 2013 to March 2014. While this is lower than the 2 million people identified as at risk of food insecurity last year, this figure is 57 percent above the five-year average. The MVAC has recommended a phased government-led response starting in October and ending in March. Response planning is underway but it is unclear if the response programming will start by October.

Agropastoral season and food security conditions are evolving normally

KEY MESSAGES

• Cash transfer programs and subsidized grain sales are strengthening food access for very poor and poor households. This is diminishing the effects of this year’s already normal lean season, and is enabling households to maintain Minimal/None (IPC Phase 1) food insecurity.

• In general, staple grain prices are near their five-year averages, though prices on northern and northeastern Sahelian markets are as much as 12 to 37 percent above average. However, relatively normal household incomes are offsetting the effects of these higher prices and are enabling households to continue to access food without difficulty.

• The growing season is progressing normally and continuing rainfall should enable households to access early crops by the end of August or the beginning of September. Food security conditions for poor households during the post-harvest period (October to December) are expected to be normal.

A normal lean season for very poor and poor households

KEY MESSAGES

• As of the beginning of the lean season, food consumption by very poor and poor households has been relatively normal. In addition, livestock-to-grain terms of trade are favorable to pastoralists and ongoing resilience-building programs are helping to keep food insecurity at Minimal/None None (IPC Phase 1) between July and December.

• In a departure from normal seasonal trends generally marked by rising grain prices, prices have been stable and, in some cases, in decline compared to previous months. This is mainly due to large market supplies of grain and below-average household demand, which is helping poor households maintain their access to grains.

• In general, with good harvests expected in October and increased demand for livestock during Tabaski (in October) and the end-of-the-year holidays (in December), household income levels will be better than usual, particularly for incomes relating to the sale of livestock, animal products, and crops. This income will strengthen food access while, at the same time, help households protect or generate assets.

Food security conditions remain fragile in the Southwest

KEY MESSAGES

• With the earlier than usual depletion of household food stocks and normal, seasonal increases in grain prices, households in Logone Oriental, Tandjilé, Logone Occidental, and the greater Mayo Kebbi area are currently experiencing Stressed (IPC Phase 2) food security outcomes. However starting in October when the new harvest occurs, all areas of the country will be in Minimal (IPC Phase 1) acute food insecurity, where they will remain through at least December 2013.

• The rainfall deficits that were recorded earlier in the season (in June) were short-lived and delayed the planting of crops in certain localized areas by two to three weeks. These deficits were subsequently reduced by good rainfall in July and do not appear to have had any major or irreversible effects on crop growth and development.

• Grain prices in the Sahelian zone are starting to rise with the tightening of market inventories, but are still below their five-year averages. However, household food consumption indicators are stable with the availability of milk and the starting up of normal assistance programs across the Sahelian belt.

Since 2012 Mali has been embroiled in two parallel crises: while a military coup in March 2012 undermined the legitimacy of the country's governmental institutions, the Tuareg rebellion and armed Jihadist groups in the north called its territorial integrity and national security into question.

The international community has been helping Mali in its struggle for security, political stability and peace since these crises emerged. Even after the recent successful presidential elections, there is still a long, hard road to follow towards peaceful coexistence. The political dialogue on resolving the conflicts is just getting started. This issue of the newsletter therefore presents a picture of the current situation in the Sahel state, with governmental and non-governmental organisations reporting on their peacebuilding efforts in Mali. These insights reveal the need for root causes to be addressed in order to resolve the crises in Mali on a sustainable basis.

Highlights

• 1,559 new SAM admissions have been reported in the month of July (reported from 36% of nutritional facilities). More than 23,000 children have been admitted for SAM since the beginning of the response in 2012.

• The region of Diourbel has already reached 114% of its annual SAM target.

• The nutritional survey conducted in June indicates a situation rather unchanged as compared to last year’s nutritional crisis. The results should be officially released in the month of September.

• UNICEF Senegal’s requirements of US$3,305,266 in the HAC are currently 60% funded.

Regional:
According to the outcome of the Southern Africa Regional Climate Outlook Forum (SARCOF), normal to above normal rainfall can be expected for most of the region this coming rainfall season (October 2013 to March 2014).

Madagascar:
The first round of presidential elections has been scheduled for 25 October 2013, and if required the second round will be held concurrently with the legislation elections on 20 December 2013.
The CES (Special Electoral Court) dismissed the motion filed by Lalao Ravalomanana to submit an alternative candidate from the Ravalomanana movement for the presidential elections.

In Syria, intensive fighting continued in Aleppo, Ar-Raqqa, Rural Damascus and Homs. Intensive clashes which ignited at the start of the month between Government and opposition groups in the governorate of Lattakia appeared however to have ceased. At the start of the week, the US warned that a military strike against Syria was imminent, following the alleged use of chemical weapons near Damascus on 21 August. By the end of the week, President Obama indicated that he would seek congressional approval of the Congress before undertaking such an action. Against this background, Damascus accused opposition forces of using chemical weapons to prompt an international military intervention, while the opposition has accused the Government for this attack. Meanwhile, almost 2 million Syrians have been registered with UNHCR or are awaiting registration in neighboring countries.

Since early August, Pakistan has experienced severe rains and flash floods across the country. As of 29 August, the number of affected stood at between 1.3 and 1.5 million people across the country according to the authorities. The floods have reportedly killed 193 people and injured over 1,100 people.

From June to August, several provinces in the Northern and Central part of Laos were flooded due to heavy continuous rainfall while the country was affected by two tropical storms Jebi (31 July–3 August) and Mankhut (5-7 August). According to the UN, an estimated 119,625 people have been affected by the flooding with over 20 people killed in 7 of the country’s 17 provinces.

FSMS juillet 2013: FAITS SAILLANTS

A. Au mois de juillet 2013, 23,7 % des ménages mauritaniens sont en insécurité alimentaire. Cet indicateur enregistre une baisse par rapport à son niveau record de juillet 2012 où il avait atteint 32,3 % mais reste supérieur à celui juillet 2011 (21,1 %). Un analyse de tendance faite en janvier sur la base des données historiques indiquait que les taux d’insécurité alimentaire attendus en juillet pourrait être de 22 %. Les résultats actuels confirme cette tendance haussière de l’insécurité alimentaire dans le pays;

B. L’insécurité alimentaire reste plus marquée en milieu rural (28,5 %) qu’en milieu urbain (17,4%) mais en termes d’évolution sur une année, on note que la progression des taux urbains constatée depuis juillet 2011 se poursuit. En un an, le taux d’insécurité alimentaire a progressé de 56 % en milieu urbain essentiellement à Nouakchott où il passe de 10,9 % à 16,9 %. L’exode rurale et la hausse des prix des produits alimentaires pourraient expliquer en partie ces progressions ;

C. Le nombre de personnes affecté par l’insécurité alimentaire est estimé en juillet 2013 à un peu plus de 800 000 pour l’ensemble du pays; dont plus de 190 000 personnes en insécurité alimentaire sévère et 610 000 en insécurité alimentaire modérée;

D. Les régions du Guidimaka (40 %), Assaba (37,6 %), Tangant (34,8 %) et Gorgol (31,3 %) enregistrent les taux d’insécurité alimentaire les plus élevés. Globalement, le sud, le centre et marginalement l’est du pays sont les zones les plus touchées. L’insécurité alimentaire au nord du pays s’est pratiquement stabilisée à un niveau élevé au nord du pays et ceci grâce aux interventions du Gouvernement. Les zones de cultures pluviales et agropastorales regroupent plus de 60 % des ménages en insécurité alimentaire;

E. Contrairement aux inquiétudes, les zones d’accueil des réfugiés maliens enregistrent des taux d’insécurité plus faibles que par le passé probablement à cause des bénéfices directs et indirects que les populations hôtes arrivent à tirer de la situation;

F. Ces taux d’insécurité alimentaire élevés s’expliquent par trois raisons majeures : (i) l’épuisement des stocks paysans avec la période de soudure les oblige à se tourner vers les marchés (ii) la hausse saisonnière des prix des produits locaux est accompagnée d’une hausse des prix des produits importés; (iii) La baisse du pouvoir d’achat des ménages liée à la hausse des prix et au remboursement des dettes mais aussi aux pertes de bétail de l’année passée qui réduisent leurs options de stratégies. Certaines de ces causes sont conjoncturelles mais globalement, les problèmes d’insécurité alimentaire en Mauritanie sont soit structurels (pauvreté, dégradation de l’environnement), soit cycliques (soudure, sécheresse, invasions acridiennes…). Les solutions à mettre en place doivent donc s’inscrire dans la durée pour pouvoir inverser les tendances.

G. Selon les résultats de l’enquête SMART (MS/UNICEF) de juillet 2013, dans 6 régions du pays, les seuils d’urgence pour la malnutrition aigüe globale (MAG) ont été atteints. De plus, 2 autres régions en situation alerte selon la MAG ont des taux d’insécurité alimentaire dépassant 30 %. Cependant, au niveau national, la MAG est de 12,8 % en juillet 2013 contre 12 % l’année passée. La dégradation de la situation économique et alimentaire des ménages, les maladies de saison, couplées à l’absence de programme nutritionnel de prévention peuvent expliquer cette situation;

H. En plus des programmes de réponses à mettre en place ou à intensifier surtout en matière de traitement de la malnutrition et de facilitation de l’accès aux produits alimentaires, il faudra renforcer la capacité propre des ménages à surmonter ces difficultés par des programmes multisectoriels plus durables et la mise en place de filets sociaux de sécurité qui sont les seuls à même de sortir les populations de ce cycle de crises et de relèvements.

Pendant le mois de juillet, le CICR en collaboration avec la Croix-Rouge malienne

A- Région de Gao

• Distribué plus de 1'400 tonnes de vivres (riz, haricots, huile et sel iodé) à 80'000 personnes résidentes et retournées vulnérables en insécurité alimentaire dans la commune urbaine de Gao, et dans les communes de Bourem, Bourra, Ouatagouna, Ansongo et Gounzourey;
• Distribué 10'000 tonnes de semences de sorgho à 500 ménages agricoles à Soni Aliber;
• Fourni du matériel d'irrigation (motopompe et accessoires) à quatre coopératives (deux dans le cercle de Gao, soit Boulgoundje et Koima, deux dans le cercle d'Ansongo, soit Bazi Haoussa et Seyna), réunissant 200 ménages bénéficiaires du projet de production fourragère;
• Rémunéré 600 jeunes dans les sites agricoles de Ouatagouna, Tacharane, Soni Ali Ber et Boulgoundje, dans le cadre d'un projet "argent contre travail" consistant dans le curage des canaux d'irrigation et l'entretien des digues

B - de Mopti

• Distribué près de 5 tonnes de vivres (riz, haricots, huile et sel iodé), ainsi qu'un kit d'articles essentiels de ménage, à 330 personnes résidentes vulnérables en insécurité alimentaire à Konna;
• Distribué 7 tonnes de semences de riz à plus de 1'000 agriculteurs à Kobokiré, ainsi que 660 kg de semences de sorgho à 200 personnes à Koubwell Koundia;
• Rémunéré 350 personnes dans la commune de Koubwell Koundia (cercle de Douentza) et dans deux villages du cercle de Youwarou dans le cadre de travaux d'utilité publique "argent contre travail";

C- Région de Tombouctou

• Distribué près de 9 tonnes de vivres (riz, haricots, huile et sel iodé), ainsi qu'un kit d'articles essentiels de ménage, à 600 personnes de retour à Gossi;
• Distribué 15 tonnes d'aliments pour bétail à 900 éleveurs à Bourem Inaly;
• Démunéré 80 ménages (480 personnes) à Hariboro et Kabara dans le cadre d'un projet "argent contre travail" consistant en la réhabilitation des digues et systèmes d'irrigation;

D - Toutes régions au nord

• Lancé la vaccination/traitement du bétail dans les régions de Mopti, Gao et Kidal, qui touchera à terme un million de têtes;
• Commencé une opération dite de déstockage, qui consiste à acheter des animaux faibles à des prix permettant aux éleveurs de continuer à entretenir le reste du troupeau et de couvrir leurs besoins essentiels, qui a concerné en juillet 6'500 têtes de bétail. La viande jugée propre à la consommation a été distribuée gratuitement à près de 40'000 personnes vulnérables dans les régions de Mopti, Kidal, Gao et Tombouctou;

E -Evaluation post-distribution

• Un échantillon de 6'500 ménages bénéficiaires a été interrogé suite à la distribution de vivres du mois de mai-juin. Les réponses montrent que les vivres ont été consommés à plus de 85%, la vente ne représentant que moins de 1%, le reste étant partagé avec d'autres familles grâce à des réseaux de solidarité.

A- Appui à l'hôpital de Gao

• Continué à soutenir le fonctionnement de l'hôpital régional de Gao grâce à la mise à disposition de médicaments et matériels médicaux;
• Remis des médicaments à la pharmacie externe de l'hôpital régional de Gao pour renforcer la capacité de prise en charge des malades ambulatoires;
• Pris en charge plus de 240 personnes hospitalisées, dont deux blessés par armes évacués de Kidal, et pratiqué 27 interventions chirurgicales;
• Réalisé 95 accouchements dont 11 césariennes, et plus de 2'200 consultations externes;

B -Appui au Centre de santé de référence (CSréf) de Kidal

• Pris en charge, au travers du chirurgien du CICR, 27 blessés, dont deux graves qui ont ensuite été évacués vers l'hôpital de Gao;

C - Accès aux soins de santé primaire

• Fourni un appui logistique (véhicule et carburant pour une semaine) au CSRéf de Bourem (région de Gao), pour la vaccination contre la poliomyélite, couplée à l'administration de la vitamine A et de l'albendazole;
• Donné 600 litres de gasoil pour le générateur du CSRéf de Bourem;

• Constitué des kits d'accouchement (Maman Kit) pour les sept Centres de santé communautaire (CSCOM) du nord Mali appuyés par le CICR.

• signé le compte-rendu de réunion entre EDM et le CICR faisant état du retrait du CICR de la fourniture de carburant pour les villes de Gao et Tombouctou en septembre;

• Permis à plus de 120'000 habitants de Gao, Tombouctou et Kidal d'avoir accès à l'eau potable et à l'électricité grâce à la fourniture de 216'000 litres de carburant à la centrale de l'Electricité du Mali (EDM) et à la Société malienne de gestion de l'eau potable (SOMAGEP), dont 120'000 litres à Gao, 60'000 litres à Tombouctou et 36'000 litres à Kidal;
• Continué à fournir 100 l de fuel par jour pour le générateur de l'hôpital régional de Gao, afin de renforcer son autonomie en électricité et permettre aux malades d'avoir accès aux soins en permanence, et assuré l'entretien régulier du générateur, offert par le CICR;
• Evacué les déchets liquides et solides, vidangé l'incinérateur des déchets biomédicaux, et poursuivi les travaux de forage pour l'installationd'une pompe et la réhabilitation de la cuve de l'hôpital de Gao;

• Finalisé le processus de sélection des entreprises pour la réhabilitation du bâtiment administratif de l'hôpital de Gao

• poursuivi des travaux de deux forages à Tinzaouatene (région de Kidal);

• Réhabilité trois points d'eau avec des pompes à main à Konna (région de Mopti);
• Entamé la réhabilitation de la centrale électrique de Konna (région de Mopti) et le raccordement du réseau d'eau à celle-ci;
• Entamé la réhabilitation de la station de pompage du réseau d'eau de la ville de Douentza (région de Mopti);
• Signé un protocole d'accord entre la SOMAGEP et le CICR pour la réhabilitation d'urgence d'une partie du système d'approvisionnement en eau à Kidal;
• Préparé le dossier d'appel d'offre pour le projet de réhabilitation de la ville de Bambara Maoudé et de Tonka (région de Tombouctou);
• Préparé le dossier d'appel d'offre pour le projet de réhabilitation des adductions d'eau sommaire des communes du cercle de Niafunké (région de Tombouctou)
• Effectué une évaluation technique de sept points d'eau (forage et puits à grand diamètre) dans cinq villages de la commune de Gounzoureye (région de Gao) pour réhabilitation future;
• Lancé une évaluation technique des besoins en eau et habitat des maisons d'arrêt de Bamako et de Sikasso
• procédé à des recherches familiales pour 27 cas de mineurs qui auraient été associés aux forces et groupes armées. Parmi ceux-ci, 21 familles ont été retrouvées à la date, et des vérifications par rapport à la possibilité des réunifications sont en cours.
• Réunifié un enfant non accompagné avec sa famille dans la région de Tombouctou.
• Aidé à l'échange de 45 messages Croix-Rouge et à la réalisation de 133 appels téléphoniques pour le rétablissement des liens familiaux.
• Ouvert des nouvelles demandes de recherche pour 9 personnes disparues en lien avec le conflit au Nord du Mali et a retrouvé 2 personnes recherchées.
• Conduit un atelier de renforcement des capacités de rétablissement des liens de famille des personnes séparées par le conflit à l'égard des points focaux CMR et des field officiers Protection CICR de Tombouctu, Gao, Kidal et Mopti. Des volontaires étaient aussi sélectionnés pour la mise en place d'un réseau de 10 antennes qui visent à toucher plus de personnes dans le besoin dans ces 4 régions.
• Continué le suivi individuel de toute personne arrêtée en lien avec le conflit, des visites aux lieux de détention pour évaluer le traitement et conditions de détention et du dialogue avec les autorités concernées.
• Participé aux remises des personnes arrêtées par les Forces Serval aux autorités maliennes, pour leur enregistrement et suivi en détention.
• Continué à documenter des allégations d'exactions de DIH commises par une des parties au conflit et dialogue avec les autorités concernées, avec le but d'améliorer la protection de la population civile.
• Mis en place du staff protection basé en permanence à Kidal pour un meilleur suivi de la situation, tel comme c'était déjà le cas à Gao, Tombouctu et Mopti.
• Sensibilisé plus de 700 sous-officiers et militaires de rang du bataillon Waraba, prélablement formés par EUTM, au travail du CICR et aux règles du DIH. Une autre séance a concerné plus de 100 militaires des forces armées et de sécurité de l'opération Badenko, basés à Gao. Les séances ont eu lieu à Gao;
• Informé le public malien, au travers des medias nationaux, sur les activités du CICR et la situation humanitaire au Mali;
• travaillé en étroite collaboration avec les branches régionales de la Croix-Rouge malienne (CRM) de Mopti, Gao, Kidal, Tombouctou et Bamako, notamment lors de toutes les opérations d'assistance et lors des distributions de messages Croix-Rouge;
• Formé des volontaires et cadres de la CRM en matière de Rétablissement des liens familiaux (RLF);
• Soutenu le plan de contingence de la CRM sur tout le territoire du Mali, à l'occasion du premier tour des élections présidentielles le 28 juillet, qui a mobilisé des centaines de volontaires;
• Aidé à préparer la CRM à répondre aux urgences en pré-positionnant du matériel et des fonds d'intervention d'urgence dans les branches du Nord;
• Aidé à la restructuration des branches du Nord de la CRM qui ont souffert lors de la crise.
• Dans le cadre de la coordination au sein du Mouvement, la CRM a aussi bénéficié de l'accompagnement technique, matériel et financier des autres composantes du Mouvement.

September 3, 2013, Nairobi/Washington – The number of people in crisis in Somalia is at its lowest since famine was declared in Somalia in 2011, thanks to successive seasons of average to above average rainfall, low food prices and sustained humanitarian response but acute malnutrition continues to pose a threat to hundreds of thousands of children especially in the country’s south, latest findings indicate.

A joint report by the Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit for Somalia (FSNAU), a project managed by UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) indicates an estimated 870,000 people will be in Crisis and Emergency (IPC Phase 3 and Phase 4) from August to December 2013. The situation has significantly improved since 2011 when 4 million Somalis were in extreme food security crisis. The recent figures also represent a continued improvement since January when an estimated 1,050,000 people were in Crisis and Emergency (IPC Phases 3 and 4). Improvements are attributed to a near average July/August 2013 Gu harvest, increased livestock prices, increased livestock herd sizes, improved milk availability, low prices of both local and imported staple food commodities, higher purchasing power from income from labor and livestock sales, and sustained humanitarian interventions over the last six months.

However, nearly 2.3 million additional people beyond those requiring more urgent assistance, one-third of Somalia’s population, are classified as Stressed (IPC Phase 2); their food security remains fragile. This group of households may struggle to meet their own minimal food requirement through the end of the year, and they remain highly vulnerable to major shocks that could push them back to food security crisis.

Persistent Malnutrition Critical levels of acute malnutrition (Global Acute Malnutrition rates exceeding 15%) persist in many parts of South-Central Somalia and among Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). Nutrition survey results indicate that more than 206,000 children under the age of 5 are acutely malnourished. About two-thirds of these children are in Southern Somalia, where very high rates of malnutrition persist. Assessment results indicate that morbidity is a major factor behind the critical levels of acute malnutrition in South-Central Somalia and among IDP populations.

As a result, lifesaving humanitarian assistance and livelihood support remain vitally important between now and December to help food insecure populations meet their immediate food needs, protect livelihoods, and build resilience.

Areas of Concern IDPs constitute 72 percent of the 870,000 people in Crisis and Emergency (IPC Phase 3 and 4). Most of these people live in settlements in very poor living conditions and rely on marginal, unreliable livelihood strategies. For agropastoral households in Hiraan, central Somalia, an early end to the March to June Gu rains along with poor distribution resulted in a very low harvest. Poor households currently have no cereal stocks. They depend on market purchases of food, often on credit or on limited amounts of social support. Poor households are expected to fall into Crisis (IPC Phase 3) during the October to December lean season.

Poor pastoral households in Coastal Deeh, in central Somalia are expected to remain in Crisis (IPC Phase 3) through at least the end of the year. Low livestock ownership will limit their income. With limited access to humanitarian assistance, many households are taking on additional debts to buy food.

In the Sool Plateau Pastoral Livelihood Zone in northeastern Somalia, poor households are likely to divert funds to purchase water during the remainder of the Hagaa dry season through October. High water expenditures are likely to increase debts among the poor. Improved milk and water availability will follow the start of the October to December Deyr rains. However, most poor households are likely to remain Stressed (IPC Phase 2).

As critical levels of malnutrition persist in many areas, care for the malnourished will be less available in the areas of South-Central Somalia following the withdrawal of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) over security concerns.

New book helps region understand what might be in store and what to do about it

September 3, 2013, Maseru, Lesotho—The southern region of Africa could be the hardest hit by rising temperatures from climate change, leaving many to wonder what this means for agriculture. Will some areas become unsuitable for farming? Will farmers face lower yields, or turn to new crops? Will climate change threaten food security? These are challenging questions for policymakers, who must plan for the future without available information and analysis.

A new book, published by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), and released today by three research organizations, starts to fill this information gap. Southern African Agriculture and Climate Change offers an analysis of the impact of climate change on the area’s agriculture, including full-color maps illustrating a variety of scenarios for eight of the region’s countries : Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

“National climate change adaptation policies are not informed by robust research evidence combining socioeconomic and biophysical models,” said Sepo Hachingonta, program manager for the Food, Agriculture, and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN), a regional agricultural research and development organization. “This book offers that evidence but also urges additional and extensive cost-benefit analysis research on climate change adaptation alternatives.”

The book is the result of a collaboration between IFPRI, the CGIAR research program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), FANRPAN, and scientists from each of the countries. Using sophisticated modeling and available data to develop future scenarios and explore a range of climate change consequences for agriculture, food security, and resource management, the book offers recommendations to national governments and regional agencies.

Some findings from the book:

• Wheat is particularly vulnerable to high temperatures in most of the tropics, but in relatively temperate South Africa, yields could increase.

• Maize and sorghum yields, on average, will decline, yet some areas are bright spots and will see a rise, such as southern Mozambique.

• Crop yields might struggle to keep pace with anticipated population growth, but this could be offset by a projected doubling of incomes across the region.

• Migration patterns could change as people migrate out of areas hard hit by climate change to cities or to areas favored by climate change.

• Successful agricultural adaptation to climate change is not just about better seeds and practices, but building better roads and education systems, which give farmers greater access to markets and the background necessary to make fully informed decisions about new agricultural practices.

“Having data available in one place will provide national and regional policymakers with the necessary information to inform policy and decisionmaking,” said Tim Thomas, IFPRI research fellow. “The book serves as a compendium of scenarios looking at the impacts of climate change on agriculture in southern Africa and how it will affect farmers,” he added.

Southern African Agriculture and Climate Change is one of a three-part series examining climate change and agriculture in three regions of Africa: West Africa, East Africa, and southern Africa. It will be launched today at the FANRPAN High-Level Food Security Multi-Stakeholder Policy Dialogue, which is focused on scaling up agriculture best adapted to climate change. West African Agriculture and Climate Change was launched in April; East African Agriculture and Climate Change will be launched in Burundi at the 2nd Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa General Assembly and Scientific Conference in December.

For more information, including country-specific reports, please visit: http://www.ifpri.org/pressroom/briefing/coping-climate-change-southern-a...

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The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) seeks sustainable solutions for ending hunger and poverty. IFPRI was established in 1975 to identify and analyze alternative national and international strategies and policies for meeting the food needs of the developing world, with particular emphasis on low-income countries and on the poorer groups in those countries. It is a member of the CGIAR Consortium. www.ifpri.org.

The CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) is a strategic partnership of CGIAR and Future Earth, led by the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT). CCAFS brings together the world’s best researchers in agricultural science, development research, climate science and Earth System science, to identify and address the most important interactions, synergies and tradeoffs between climate change, agriculture and food security. www.ccafs.cgiar.org.

The Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN) is a multi-stakeholder, multi-national policy network that supports the development and implementation of better food, agriculture and national resources (FANR) policies in Africa. Its members include universities, research institutes, the business sector, farmer groups and other civil society organizations that have a stake in FANR policies. FANRPAN's membership is organized into national nodes in sixteen countries, with a national secretariat hosted by an existing national institution that has a mandate for agricultural policy research and advocacy. FANRPAN also has a mandate to work Africa wide. www.fanrpan.org.

• Après un démarrage tardif, les pluies permettent le développement des cultures

• Les prix demeurent élevés au Sahel notamment au Niger, au Nigeria, au Bénin, au Mali et au Burkina Faso

• La période de soudure continue et les ménages les plus pauvres font face à des difficultés d’accès à une alimentation adéquate

Overview

• An estimated 10.3 million people are at risk of food insecurity in the Sahel in 2013. One year after the food security and nutrition crisis in the Sahel, the most vulnerable people in the Sahel are not yet out of danger. Food insecurity and malnutrition in this region present deep-rooted structural challenges that will take time and resources to overcome. Millions of people in the region remain affected by shocks such as the recurrent impact of three successive droughts, and structural challenges such as high food prices, lack of employment opportunities, and an over-reliance on agriculture.

BAMAKO/DAKAR, 3 September 2013 – With the new school year in Mali starting on the 1st of October, UNICEF is scaling up efforts to give a school place to half a million children whose lives were disrupted by the conflict, seasonal flooding and nutrition crisis.

Under the leadership of the Malian government and in collaboration with partners, UNICEF is mobilising teachers and parents to get children back to school and give them an improved education.

Across Mali, about 9,000 teachers will receive training throughout the 2013–2014 academic year. In addition, temporary learning spaces will be set up and minor repairs undertaken while damaged schools are rehabilitated. About 15,000 of the pupils will listen to lessons at new desks as part of the refurbishment efforts.

“This school year in Mali has to be different from last one and we need to make every effort to have children back to school,” said Francoise Ackermans, UNICEF Representative in Bamako. “This is a critical moment. Less than a month after the election, Malian people are very keen on rebuilding their country and returning to their normal lives. They know education is the cornerstone of this reconstruction process. What is a more visible sign of things going back to normal than a girl and a boy walking to school in the morning?”

According to the Ministry of Education, an estimated 800,000 children in Mali have had their schooling disrupted by the conflict, the food and nutrition crisis and seasonal flooding. Displaced children fleeing conflict in the North put more strain on an already weak education system.

In 2013, UNICEF needs US$21 million to meet the immediate education needs of Malian children in Mali, Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Niger. As of July 2013, only 38% of this funding has been received. In Mali, only 27% of the US$12 million funding for emergency education has been received.

Additional funds are urgently required to ensure continued access to quality education for crisis-affected children in Mali. The funding shortfall may undermine the ability of UNICEF and partners to support the Ministries of Education in their efforts to bring back and maintain children in school.

Francoise Ackermans visited schools in Gao where 168 children were sitting on the floor in one classroom. “In the North, many schools have been looted and children have often no other option but to sit on the floor during class. More than half of the schools in Timbuktu and Gao are still in need of teaching, learning and recreational materials, including notebooks and desks,” she said.

“My first day of school last year, I was very happy. But now we have nothing,” said Aminata, 12, from Timbuktu. “The fear is gone but we have a lot of concerns. Classes are there, I have many classmates that have stayed and that came to school but we have nothing. The UNICEF notebooks are not enough for us. I like to be with my classmates. I like the tap in the courtyard because you can get drinking water. Our school is very old. I would like my school to get modernised. I want UNICEF to stay with us at school.’’

At the refugee camps in Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Niger, UNICEF is also working with governments and other partners to provide 42,973 Malian children with access to formal and informal education. In Mauritania, 7,166 refugee children received formal and informal education and almost 70 per cent of them passed their exams at the end of the 2012–2013 school year.

Throughout the summer, about 4,900 school-aged refugee children were expected to attend ‘catch-up’ courses. UNICEF also helped bring together the Ministries of Education from Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, and Mauritania to ensure the integration of refugee students in their school systems, which will enable them to more easily continue school once they return to Mali.

The ‘Back to School’ campaign is only the first step in getting all children in school. While the campaign targets children that are directly impacted by the conflict, we cannot lose sight that more than 1.2 million children in Mali are out of school.

For Aminata -like many other Malian children- returning and staying in school is the pathway to a brighter future. “I have thought about the future. My teacher told me: ’when you want, you can.’ I think that my future will be guaranteed,” she added.

About UNICEF

UNICEF works in more than 190 countries and territories to help children survive and thrive, from early childhood through adolescence. The world’s largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments. For more information about UNICEF and its work visit: www.unicef.org

For further information, please contact:

Hector Calderon, Chief of Communication, UNICEF Mali, Tel: +223 75 99 40 89, hcalderon@unicef.org

Cindy Cao, Public Information & Media Officer, UNICEF Mali, Tel: +223 75 99 58 46, ccao@unicef.org

Laurent Duvillier, Regional Communication Specialist, UNICEF West & Central Africa, Tel: +221 77 740 35 77, lduvillier@unicef.org

As schools reopen in the conflict-affected region of Timbuktu in northern Mali, WFP is providing children in 300 schools with two meals a day. This emergency school feeding programme has seen an increase in attendance, especially for girls.

It’s lunch time at Koureme school, located in Kabara village in the district of Timbuktu. Children are gathered around the cook who is preparing a highly nutritive porridge. Most of them are girls.

The World Food Programme (WFP) is feeding some 121,000 school children in the north of the country. They receive two daily meals, an enriched breakfast of a corn and soya mix, and a lunch with rice, millet, pulses and oil. Volunteer cooks receive five meals daily to take home.

By supporting these schools, WFP is encouraging families to send their children to school and improving their chances for the future.

“We like to have lunch, but what we prefer is the breakfast” said Mariam, an 8-year-old girl. “We are not hungry anymore at the start of the day and now we can focus on the lessons.”

The girls outnumber the boys at Koureme school, there are 104 girls and 85 boys. In this very traditional region where girls usually stay at home, it is a big change.

“Before the start of the programme, parents were reluctant to send their daughters to school” said Idrissa Dembele, elementary school teacher at Koureme for the past 10 years. “Now they know they will receive food at school that they don’t always have at home and it is a great incentive for education. School results have also improved, since the children are no longer hungry when they are studying”

The village of Kabara is very poor. Its 1250 inhabitants live essentially from fishing, and are vulnerable to food crises such as the one of 2011-2012 that affected the entire country of Mali. The conflict that followed and the uncertain security situation led to the closing of the schools. In Timbuktu, they have now reopened.

For the parents, knowing that their children will receive appropriate food at school is a relief.

“The tragic events that occurred in the Timbuktu area left lots of families in a very bad economic situation” said Aysha Traore, president of the mothers’ association. “Lots of them don’t have enough money to feed their children properly. When they send their children to school, the families know that they won’t be hungry when they come back home.”

A whistle announces the end of the lunch. Before going back to class, Mariam tells us her dream:

“I would like all the school children in the world to have access to food” she said. “If they are not hungry they can study well, and in the future they will help their family by earning enough money to buy food. And children won’t be hungry anymore.”