One important aspect of sustainable development is plugging into the existing local systems, cultural norms and institutions that impact how people around the world make decisions about everything from medical treatment to which crops to plant. In countries where religion plays an important social role, donor organizations often work with faith-based institutions to tackle challenges and forge solutions that communities will be likely to adopt at a wide scale.

In Nigeria, where religion is deeply ingrained in the country’s social fabric, pastors and imams are some of the most influential community leaders. That’s why a Feed the Future project is working with faith-based institutions there to roll out an innovative, comprehensive social and behavior change communication strategy that promotes improved nutrition and hygiene behaviors.

Based on the project’s preliminary research, which indicated more people would be willing to adopt a new feeding or hygiene practice if their religion explicitly supported it, implementing partner Catholic Relief Services is using an innovative strategy to empower faith leaders to be agents of change for food security and nutrition in their communities. Working with religious leaders from the two largest faiths in Nigeria, Christianity and Islam, the project developed a Sermon Guide that contains 21 key thematic messages promoting good nutrition and hygiene practices and connecting them to religious teachings and texts.

For example, Nigeria has one of the lowest exclusive breastfeeding rates in Africa, so one of the messages from the Sermon Guide encourages mothers to continue breastfeeding for up to 24 months or more to keep their children healthy, citing parts of the Bible and the Quran that reference the practice of mothers nursing their infants.

The project team first shared messages with faith leaders during orientation sessions, where the leaders provided feedback based on their background in religious teachings. The draft guides were then shared with religious organizations including the Christian Association of Nigeria, Jama’atul Nasri Islam, the Federation of Muslim Women Associations of Nigeria, and the Justice Development and Peace Commission of the Catholic Church for input and suggestions, ensuring that the guide would be appropriate for use by faith leaders and relevant to a local audience. Religious leaders committed to using the sermon guides and including the messages every month in their respective churches and mosques.

A large network of community volunteers monitors the rollout of the messages and the project is currently evaluating the effectiveness of this behavior change strategy. By tailoring messages to the local context and gaining buy-in from some of Nigeria’s most important community leaders, Feed the Future aims to sustainably advance the health status of women and children.

The Feed the Future Nigeria Livelihoods Project is a five-year grant led by Catholic Relief Services operating in northwestern Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory. The goal of the project is to break the vicious cycle of poverty and undernutrition through interventions that integrate the very poor into the agricultural rural economy by increasing their agricultural productivity, building their income and assets, and improving their nutritional status. The project aims to move 42,000 households out of poverty with a specific focus on improving the economic and health status of women and children.

April 30, 2015
Feed the Future | Newsletter

The Sahel – an arid belt of land that divides northern and Sub-Saharan Africa and spans 1.1 million square miles – is a drought-prone region where more than 18 million people across parts of Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and other countries face chronic poverty and food insecurity. It is also a region with high child undernutrition rates, particularly among displaced people escaping unrest in areas plagued by political violence and extremism.

To help address these problems, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is working to strengthen agriculture, food security, nutrition and other needs in the Sahel, including through a Feed the Future-supported program that combines humanitarian and development efforts to end the region’s vicious cycle of crisis and help build resilience among vulnerable populations.

But donors can only be one part of the solution to sustainable food security and resilience, which is why USAID – through Feed the Future and the Strengthening Partnerships, Results and Innovations in Nutrition Globally (SPRING) project – is partnering with Digital Green, an innovative Indian non-governmental organization that brings together technology and social organizations to improve agriculture, health and nutrition. Digital Green’s grassroots approach empowers rural communities to create and share videos in order to increase adoption of locally relevant practices that can improve food security and nutrition outcomes.

In the Sahel, this partnership is generating a new “human-mediated digital learning approach” tailored to the local context, mobilizing community-based organizations to produce videos in their own language that convey important messages themed around nutrition and resilience. Community members then use facilitated dissemination techniques to screen these videos with their peers and identify pathways to sustainable behavior change – particularly for maternal, infant and young child nutrition – as well as water, sanitation and hygiene practices.

In Niger, a host of USAID programs supported by both Feed the Future and Food for Peace have piloted this participatory community video program in 20 villages in the Maradi region in order to demonstrate the feasibility, effectiveness and scalability of the approach within the resilience context of the Sahel. Some of the topics covered by the videos include optimal nutrition during the 1,000 days between pregnancy and a child’s second birthday; the importance of hand-washing; and complementary foods, including feeding young children from a separate bowl to help prevent food contamination.

SPRING and Digital Green have trained a local community radio team on video production, as well as 40 community volunteers and three supervisors in video dissemination and monitoring techniques. Volunteer mediators began disseminating videos in the pilot villages last month.

The Resilience and Economic Growth in the Sahel – Enhanced Resilience (REGIS-ER) program aims to help reach an estimated 1.9 million beneficiaries across the Sahel, reduce the need for humanitarian assistance, and unlock consistent economic growth for the most vulnerable households.

Author(s):Johnson, Nancy L.; Kovarik, Chiara; Meinzen-Dick, Ruth Suseela; Njuki, Jemimah; Quisumbing, Agnes R.

Ownership of assets is important for poverty alleviation, and women’s control of assets is associated with positive development outcomes at the household and individual levels. This research was undertaken to provide guidance for agricultural development programs on how to incorporate gender and assets in the design, implementation, and evaluation of interventions. This paper synthesizes the findings of eight mixed-method evaluations of the impacts of agricultural development projects on individual and household assets in seven countries in Africa and South Asia. The results show that assets both affect and are affected by projects, indicating that it is both feasible and important to consider assets in the design, implementation, and evaluation of agricultural development projects. All projects were associated with increases in asset levels and other benefits at the household level; however, only four projects documented significant, positive impacts in women’s ownership or control of assets relative to a control group, and of those only one project provided evidence of a reduction in the gender asset gap. The quantitative and qualitative findings suggest ways that greater attention to gender and assets by researchers and development implementers could improve outcomes for women in future projects.

Cynthia Berning

Agriculture is the cornerstone of rural livelihoods in the developing world, and irrigated agriculture can boost rural economic growth and food security. For these reasons, MCC has been very involved in projects that support irrigated agriculture in many of its partner countries. And in developing these irrigation investments, MCC must take into account that climate variability and long-term climatic changes can exacerbate existing challenges to irrigation through changes in historical temperature and rainfall patterns, which can alter the timing and amount of annual water flows.

Two of MCC’s irrigation investments, the Agriculture Project in Burkina Faso and the Transition to High Value Agriculture Project in Moldova, provide examples of how MCC projects are reducing vulnerability and improving resilience to the potential effects of climate change.

The Agriculture Project in Burkina Faso invested in a semiarid region that frequently suffers from both droughts and floods that destroy entire crops and put the population at risk of food insecurity. Although the project was not designed specifically with climate change resiliency in mind, investments in water resources management and irrigation will ultimately enable farmers in the Di and Débé irrigation perimeters to better cope with climate change and decrease their vulnerability.

The Burkina Faso Compact also helped address additional factors that make the population vulnerable to climate shocks and climate change by training farmers in methods that will increase their yields, as well as by distributing newly-irrigated land in a transparent and equitable manner that will give many previously landless families the ability to grow food for their own consumption and for the market for the first time.MCC investments in creating the Di irrigation system, rehabilitating the Débé irrigation system and reinforcing the Lery Dam reduce the probability that recurrent droughts and flooding will be catastrophic to the population and reduces dependency on rain-fed agriculture, allowing the farmers to grow crops even in times of insufficient rainfall and to grow high-nutrient crops such as vegetables that require reliable irrigation.

Though in a completely different part of the world from Burkina Faso, Moldovan farmers have faced some of the same problems: Climate scientists suggest that droughts in Moldova may be becoming both more frequent and more severe with the onset of climate change. Rainfall levels vary widely from year to year, and unpredictable rainfall makes it difficult to grow anything but the hardiest of rain-fed, low-risk crops.

MCC is investing in irrigation to take the unpredictability of rainfall out of the equation, allowing farmers to grow high-value crops for export throughout the region even during drought years. The training of farmers on the use of drip irrigation technology will allow efficient use of the irrigation water and ensure that there remains enough water for irrigation even if future river levels are lower than they are now.

Studies of climate factors (such as rainfall, temperature and evaporation) and the need to achieve a good return on investment have led MCC to focus on improving efficiencies and productive use of limited water supplies—all necessary ingredients for coping with increased climate variability. Meanwhile, investments are also contributing to rural communities’ ability to adapt and prosper in uncertain times. In this way, MCC is ensuring that vulnerable communities are building resilience and creating opportunities to pull themselves out of poverty.

The Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of MINUSMA, Mr. Mongi Hamdi, accompanied by the Ambassador of Algeria, who leads the International Mediation in the inter-Malian talks, the Ambassador of France, the Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy of the United States in Mali and representatives of the African Union and ECOWAS were received by the President of the Republic of Mali, H.E. Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, yesterday.

The objective of the meeting was to discuss ways and means to restore calm in the regions of the north following the recent increase in tensions and violations of the ceasefire, and to make progress in the peace process with a view to the signing of the Peace and National Reconciliation Agreement on 15 May.

Mr. Hamdi assured the President of the support of the United Nations and all regional and international partners for Mali and its people in the efforts to achieve the signing of the Peace and National Reconciliation Agreement and in its implementation.

“We told the President that we are keen to see the Agreement signed on the 15th of this month and that we will continue to work tirelessly to advance the peace process. We are multiplying the efforts to ensure the full adherence of the Malian stakeholders to this Agreement. In this respect, I welcome the spirit of compromise, courage and goodwill that the President has once again demonstrated to move forward and prepare for the signing of the Agreement on 15 May under the best conditions,” Mr. Hamdi said after the meeting.

“I would also like to thank the President for his support for our efforts to conclude a solid agreement for the cessation of hostilities as soon as possible to restore security on the ground before the signing of the Agreement,” Mr. Hamdi added.

Mr. Hamdi reiterated his call on all parties to commit to signing the Peace Agreement and to implementing it, with the support of the international community and the United Nations. He stressed the importance for all Malian parties to seize this opportunity to make the 15th of May a historic date in the history of Mali and its people by signing the Peace Agreement.

“For its part, MINUSMA remains firmly committed to helping Mali and supporting any action that promotes peace, social cohesion and national reconciliation. We are there to support all Malians in establishing this just, lasting and credible peace that everybody expects,” Mr. Hamdi concluded.

FOOD SECURITY SNAPSHOT

• Cereal production estimated to have dropped significantly in 2014 due to insufficient rains

• About 640 000 people estimated to be in need of assistance

Below-average cereal harvest gathered in 2014

There is little agricultural activity in Senegal in this period, except for limited cultivation of some off-season crops. Planting of the 2015 cereal crops are expected to begin with the start of the rainy season in June.

Harvesting of millet and maize, the major grains produced in the country, was completed in November, while the rice harvest was concluded in late December. Growing conditions for cereal crops and pastures have been poor in most parts of the country due to irregular rains at the beginning of the cropping season in May/June, which delayed plantings, and subsequent erratic precipitation in July and August. The aggregate 2014 cereal production was estimated at about some 1 251 000 tonnes, similar to the previous year’s harvest, but a 16 percent drop relative to the five-year average. Production of millet, the most important staple crop, is estimated to have dropped by 38 percent compared to the five-year average, while production of groundnut, the main cash crop, declined by 21 percent. Moreover, the erratic rains caused the depletion of grazing resources and lowered water points’ level in the major pastoral areas of the country.

Faced with the escalation of tensions during the past two weeks in the north of Mali in the Timbuktu region (Ber, Léré, Diré), the Gao region (Ménaka) and the Mopti region (Tenenkou), MINUSMA has intensified its efforts to ensure the protection of civilians.

MINUSMA therefore deployed more than five multidisciplinary missions during this period, which were composed of human rights officers, UN Police, the Force, the heads of regional offices and other MINUSMA sections. These missions were conducted on 3, 4 and 5 May in Ménaka, Tenenkou, Ber, Diré, Bintagoungou, Hamdalyé and Léré.

They have allowed for an evaluation of the human rights situation resulting from the hostilities. During these missions, MINUSMA has been able to gain access to persons detained by the groups involved in the recent hostilities and has demanded that they be released. The missions have also allowed MINUSMA to establish the facts through the gathering of first-hand information from local authorities, community leaders and parties to the conflict, as well as to identify the needs of the affected populations in terms of security and assistance and to follow up on these needs within the limits of its capacities.

MINUSMA’s peacekeepers have intensified their activities, where the mission has the means to do so, in order to protect civilian populations against possible threats.

In the Timbuktu region, MINUSMA has reinforced its aerial and ground surveillance in Ber, Bintagoungou and Timbuktu, along the main roads. A company of the Togolese battalion is present in Léré since 2 May 2015. The Mission’s contacts, particularly with the Governor, have helped ease tensions. The peacekeepers have also intensified their ground patrols in Bintagoungou. In addition, MINUSMA has deployed troops to Diabali and Tenenkou. In the Gao region, the peacekeepers have reinforced their positions in Ménaka and intensified their patrols in the surrounding villages.

“The protection of civilians is paramount in MINUSMA’s mandate. Given the vast expanse of the territory in the northern regions, the Mission’s limited capacities, as well as the severe threat of terrorism in certain areas, MINUSMA cannot be present everywhere to help populations. However, we do everything we can to ensure that civilians are protected,” said Mr. Mongi Hamdi, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Head of MINUSMA. “We are determined to work together with other international and regional partners to advance the inter-Malian peace process and put an end to the insecurity and instability of which civilians are the main victims,” Mr. Hamdi added.

2015

REVISED REQUIREMENT: 376 millions

FUNDING (1): 78 millions

UNMET REQUIREMENT: 283 millions

Kano, Nigeria | Friday 5/8/2015 - 11:28 GMT

By Aminu ABUBAKAR

A gunman opened fire on Friday outside a school in northeast Nigeria's city of Potiskum, seriously wounding 12 students in an area repeatedly targeted by Boko Haram, a police officer and witnesses said.

"We have evacuated 12 people with serious gunshot wounds to hospital from the scene of the shooting attack," said the officer, who requested anonymity.

Many students at the College of Administrative and Business Studies (CABS) in Potiskum, Yobe state, said the attacker with explosives strapped to his body blew himself up when he ran out of ammunition, but the blast caused no other casualties.

Following a wave of attacks in the city, including on schools and colleges, students at CABS must pass through security screening before entering the campus.

The gunman fired on a crowd waiting at the gate to be screened shortly past 8:00 am (0700 GMT), witnesses said.

"We had just started a class when we heard gunshots coming from the direction of the gates and we instantly realised we were under attack which made us to rush out of the class," student Tijjani Musa said.

According to another student, Mustapha Umar, the gunman managed to pass through the gates amid the chaos that broke out after he began shooting.

"He kept firing sporadic shots," but was chased by a group of students who were frantically trying to subdue him, said Umar.

"When he ran out of ‎ammunition he detonated the explosives under his robe, killing himself but no one from the crowd," Umar told AFP.

While there was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, Potiskum has frequently been targeted by Boko Haram, which is responsible for leaving more than 15,000 people dead and another 1.5 million homeless since 2009.

The group's name means "Western education is forbidden" and its leaders have previously vowed to strike institutions that teach a secular curriculum.

Last November, at least 58 people were killed and another 117 injured when a suicide bomber attacked a student assembly ‎ground inside the Government Comprehensive Secondary School which is next to CABS.

That attack was blamed on Boko Haram.

One of the group's most gruesome student massacres also occurred in Yobe in September of 2013, when dozens of students were killed in their sleep at the Federal Government College in the town of Buni Yadi.

Nigeria's military has claimed a series of major victories over Boko Haram across the northeast during an operation launched in February with support from neighbouring Cameroon, Chad and Niger.

But experts say the insurgents remain capable of hit-and-run strikes, and may increasingly target soft civilian targets, despite being weakened by the military offensive.

Outrage in Nigeria's mainly Muslim north over the government's failure to protect civilians contributed in part to President Goodluck's defeat in March's election, analysts said.

President-elect Muhammadu Buhari, a Muslim northerner, won near total majorities in the region and has vowed to more effectively combat the Islamist uprising.

Buhari, who will be sworn in May 29, has said he will crack down on graft that has plagued military spending for decades and ensure that the security forces and intelligence services are better equipped.

abu-bs/ade/ccr

© 1994-2015 Agence France-Presse

Yola, Nigeria | AFP | Friday 5/8/2015 - 11:32 GMT | 755 words

by Phil HAZLEWOOD

Fanta Adamu thinks she's more than 80 years old but isn't sure. What she does know is she couldn't have escaped without help when Boko Haram threatened to overrun her village in northeast Nigeria.

As the fighting intensified in Sabon Gari, in the far north of Adamawa state, she called one of her sons, who came the 1,200 kilometres from Lagos to get her out.

She was brought to a three-room rented house on the fringes of the state capital, Yola, which she now shares with 19 other family members.

"I'm expecting to go back soon but the problem is the roads. Boko Haram has vandalised everything," she told AFP on Thursday.

"I'm expecting everything to be bombed. We are afraid to go back."

Fanta and her family's situation is far from unusual in Yola, which as a relative safe haven saw its population more than double with those fleeing Boko Haram violence in northern Adamawa and the neighbouring states of Borno and Yobe.

The media focus in recent days may have been on the internally displaced people's (IDP) camps around Yola, to which 275 women and children hostages were taken after being freed by the military from the militants' Sambisa Forest stronghold.

But many more refugees are staying in temporary accommodation in and around the city, with thousands bunking down for months with host families or relatives in often heavily overcrowded homes.

• Uncertain future -

Haruna Hamman Furo, permanent secretary of the Adamawa State Emergency Management Agency (ADSEMA), said that at its peak at the turn of the year, there were about 30,000 IDPs in camps in Yola and some 142,000 in host families.

But others say as many as 400,000 flocked to the city, particularly after Mubi, some 200 kilometres (125 miles) to the north, fell to the extremists in early November.

Since Nigeria's military began a concerted fight-back against the Islamists with the help of Chad, Niger and Cameroon in February, the numbers have gone down, said Furo.

Overall, some 1.5 million people have been left homeless by the violence since the insurgency began six years ago.

Most have remained in Nigeria, although others have fled to neighbouring Cameroon, Chad and Niger. All are putting an additional strain on local resources.

Fanta and her family receive help from the Nigerian Red Cross, which distributes foodstuffs such as rice, cooking oil and salt as well as mats and mosquito nets.

Church groups, mosques, the state government and the American University of Nigeria (AUN) distribute food and clothing to those who fled with nothing.

The AUN, which is based in Yola, said earlier this year it was feeding some 250,000 people and talks of a prolonged humanitarian crisis.

In the meantime, the men in Fanta's family are looking for work in Yola while some of the children go to school.

Despite the semblance of normality, they yearn to go home.

"You can't compare living in a different place in a part of the world that you don't know," said Aishatu Ado, 35. "We are not enjoying it.

"Even if we go back, we don't know the situation because the farms have been destroyed. We are just waiting to see what will happen."

• Living in hope -

Zainab Ali washes trousers and pink school tunics in a black bucket, wringing out the water and hanging them on the line to dry in the scorching midday sun.

Strapped to her back as she bends and stretches is eight-month-old Karima.

All the displaced have a story to tell of their frantic escape. Ali, 37, is no different.

"I suffered a lot because running from Madagali to here wasn't easy. Some of my friends gave birth on the way," she said.

"We trekked for one day before finding a car to bring us to Yola. Four or five of us were pregnant."

Karima was born in the rented house, where chickens running loose in the yard are shooed off mats on which the women and young children sit under the shade of straw thatch.

With Boko Haram pushed out of captured territory, there is increasing talk of more displaced people leaving camps in Yola and across the north and finally going home.

Ali is confident that day will come soon, with Nigeria's incoming president Muhammadu Buhari, a former military ruler, due to be sworn in on May 29.

"From what we have seen, things will change. He's a soldier and since he's won the election the violence has come down," she said.

phz/bs/fg

© 1994-2015 Agence France-Presse

Highlights

• Nigeria: IOM’s third DTM report was released, indicating the total number of displaced persons in six north eastern states has risen to nearly 1.5 million (1,491,706).

• Chad: A revised profiling exercise methodology has been developed and is currently being tested in the field.

• Niger: 169 transitional shelters were installed during the reporting period in Kindjandi with the help of the Nigerien Cross.

• Cameroon: IOM identified 59,055 displaced Cameroonian nationals in four departments in the Far North.

Welcome to the May issue of the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project’s (ACLED) Conflict Trends report. Each month, ACLED researchers gather, analyse and publish data on political vio- lence in Africa in realtime. Weekly updates to realtime conflict event data are published through our research partners at Climate Change and African Political Stability (CCAPS) and also on the ACLED website.

This month’s issue focuses on the declining activity of Boko Haram in Nigeria, escalating protests in Burundi, an overview of an ACLED working paper on shifting forms and spatial distribution of pro- test activity in North Africa, an analysis of the neutrality and impartiality doctrine in UN Peace- keeping Missions, cycles of protest and Islamist militancy in Tunisia. A special focus topic explores calculating the risk of conflict-related mortality using micromorts.

Elsewhere on the continent, April saw a spike in xenophobic violence and reactionary protests in South Africa, clashes continued in the Democratic Republic of Congo between FARDC soldiers and ADF rebels and intense fighting south of Tripoli thretened to derail UN reconciliation in Libya.

Population

105,583 declared by local authorities in Diffa region
1,400 transferred to Sayam Forage camp

Highlights

• After the recent attacks in Diffa region, UNHCR, after consultations with authorities, decided that both Sayam Forage and Kablewa camps shall be open to all the displaced population (Nigerian refugees and Niger returnees).

• Niger authorities ordered the Lake Chad islands located in the South East of N’Guigmi Department to be evacuated in order to proceed with military operations in the fight against the Boko Haram.

• The presence of landmines along the border around Komadougou is still preventing access to certain areas.

• A significant number of detentions are taking place in Diffa region. UNHCR is monitoring detentions of persons of concern and will provide legal assistance.

Lors de sa réunion hebdomadaire, le Conseil d’administration du Groupe de la Banque africaine de développement (BAD) a approuvé, le 29 avril 2015, un Projet d’appui au pôle de croissance de Bagré (PAPCB), au Burkina Faso. Montant de l’aide octroyée à ce projet, qui sera déployé sur cinq ans : 16,4 milliards de FCFA (soit 30,4 millions de dollars EU), qui serviront à développer des infrastructures et des chaînes de valeur agricoles.

Parmi les principales réalisations du projet, figurent le prolongement sur 22 km du canal primaire en rive droite, la réalisation d’un réservoir tampon d’une capacité de 114 000 m3, l’aménagement d’un périmètre irrigué destiné aux petits producteurs (924 ha), la réhabilitation de 1 200 ha en rive droite, ainsi que la construction d’infrastructures de stockage, de transformation et de commercialisation.

Le projet aidera à accroître la productivité, les productions et les revenus agricoles, de façon durable, des hommes, des femmes et des jeunes. Il contribuera au développement des chaînes de valeur des filières (riz, maïs et produits maraichers) identifiées comme porteuses par la stratégie du gouvernement burkinabé.

La zone d’intervention du projet se trouve à environ 250 km de Ouagadougou et à 30 et 50 km respectivement des frontières du Ghana et du Togo. Tenkodogo est la plus importante ville à proximité de la zone du projet. Elle est située à 45 km du barrage de Bagré et comptait, en 2013, une population estimée à 155 000 habitants environ. Le projet interviendra en rive droite du fleuve Nakanbé, à l’aval du barrage de Bagré, venant ainsi compléter les interventions en cours sur la rive gauche (financées par la Banque mondiale).

Le PAPCB touchera de manière directe trois catégories de bénéficiaires : les paysans, dont 903 affectés par le projet sont réinstallés dans un nouveau périmètre irrigué et 1 200 au niveau d’un périmètre irrigué existant – soit un total de 2 103 petits exploitants ; les jeunes promoteurs agricoles au nombre de 116, dont 96 fils/filles d’agriculteurs de la zone du projet et 20 diplômé(e)s d’établissements de formation agricole ; et 3 opérateurs privés, bénéficiaires d’un périmètre irrigué de 1 270 ha. Ce sont, au total, quelque 13 300 personnes (dont environ 4 000 femmes) qui bénéficieront du projet PAPCB de façon directe.

La conception du projet privilégie l’approche chaîne de valeur, mettant un accent particulier sur la transformation et la commercialisation des produits. La dimension du genre est également prise en compte, avec l’implication des femmes et des jeunes, notamment les diplômé(e)s.

Le projet Bagré remonte aux années 1970, quand les premières interventions de l’Etat visaient le développement économique des zones libérées de l’onchocercose – une maladie parasitaire dite aussi “cécité des rivières”. Bâti en 1994 sur le fleuve Nakambé, le barrage a une capacité de 1,7 milliard m3. Il dispose en son aval de 3 380 ha de périmètres irrigués actuellement en exploitation. Le PAPCB contribuera à la stratégie du gouvernement burkinabé basée sur une approche de pôles de croissance, dont relève la mise en œuvre de ce projet de pôle croissance de Bagré – jugé hautement prioritaire par les autorités en charge de la transition politique du pays. Il sera exécuté en synergie avec les activités en cours dans la zone ciblée, financées par le Groupe de la Banque mondiale.

D’un coût total estimé à 20,4 milliards de FCFA (soit 37,7 millions de dollars EU), le projet sera financé grâce à un prêt de 11,7 milliards de FCFA (21,7 millions de dollars) du Fonds africain de développement (FAD), qui a également octroyé un don de 4,7 milliards de FCFA (8,7 millions de dollars), outre les contributions du gouvernement et des bénéficiaires, d’un total de 4 milliards de FCFA (soit 7,2 millions de dollars EU).

GA/AB/4154

Sixty-ninth Session, 37th Meeting (AM)

GENERAL ASSEMBLY

MEETINGS COVERAGE

Delegates Also Object to Single Financial Statement for International Tribunals The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today began its consideration of the additional $80 million required for the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) for the year ending 30 June 2015.

Bettina Tucci Bartsiotas, Assistant Secretary-General and Controller, said the Mission had gone “from a target of opportunity to a primary target”, with injuries to personnel from improvised explosive devices quadrupling during 2014 compared with the previous year. Anti-vehicle mines placed along routes used by MINUSMA personnel had severely hampered the freedom of movement and had negatively affected the supply chain and operations in the north, she said, noting that no provision had been made when the 2014/15 budget was formulated.

She requested that the General Assembly appropriate and assess $80.3 million for the 12-month period, in addition to the $830.7 million already appropriated and assessed for the Mission. The extra requirements broke down to $70.3 million needed for facilities and infrastructure, mainly for the construction of additional camps and strengthening existing camps in northern Mali, and $10 million for mine detection and mine-clearing services, she added.

Carlos Ruiz Massieu, Chairman of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), said however that, given the 17 March 2015 cash position and the level of the extra requirements, there was no need for an additional appropriation or assessment, recommending that the Assembly authorize the Secretary-General to enter into commitments not exceeding $80.36 million.

Turning to other matters, the Secretariat faced an objection by several delegations to its presentation of a single financial statement for the international tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and for Rwanda and their Residual Mechanism.

South Africa’s delegate, speaking for the “Group of 77” developing countries and China, said that after carefully studying related information alongside the principles of International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS), the Group concluded that the three entities had different mandates and lifespans and functioned under unique circumstances. As such, the Group was not convinced of the Secretariat’s rationale to merge their financial statements as it would undermine transparency and accountability of the financial aspects of those entities — a position endorsed by the representatives of Algeria, speaking for the African Group, and the United Republic of Tanzania.

Ms. Bartsiotas explained that the conceptual framework of IPSAS’ Chapter 4 may apply when reporting entities had similar mandates. The tribunals were being transformed into a residual mechanism as one entity. The financial statement still had three segments listing each entity’s financial statement, without missing details, and the Secretariat would seek to find an agreeable solution in its upcoming meeting with the Audit Operations Committee, she added.

Documents under the Fifth Committee’s review were the Secretary-General’s note on the financing arrangements for MINUSMA for the period from 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2015, introduced by Ms. Bartsiotas, and ACABQ’s related report, presented by Mr. Ruiz Massieu.

Also speaking today was the representative of Cuba, as well as the European Union.

The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. Tuesday, 12 May, to discuss financing of the following peacekeeping operations: the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA); United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO); United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH); United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL); United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA); United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF); United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL); United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS); and the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID).

United Nations Mission in Mali

BETTINA TUCCI BARTSIOTAS, Assistant Secretary-General and Controller, introduced the note by the Secretary-General on the financing arrangements for the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) for the period from 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2015 (document A/69/828), which contained a proposal for increased requirements requested by the Security Council.

Explaining the reasons for the increase, she said the Mission had gone from a target of opportunity to a primary target, with injuries to personnel from improvised explosive devices quadrupling during 2014 compared with the previous year. In addition, anti-vehicle mines placed along routes used by MINUSMA personnel had severely hampered the freedom of movement and had negatively affected the supply chain and operations in the north of the country, she said, noting that no provision had been made when the 2014/15 budget was formulated.

As such, $70.3 million was needed for facilities and infrastructure, mainly for the construction of additional camps and strengthening existing camps in northern Mali and $10 million was needed for mine detection and mine-clearing services, she said. The General Assembly was requested to appropriate and assess $80.3 million for the 12-month period from 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2015, in addition to the $830.7 million already appropriated and assessed under the terms of the body’s resolution 68/259 B.

CARLOS RUIZ MASSIEU, Chairman of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), introduced his body’s related report (document A/69/889). He noted that the additional requirements for 2014/15 were related to new force laydown and the expansion of MINUSMA’s presence in northern Mali beyond key population centres. The Advisory Committee was deeply concerned that MINUSMA continued to suffer a high number of fatalities and injuries, and expected that the Secretary-General would make every effort to increase the safety and security of its military and civilian personnel. Based on the cash position as of 17 March 2015, and given the level of the proposed additional requirements, the Advisory Committee felt that there was no need for an additional appropriation or assessment at the present stage, and recommended that the Assembly authorize the Secretary-General to enter into commitments not exceeding $80.36 million.

KAREN LINGENFELDER (South Africa), speaking on behalf of the “Group of 77” developing countries and China, noted several observations about the request by the Audit Operations Committee of the Board of Auditors to meet with the Fifth Committee’s Bureau to address issues related to proposals to present a single financial statement for the international tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and for Rwanda and their Residual Mechanism. After carefully studying related information alongside the principles of International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS), the Group concluded that the three entities had different mandates and lifespans and functioned under unique circumstances. As such, the Group was not convinced of the Secretariat’s rationale, which would undermine transparency and accountability of the financial aspects of those entities. She emphasized the need for the Secretariat to ensure the timely preparation and presentation of separate financial statements to the Board in line with the given mandate and allocation of assignments. In that regard, she requested that the Advisory Committee, through the Fifth Committee Chair, transmit her position on the matter to the Board’s Audit Operations Committee and that no audit should be carried out on the packaged approach for those three separate entities.

ABDELHAKIM MIHOUBI (Algeria), speaking for the African Group and endorsing a position expressed by the Group of 77, objected to merging the financial statements of three entities into one. Any proposed attempt diverting from the current reporting would undermine transparency and accountability. He requested that the Group’s position be presented to the ACABQ and then the Audit Operations Committee, as well as relevant stakeholders in the Secretariat, and his remarks be included in the official record.

JUSTIN KISOKA (United Republic of Tanzania) said he was not in favour of the Secretariat’s approach, which might undermine transparency and accountability. One entity was winding up its work, and its financial statement should not be packaged into the statements of other entities.

Ms. BARTSIOTAS said it was the Secretary-General’s responsibility to prepare financial statements in accordance with IPSAS. The conceptual framework of IPSAS’ Chapter 4 may apply when reporting entities had similar mandates. The tribunals were being transformed into a residual mechanism as one entity. The financial statement had three segments listing each entity’s financial statement, without any missing details. The decision was made for the benefit of Member States. The Secretariat would ensure that financial statements were transparent, meaningful and informative for “you to make a decision”. Its upcoming meeting with the Audit Operations Committee would find a solution agreeable to delegates.

JAVIER ENRIQUE SANCHEZ AZCUY (Cuba) asked whether decisions on those issues would be made without the agreement of Member States. His delegations believed that the three documents should remain separate.

Mr. KISOKA (United Republic of Tanzania) highlighted that the matter being discussed had not been presented to the Fifth Committee and said that his Government had started using IPSAS in 2008 and now each embassy was responsible for financial statements.

Ms. BARTSIOTAS said her Office was in the middle of the audit and was working with the Audit Operations Committee, adding that she was committed to serving the needs of the Fifth Committee.

CARMEL POWER, a representative of the European Union Delegation, said her understanding was that the intention of the process was being undertaken in the spirit of IPSAS.

At the invitation of Mr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for West Africa and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa (UNOWA), the Heads of the United Nations Peace Missions in West Africa held their Twenty-seventh high-level consultation meeting on 8 May 2015 in Dakar.

In attendance were the Special Representatives of the UN Secretary-General and Heads of UN Missions in Liberia (UNMIL), Ms. Karin Landgren; in Mali (MINUSMA), Mr. Mongi Hamdi; in Guinea-Bissau (UNIOGBIS), Mr. Miguel Trovoada; in Cote d’Ivoire (UNOCI), Ms. Aïchatou Mindaoudou; in Ebola-affected countries (UNMEER), Mr. Peter Graaff; and the Special Envoy for the Sahel and Head of OSES, Ms. Hiroute Guebre Sellassie.

The objective of this regular meeting is to review progress in the implementation of the respective UN mandates in the region, to strengthen coordination in order to address common challenges in the areas of elections, Ebola, security, organized crime, and terrorism and to examine the prospects of democratic transitions in the West Africa region.

The Heads of peace missions welcomed the peaceful, transparent and free electoral process in Nigeria and noted the paramount need for inclusive political reconciliation and dialogue in several countries in the region, including Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire and Guinea. They expressed hope that the upcoming elections in these three countries will consolidate reconciliation and strengthen the peace process. Participants recognized with satisfaction the advances made in the fight against the Ebola Virus Disease and called for continued attention in most affected countries. The Heads of peace missions welcomed the efforts of national, regional and international partners in this regard. They noted that particular attention is required to ensure that political developments, especially in Guinea, do not thwart the progress made thus far.

The meeting expressed concern about the security situation in northern Mali and called on all parties to adhere to the ceasefire agreement and the declarations on cessation of hostilities signed in Algiers. They called on all parties to remain committed to the peace process and to work together to ensure the signing of the peace accord on 15 May in Bamako.

Regarding the situation in the Sahel, participants recognized that the humanitarian crisis in the Sahel creates opportunities for criminal networks to prosper and called for increased cooperation between United Nations missions and entities, as well as strengthened regional cooperation.

The Heads of peace missions noted the progress made since the return to constitutional normalcy following the 2014 elections and called on partners to honor the promises made at the donor round table on Guinea Bissau in Brussels.

Participants noted the positive ongoing transition from UNMIL to the Liberian government in the security field and welcomed national efforts in the area of decentralization.

The meeting expressed deep concern about the ongoing tragedy of the migrants from the sub-region and urged national governments of the region and the international community to cooperate to address this matter.

A l’invitation de M. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Représentant Spécial du Secrétaire général des Nations Unies pour l'Afrique de l'Ouest et Chef du Bureau des Nations Unies pour l'Afrique de l'Ouest (UNOWA), les chefs des missions de paix des Nations Unies en Afrique de l'Ouest ont tenu, le 8 mai 2015 à Dakar, leur vingt-septième réunion consultative de haut niveau.

Étaient présents, les Représentants spéciaux du Secrétaire général de l'ONU et Chefs de mission : au Liberia (MINUL), Mme Karin Landgren; au Mali (MINUSMA), M. Mongi Hamdi; en Guinée-Bissau (BINUGBIS), M. Miguel Trovoada; en Côte d'Ivoire (ONUCI), Mme Aïchatou Mindaoudou; dans les pays affectés par Ebola (UNMEER), M. Peter Graaff; et l'Envoyée spéciale du Secrétaire général pour le Sahel et Chef du Bureau pour le Sahel (OSES), Mme Hiroute Guebre Selassie.

L'objectif de cette réunion périodique est de faire la revue des progrès accomplis dans la mise en œuvre des mandats respectifs des Nations Unies dans la région, de renforcer la coordination afin de répondre aux défis communs dans les domaines tels que les élections, la sécurité, la criminalité organisée, le terrorisme, ainsi que l’épidémie à virus Ebola, et d'examiner les perspectives de transitions démocratiques dans la région de l’Afrique de l'Ouest.

Les chefs des missions de paix se sont félicités du processus électoral pacifique, libre et transparent au Nigeria et ont souligné la nécessité vitale d’une réconciliation et d’un dialogue politique inclusif dans plusieurs pays de la région, dont le Burkina Faso, la Côte d'Ivoire et la Guinée. Ils ont exprimé l'espoir que les prochaines élections dans ces trois pays contribueront à consolider la réconciliation et renforcer les processus de paix.

Les participants ont reconnu avec satisfaction les progrès réalisés dans la lutte contre la maladie à virus Ebola et ont appelé à une attention soutenue dans les pays les plus touchés. Les chefs des missions de paix ont salué les efforts des partenaires nationaux, régionaux et internationaux à cet égard. Ils ont noté qu'une attention particulière est nécessaire pour s’assurer que les développements politiques, notamment en Guinée, ne freinent pas les progrès réalisés à ce jour.

La réunion a exprimé sa préoccupation à propos de la situation sécuritaire au nord du Mali et a appelé toutes les parties à respecter l'accord de cessez-le feu et les déclarations sur la cessation des hostilités signé à Alger. Ils ont appelé toutes les parties à rester engagées dans le processus de paix et à travailler ensemble pour assurer la signature de l'accord de paix le 15 mai à Bamako.

En ce qui concerne la situation dans le Sahel, les participants ont reconnu que la crise humanitaire dans cette région favorise la montée des réseaux criminels et ont appelé à une coopération accrue entre les missions et les entités des Nations Unies, ainsi qu’à une coopération régionale renforcée.

Les chefs des missions de paix ont noté les progrès accomplis depuis le retour à la normalité constitutionnelle à la suite des élections de 2014 et ont appelé les partenaires à respecter les promesses faites lors de la table ronde des donateurs sur la Guinée Bissau à Bruxelles.

Les participants ont noté la transition satisfaisante en cours de la MINUL au gouvernement libérien dans le domaine de la sécurité et se sont félicités des efforts nationaux en matière de décentralisation. La réunion a exprimé sa profonde préoccupation au sujet de la tragédie qui affecte les migrants de la sous- région et a exhorté les gouvernements de la région ainsi que la communauté internationale à coopérer pour régler cette question.

SG/A/1567-BIO/4721-PKO/483

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today announced the appointment of Mbaranga Gasarabwe of Rwanda as his Deputy Special Representative of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), where she will also serve as United Nations Resident Coordinator, Humanitarian Coordinator and Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Ms. Gasarabwe succeeds David Gressly of the United States, who served as Deputy Special Representative from July 2013 to April 2015. The Secretary-General is very grateful for Mr. Gressly’s dedicated service at a critical moment in Mali’s history and during the establishment of MINUSMA’s presence.

Ms. Gasarabwe brings more than 20 years of experience with the United Nations in development and humanitarian assistance, with a particular focus on Africa. From 2001 to 2011, she served as Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Benin, Djibouti, Guinea and Mali. She was appointed Assistant Secretary-General in the Department of Safety and Security in 2011.

Born in 1959, Ms. Gasarabwe holds a master’s degree in economics from the University of Burundi and a master’s degree in management and business administration from the Arthur D. Little School of Management, now known as the Hult International Business School, in the United States.

For information media. Not an official record.