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Mali: Mali: Food security and malnutrition situation - Humanitarian Snapshot (as of 02 Jun 2015)

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Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Country: Mali

Food security and malnutrition remain major concerns in Mali.

During the lean season (June - August), i.e. before the next harvests when grain stocks are depleted, it is estimated that nearly one out of every six households will need support for their livelihood. Among them, 410,000 people will require immediate food assistance.

Countrywide, one out of every eight children suffers from malnutrition; including 181,000 who are affected by the most severe form and face a nine-fold mortality risk.


Niger: Niger SRP 2015: Funding Status as of 12 June 2015

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Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Country: Niger

Mali: Mali : Carte des centres de santé soutenus par IMC (Avril 2015)

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Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, International Medical Corps
Country: Mali

Ghana: Ghana hard hit by flooding, once again

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Source: IRIN
Country: Ghana

ACCRA, 12 June 2015 (IRIN) - Years of delays and repeated failures to implement and improve sewage and drainage systems in Ghana’s capital, Accra, has led to increasingly damaging and deadly flooding during the country’s annual rainy season.

“[Ghana] hasn’t make any serious arrangements in the event of a flood,” said Franklin Cudjoe, director of the Accra-based IMANI think tank. “It is the epitome of neglect.”

Thirty-eight-year-old Gertrude Otobia Darko, was at home with her eight children and husband on the night of 3 June, when her house began to flood after days of steady rainfall and then hours of heavy downpour across the city.

Trapped inside, Darko and her family shouted and waved for help, from within the pitch black room, as the rain poured in. Soon the water was about four feet high, up to her chest. Eventually some neighbours were able to break down the door to let them out.

“We were holding on to the [window] railing that broke,” she told IRIN. “People carried us on their heads and took us out.”

But not before the water dragged Darko's three-year-old son away. Neighbours eventually found him submerged, with water in his lungs. His rescuers wanted to take him to the hospital, but were unable to get through the water.

Days later, the child is still unwell, yet to recover from the ordeal.

An ongoing problem

Ghana usually sees an average of 221mm of rainfall each June, according to the country’s Meteorological Agency. This year, an estimated 250mm of rain fell in the first three days of the month alone. It was the biggest storm in the past 20 years.

But the streets of Accra tend to flood even during times of average rainfall.

In some communities, structures have been built on waterways, blocking the water-flow. Drainage and sewage systems across the city are primitive and easily overflow.

A lack of public trash bins also means that litter is often discarded without care, further choking the gutters and blocking the flow of the water.

Unfulfilled promises

For years there have been talk of the government working with development partners to install a proper drainage system - the Accra Sanitation, Sewer and Storm-Water Drainage Alleviation Project - that would collect the rubbish that clogs the city's streets, gutters and beaches.

But the project has yet to materialise.

According to the mayor of Accra, Alfred Oko Vandepuije, the funds have been stuck at the Ministry of Finance since April 2013. The Ministry of Finance says they have not received the loan. The US Exim Bank, which is supposed to finance the project, confirmed that no plan has been finalised.

“The government and its development partners need to work together to complete the drains,” Addo said. “The plan is there and the funding has been sourced.”

Now the money just needs to be disbursed.

In 2005 Ghana committed to the 10-year Hyogo Framework for Action that seeks to reduce disaster risk. The framework, which includes dredging and drainage systems in some parts of Accra, are still either incomplete or yet to begin. The duration of framework ends this year.

In 2011, the former regional minister for Greater Accra created a Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation in Accra. But that too has not yet been activated.

IMANI’s Cudjoe told IRIN that corruption, political appointments, poor leadership and lack of regulation continue to lead to flood-related disasters.

“It is a myth surrounding the idea of Ghana's growth,” he said. “It's good that everyone sees us as doing well, but when it comes to the real development issues we haven't. Plans for [dealing with] urbanisation and regeneration are not part of the big economic development plans.”

Dire consequences

This month’s most recent storm, on 3 June, which led to an explosion at a petrol station, killed more than 150 people and affected thousands of others. It is just the latest example of the country’s failure to properly institute disaster risk reduction management, observers say.

Across Accra, collapsed walls now lay in puddles of mud. Many families have been forced to take refuge with neighbours.

Many residents say they are aware of the dangers and risks that the rains bring each year, but that there is little they can do.

Hawa, for example, who owns a cosmetic shop, was warned by her brother that the rain was getting heavier and heading in their direction. As predicted, the downpour soon descended on them as well.

Like many others throughout the city, her store was destroyed by the floods.

“It's my own small business,” Hawa said. “Everything has gone.”

She, like Darko, who also lost her store, has no way of setting up shop again.

Risk of cholera

In Accra, as the rains intensify each year, so does the risk of cholera. In 2014, there were an estimated 28,000 cholera cases in Ghana, according to Greater Accra’s Regional Disease Control Officer, Dr. Ato Ashon. More than 20,000 of them were found in Accra, following heavy rains and flooding.

In the wake of this most recent flood, and with many weeks still to go before the rainy season ends, the Greater Accra Regional Disease Control Centre says it has been sending more nurses into the communities to educate people about cholera prevention, in attempt to stave off another outbreak.

“It is disheartening that every year we deliver the same relief items,” said Samuel Kofi Addo, the secretary-general of the Ghanaian Red Cross. “Blankets, mattresses, buckets, food items - the same packages. What makes it even more sad is that we go to the same communities.”

Attempts at aid

Ghana’s National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) began, last week, distributing relief items to families around Kwame Nkrumah Circle, where the deadly petrol fire broke out, but failed to reach the majority of other affected areas until the start of a four-day campaign that began 8 June.

Following last week’s flood, Ghana's President John Dramani Mahama announced, on 5 June, that $12 million will be directed to support the flood and fire victims with relief, as well as used for infrastructure and waterway clearing projects.

Demolitions of informal structures, which block the current gutters and drains, also began in parts of Accra on 5 June, although mainly aimed at small constructions. Larger buildings and complexes like the luxury Villaggio residential properties, which is built on a known water basin, are rarely regulated.

But for Darko, Hawa, their neighbours and the many families across Accra whose lives were devastated by the floods and fire, prevention would have been better than a cure.

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Chad: Nigeria Situation: Regional Refugee Response Plan (RRRP) Monthly Regional Overview - May 2015

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Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees
Country: Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria

REGIONAL SITUATION ANALYSIS

In May, large scale displacement persisted in Nigeria (about 1.5 million IDPs) and in neighbouring Chad, Cameroon and Niger (167,789 refugees). The security situation remains unstable. Insurgents continue to launch raids in north-eastern Nigeria despite the announcement of the Nigerian army of having them pushed back.

General Muhammadu Buhari took oath of office on 29 May, and vowed to defeat Boko Haram. The following three days were overshadowed by six attacks, including suicide bombings in Borno State, where insurgents killed over 30 people. IDPs in north-eastern Nigeria are increasingly returning home despite persistent insecurity, critical lack of access to basic services (food, health, education) and concerns remain over mines, IEDs and unexploded ordnance in locations where IDPs are planning to return.

At the same time the situation in the region has deteriorated after insurgents on 25 April attacked Karamga Island, on Lake Chad which left at least 74 people dead. Subsequently, Niger authorities ordered the population living on the Lake’s islands to leave the area in order to launch a military operation against the insurgents. The evacuation/deportation of local people and refugees resulted in massive internal displacements in Niger as well as in Chad (about 50,000 including local community, Nigerian refugees and migrants2 ). About 16,000 Nigerian refugees voluntarily decided to go back home and have been registered by NEMA, in Nigeria. However, a group of 45 individuals were refouled and later, after international pressure, re-admitted in Niger.

The limited number of humanitarian actors and the extremely limited access to the areas where refugees and IDPs are living as well as logistic constrains imposed by bad roads are making a comprehensive humanitarian intervention almost impossible. Furthermore, in most of the countries the number of refugees and third countrynationals is exceeding the local population and therefore increasing the risk of conflict due to the competition over the already limited resources.

Mali: Mali rebels explain peace accord to refugees in Mauritania

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Source: Agence France-Presse
Country: Mali, Mauritania

Nouakchott, Mauritania | AFP | Friday 6/12/2015 - 18:42 GMT

Leaders of Mali's Tuareg-led rebel alliance visited Malian refugees in Mauritania on Friday to explain a decision to sign a peace agreement with the government, a member of the delegation said.

The Coordination of Azawad Movements (CMA) -- whose name refers to the country's vast northern desert -- had been holding out but has agreed to commit to the Algiers Accord at a ceremony in Bamako on June 20.

"We have come to the camps in Mauritania after a meeting with the Azawadian diaspora in Nouakchott to tell our citizens why we are signing this agreement, which falls far short of their aspirations," said Mohamed Attaye Ag Mohamed, of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), a CMA member.

The CMA won a number of concessions as a condition for giving its backing to the deal, including a stipulation that their fighters and other combatants be included in a security force for the north, and for residents of the north to be represented in government institutions.

"The international community has recognised the relevance of the amendments proposed by the CMA as part of the Algiers Accord," Ag Mohamed told Malians in the Mbera refugee camp in southern Mauritania.

"Even if this should lead us to failure, we have to journey together," he added, calling for the people of northern Mali to unite behind the decision.

The Mbera camp has housed up to 70,000 Malians who fled the north in 2012-13, when Islamists seized control of the region's main towns and cities before being ousted by a French-led military intervention.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, which runs the camp, says it expects to house 48,000 refugees this year.

The talks at the camp came as several representatives of the rebellion in Europe challenged the decision, however, telling a news conference in Paris it would be rejected by grass roots supporters.

Egles Ag Oufene, vice-president of the Coordination of Azawad Cadres, accused MNLA chief Bilal Ag Acherif of having "buckled" to international pressure, notably from France and the Algerian-led mediation team.

"The agreement does not meet the legitimate concerns of the population," said Moussa Ag Assarid, diplomatic representative of the MNLA in Europe, deploring the absence of federalism or autonomy for the north as part of the deal.

"The signing of the agreement will not be accepted on the ground," he predicted.

hos-chp/sst/ft/jm

© 1994-2015 Agence France-Presse

Mali: Budget Committee Recommends Authorizing Extra $80 Million to Maintain United Nations Mission in Mali

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Source: UN General Assembly
Country: Mali

GA/AB/4159

Sixty-ninth Session,
42nd Meeting (PM)

The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today recommended that the General Assembly authorize an additional $80.33 million to finance the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) for the year ending 30 June 2015.

By the terms of draft resolution A/C.5/69/L.45, which the Committee approved without a vote, the Assembly would have the Secretary-General enter into commitments for MINUSMA for the period from 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2015 in a total amount not exceeding $80.33 million for the maintenance of the Mission, in addition to $895.53 million previously budgeted for the same period.

In other matters, South Africa’s delegate, speaking on behalf of the “Group of 77” developing countries and China, noted that the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, which would close at the end of 2015, would undergo administrative activities related to liquidation, including the transfer and disposal of assets, retention of institutional memory and expertise, and personnel issues, which were not part of the arrangement for the International Residual Mechanism.

Therefore, the Group felt that the consideration of the pending Tribunal-related administrative and budgetary issues should be handled separately from the Mechanism agenda item until the liquidation was complete, he said, urging the Secretary-General to continue to present a separate budget under the Tribunal agenda item.

Togo’s delegate, speaking on behalf of the African Group and echoing the statement made by the previous speaker, said that the Group was aware that the Tribunal would enter a liquation phase after December 2015, and needed a separate consideration in preparing the budget for the Tribunal.

The Committee will meet again at a time and date to be determined.

For information media. Not an official record.

Nigeria: Alarming levels of insecurity in Nigeria driving civilian displacement, UN agency warns

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Source: UN News Service
Country: Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria

12 June 2015 – The World Food Programme (WFP) expressed today its particular concern about the consequences of insecurity in Nigeria, which has displaced so far 200,000 people, a number of them seeking refuge in Niger, Cameroon and Chad, while others are waiting at the borders.

“Nearly half a million people – refugees, returnees, internally displaced persons and local communities – face an acute food security and livelihood crisis,” added WFP spokesperson Elisabeth Byrs during a press conference in Geneva.

Civilians in the northeast Nigeria are fleeing attacks perpetrated by the armed insurgent group Boko Haram.

Emphasizing the plight of newly arriving refugee children in Niger and Cameroon, Ms. Byrs said malnutrition rates have surpassed emergency thresholds. “In some violence-affected areas near the Cameroon-Nigeria border, acute malnutrition rates among children under five years of age could be as high as 36 per cent,” she warned.

With the arrival of the rainy season, already stretched health centres would struggle to cope, she continued. As food became scarce, some 4,000 refugees have moved to the Minawao refugee camp since the end of April. “Displaced people said they could not rely for help on host communities which are already struggling to access food”, she added.

Making up 75 per cent of Nigerian refugees in Cameroon, 84 per cent of internally displaced persons in Cameroon, and more than 80 per cent of the Nigerian refugees in Niger, women and children are the most exposed.

WFP aims to provide food to nearly 400,000 people each month but it is impossible without urgent funding, stressed the spokesperson. The Programme is less than 50 per cent funded – with $41.6 million needed until the end of the year.

“In April-May, WFP provided food to about half of the people it was planning to assist and, in some instances, the ration size was reduced”, concluded Ms. Byrs.


Mali: La Cinquième Commission prévoit des crédits supplémentaires de 80,3 millions de dollars pour la Mission des Nations Unies au Mali, déjà dotée de 895 millions de dollars

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Source: UN General Assembly
Country: Mali

AG/AB/4159

Deuxième partie de la reprise de session, 42e séance – après-midi

La Commission chargée des questions administratives et budgétaires (Cinquième Commission) a recommandé à l’Assemblée générale d’engager des dépenses d’un « montant total maximum » de 80 336 300 dollars (quatre-vingt millions trois cents trente-six mille trois cents dollars) pour la Mission multidimensionnelle intégrée des Nations Unies pour la stabilisation au Mali (MINUSMA), en vue de couvrir l’exercice d’un an allant du 1er juillet 2014 au 30 juin 2015.

Ces dépenses s’ajoutent aux 895 534 000 dollars déjà approuvés pour la même période selon les termes de la résolution 68/259 B de l’Assemblée générale, indique la résolution qui est adoptée cet après-midi sans vote. Si elle suit les recommandations de la Cinquième Commission, l’Assemblée générale priera le Secrétaire général de « continuer de surveiller la situation de trésorerie de la Mission » et de lui faire rapport à ce sujet, à titre exceptionnel, durant la partie principale de sa soixante-dixième session.

La Mission au Mali a été créée par le Conseil de sécurité en avril 2013, et son mandat a été prorogé jusqu’au 30 juin 2015.

Au cours de la brève séance de travail tenue par la Commission cet après-midi, le représentant de l’Afrique du Sud, s’exprimant au nom du Groupe des 77 et la Chine (G77), a pris la parole au titre des questions diverses pour parler du financement du Tribunal pénal international pour le Rwanda (TPIR) dont le mandat judiciaire s’achèvera en décembre 2015. Après cette date, a-t-il rappelé, toutes les affaires pendantes ou en appel seront transmises au Mécanisme appelé à exercer les fonctions résiduelles des Tribunaux pénaux internationaux pour le Rwanda et l’ex-Yougoslavie, le « Mécanisme résiduel », tandis que le Tribunal n’accomplira plus que les activités administratives liées à la liquidation de son mandat.

Soulignant l’importance des questions administratives et budgétaires liées à ce Tribunal, le représentant du G77 a demandé qu’elles soient traitées séparément. Il n’a donc pas voulu que l’on examine les éléments administratifs du Tribunal en même temps que le financement du Mécanisme résiduel. « Le Groupe espère que le Secrétaire général continuera à présenter un budget distinct pour le TPIR tant que la liquidation de celui-ci ne sera pas terminée », a-t-il dit, et ce, afin de garantir la transparence et la reddition de comptes.

Son homologue du Togo, s’exprimant au nom du Groupe des États d’Afrique, s’est associé à ces remarques en ajoutant qu’il appuyait le budget du TPIR pendant la période de liquidation et en soulignant l’importance que revêtent la mémoire institutionnelle et les compétences du personnel du Tribunal.

Enfin, le Président de la Cinquième Commission a informé les délégations que le Bureau de la Commission allait publier rapidement le programme de travail pour les jours à venir. Alors qu’on arrive à la mi-juin, nous allons redoubler d’efforts pour avancer sur les points à l’ordre du jour de la Commission, a-t-il dit en espérant que les délibérations seraient terminées rapidement.

La prochaine réunion officielle de la Cinquième Commission sera annoncée dans le Journal des Nations Unies.

À l’intention des organes d’information • Document non officiel.

Niger: UNICEF Niger response for displaced children and women from North-East Nigeria - Situation of displaced people in Diffa region in numbers (as of 15 June 2015)

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Source: UN Children's Fund
Country: Niger, Nigeria

UNICEF response

• UNICEF supported the installation of Sayam Forage refugee camp, hosting over 1,300 refugees, by providing latrine slabs, water bladders,
NFIs and recreational and ECD kits to UNHCR to ensure access to water and sanitation and support safe spaces for children as part of child protection.

• 18,934 people from Chad Islands have been identified (8,234 people identified in Kimé Gana and 10,700 people in Yébi) and relocated in two temporary sites where the government and its partners are providing assistance (including NFIs provided by UNICEF). Among the 2,807 households identified in Kimé Gana ( 8,234 people), 1,375 households were willing to be relocated in Kablewa IDP camp which is now functional. Since 4 th of June, 279 households from Kimé Gana have been relocated in Kablewa IDP camp.

• In parallel, UNICEF continues to support displaced people and host communities outside the camps and temporary sites.

• With UNICEF, COOPI has installed psychosocial support units in the transit sites Gagamari, Chetimari, Kablewa, Nguigmi and the Sayam Forage refugee camp, and Kimégana temporary site. As of 15th of May, COOPI reached 9,195 children among a targeted 9,750 children.
UNICEF is also working on the implementation of a Child Protection Monitoring system in Diffa in collaboration with partners.

• As of early May 2015, 254,664 children have been vaccinated against measles in Diffa region through two campaigns between December 2014 and May 2015.

• UNICEF implementing partners in Diffa, IEDA Relief and Save the Children, began their programme of cholera prevention and response in October 2014 (563 cholera cases have been registered in Diffa from October 2014 to February 2015). Since mid-February, thanks to joint efforts, no cholera cases have been registered. However, preparedness efforts continue to prevent a new epidemics during the upcoming rainy season.

• To ensure access to quality primary education for displaced communities, UNICEF in collaboration with COOPI identified 10 schools that are integrating displaced children. UNICEF is supporting building 14 additional classrooms, training teachers, and providing additional educational supplies for teachers and children. UNICEF will support an additional school in Sayam Forage refugee camp where 5 additional emergency classrooms will be built. As of 10th June, two classrooms have already been built in Sayam Forage, in collaboration with COOPI.

Nigeria: Suspected Boko Haram gunmen kill 37 near northeast Nigeria's Maiduguri

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Source: Reuters - AlertNet
Country: Nigeria

MAIDUGURI, June 12 (Reuters) - Suspected Boko Haram gunmen killed 37 people in raids on five villages around Maiduguri, the capital of northeast Nigeria's Borno state, a military source and a local village defence group said on Friday.

Read the full article

World: Food Assistance Outlook Brief June 2015

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Source: Famine Early Warning System Network
Country: Afghanistan, Angola, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Djibouti, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Honduras, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tajikistan, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania, World, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

This brief summarizes FEWS NET’s most for ward-looking analysis of projected emergency food assistance needs in FEWS NET coverag e countries. The projected size of each country’s acutely food insecure population (IPC Phase 3 and higher) is compared to last year and the re cent five-year average and categorized as Higher ( S ), Similar ( X ), or Lower ( T ). Countries where external emergency food assistance needs are anticipated are identified. Projected lean season months highlighted in red indica te either an early start or an extension to the typical lean season.

Additional information is provided for countries with large food insecure populations, an expectation of high severity, or wher e other key issues warrant additional discussion. Analytical confidence is lower in remote monitoring countries, denoted by “RM”. Visit www.fews.net for detailed country reports.

World: Global Weather Hazards Summary June 12-18, 2015

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Source: Famine Early Warning System Network, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Country: Afghanistan, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Dominica, El Salvador, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Honduras, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tajikistan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, World

Start of season remains slow in parts of West Africa, abnormal dryness continues in Central America and Haiti

Africa Weather Hazards

  1. A delayed onset of the rainy season, followed by poorly-distributed rainfall, has led to abnormal dryness across southern Burkina Faso, the northern parts of Ghana, Togo, and Benin, and north-central Nigeria.
    The lack of rainfall over the past five weeks has delayed planting and negatively affected cropping activities over many local areas of the region.

  2. A poor distribution of March-May rainfall has negatively impacted crops over the SNNPR, central and Belg-producing areas of Ethiopia, eastern Eritrea, and Djibouti.
    As the March-May season had already ended, recovery is unlikely.

Nigeria: Commission decision of 9.6.2015 Financing humanitarian actions in Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon and Chad from the 11th European Development Fund (ECHO/-AF/EDF/2015/01000)

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Source: European Commission Humanitarian Aid department
Country: Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EU) 2015/322 of 2 March 2015 on the implementation of the 11th European Development Fund1 and in particular Article 9(3) thereof,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EU) 2015/323 of 2 March 2015 on the financial regulation applicable to the 11th European Development Fund and in particular Article 26 thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Since 2014 there has been a dramatic increase in acts of violence in Nigeria, conducted by the militant islamist group Boko Haram, targeting mainly the civilian population.
Recently, attacks have also been carried out in the neighbouring countries. This has caused both internal displacement and population movements across the border into Cameroon, Niger and Chad.

(2) The increased violence has caused serious humanitarian consequences for the population of North-East Nigeria and those of neighbouring Niger, Chad and Cameroon. An estimated 1.5 million people are internally displaced in Nigeria and over 230 000 have sought refuge in neighbouring countries, creating shortage of food and increasing the risk of outbreaks of infectious diseases such as cholera. Protection, food, shelter, health and water, hygiene and sanitation (WASH) needs remain largely unmet in the affected areas.

(3) To reach populations in need, aid should be channelled through non-governmental organisations (NGOs) or international organisations including United Nations (UN) agencies. Therefore the European Commission should implement the budget by direct management or by indirect management, as the case may be.

(4) For the purposes of this Decision, the countries involved are Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon and Chad.

(5) Pursuant to Article 37 of Regulation (EU) 2015/323 and Article 130 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union , and in view of the specific nature of humanitarian aid, expenditure incurred before the date of submission of a proposal can be eligible for Union funding.

(6) The use of the 11th European Development Fund is necessary as all the funds for ACP countries in the general budget are entirely allocated.

(7) It is estimated that an amount of EUR 21 million from the reserve for unforeseen needs (B-envelope) of the 11th European Development Fund is necessary to provide humanitarian assistance to populations directly affected by the Boko Haram crisis.

Although as a general rule actions funded by this Decision should be co-financed, the Authorising Officer, in accordance with Article 37(1) of Regulation (EU) 2015/323, together with Article 277 of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1268/2012 of 29 October 2012 on the rules of application of Regulation No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union (hereinafter referred to as 'the Rules of Application'), may agree to the full financing of actions.

(8) The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the European Development Fund Committee set up by Article 8 of the Internal Agreement between the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States of the European Union, meeting within the Council, on the financing of European Union aid under the multiannual financial framework for the period 2014 to 2020, in accordance with the ACP-EU Partnership Agreement, and on the allocation of financial assistance for the Overseas Countries and Territories to which Part Four of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union applies5 .

Nigeria: DÉCISION DE LA COMMISSION du 9.6.2015 relative au financement d’actions humanitaires au Nigeria, au Niger, au Cameroun et au Tchad sur le 11e Fonds européen de développement (ECHO/-AF/EDF/2015/01000)

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Source: European Commission Humanitarian Aid department
Country: Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria

LA COMMISSION EUROPÉENNE,

vu le traité sur le fonctionnement de l'Union européenne,

vu le règlement (UE) 2015/322 du Conseil du 2 mars 2015 relatif à la mise en œuvre du 11e Fonds européen de développement , et notamment son article 9, paragraphe 3,

vu le règlement (UE) 2015/323 du Conseil du 2 mars 2015 portant règlement financier applicable au 11e Fonds européen de développement , et notamment son article 26,

considérant ce qui suit:

(1) Depuis 2014, il y a eu une très forte augmentation des actes de violence perpétrés au Nigeria par le groupe islamiste radical Boko Haram et visant essentiellement la population civile. Récemment, des attaques ont également été menées dans les pays voisins. Il en a résulté tant des déplacements internes que des mouvements de population transfrontières vers le Cameroun, le Niger et le Tchad.

(2) L’augmentation de la violence a eu de graves conséquences humanitaires pour les populations du Nord-Est du Nigeria et des pays voisins, à savoir le Niger, le Tchad et le Cameroun. D’après les estimations, 1,5 million de personnes ont été déplacées à l’intérieur du Nigeria et plus de 230 000 autres ont trouvé refuge dans les pays voisins, ce qui a provoqué une pénurie de nourriture et augmenté le risque d'épidémies de maladies infectieuses, telles que le choléra. Les besoins de protection, de nourriture, d’abris, de soins de santé ainsi que d’eau, de services d’hygiène et d’assainissement sont loin d'être couverts dans les zones touchées.

(3) Il convient que l’aide soit acheminée par des organisations non gouvernementales (ONG) ou par des organisations internationales, y compris les agences des Nations unies, pour qu'elle atteigne les populations dans le besoin. La Commission européenne devrait donc exécuter le budget en gestion directe ou indirecte, suivant le cas.

(4) Aux fins de la présente décision, les pays concernés sont le Nigeria, le Niger, le Cameroun et le Tchad.

(5) Conformément à l’article 37 du règlement (UE) 2015/323 et à l’article 130 du règlement (UE, Euratom) nº 966/2012 du Parlement européen et du Conseil du 25 octobre 2012 relatif aux règles financières applicables au budget général de l'Union3 , et compte tenu de la nature spécifique de l’aide humanitaire, les dépenses exposées avant la date de dépôt d’une proposition peuvent être admissibles au financement de l’Union.

(6) Le recours au 11e Fonds européen de développement est nécessaire dans la mesure où tous les fonds prévus pour les pays ACP dans le budget général ont été entièrement alloués.

(7) Selon les estimations, un montant de 21 000 000 EUR, provenant de la réserve du 11e Fonds européen de développement destinée à couvrir des besoins imprévus (enveloppe B), est nécessaire pour fournir une assistance humanitaire aux populations directement touchées par la crise engendrée par Boko Haram. Même si, en règle générale, les actions financées par la présente décision devraient être cofinancées, l’ordonnateur peut en autoriser le financement intégral, conformément à l’article 37, paragraphe 1, du règlement (UE) 2015/323, en liaison avec l'article 277 du règlement délégué (UE) nº 1268/2012 de la Commission du 29 octobre 2012 relatif aux règles d’application du règlement (UE, Euratom) nº 966/2012 du Parlement européen et du Conseil relatif aux règles financières applicables au budget général de l’Union4 (ciaprès le «règlement d'application»).

(8) Les mesures prévues par la présente décision sont conformes à l’avis du comité du Fonds européen de développement institué par l’article 8 de l’accord interne entre les représentants des gouvernements des États membres de l'Union européenne, réunis au sein du Conseil, relatif au financement de l'aide de l'Union européenne au titre du cadre financier pluriannuel pour la période 2014-2020 conformément à l’accord de partenariat ACP-UE et à l’affectation des aides financières destinées aux pays et territoires d’outre-mer auxquels s’appliquent les dispositions de la quatrième partie du traité sur le fonctionnement de l'Union européenne


Niger: Le Niger pris malgré lui dans les grandes migrations africaines

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Source: Agence France-Presse
Country: Libya, Niger, World

Agadez, Niger | AFP | lundi 15/06/2015 - 05:34 GMT

par Joris FIORITI

Son territoire est immense, ses frontières poreuses et ses moyens limités : le Niger, voisin de la Libye, d'où partent chaque année des dizaines de milliers de migrants vers l'Europe, est devenu un hub malgré lui pour clandestins africains.

Tous les jours, des flots de Sénégalais, Gambiens, Ghanéens, Ivoiriens, Maliens..., à peine arrivés du Burkina Faso, précédente étape de la "route vers l'Occident", se retrouvent dans les gares routières de sa capitale Niamey, pour se ruer vers Agadez, principale ville du nord du pays.

Agadez, cette légendaire "porte du désert", située à un millier de kilomètres de la Libye, par laquelle "les migrants sont toujours passés", même s'"il y en avait moins", observe Mohamed Anako, le président du conseil régional.

"Là, les seuls couloirs migratoires (vers l'Europe) encore ouverts passent par Agadez. Toute la concentration de migrants de trouve à Agadez", constate M. Anako.

La route vers l'Espagne via le Maroc, qui a conduit ces dernières années des centaines de clandestins à la noyade en Méditerranée, et des milliers d'autres sur le Vieux continent, est plus étroitement surveillée, et donc moins empruntée.

Celle de la Libye a pris le relais. Depuis la mort fin 2011 du dictateur Mouammar Khadafi, ce pays à l'Etat moribond, où grand banditisme et groupes jihadistes pullulent, est devenu le nouvel eldorado des migrants.

Plus de 45.000 immigrés clandestins ont débarqué en Italie, la plupart partis des côtes libyennes, depuis le début de l'année. Environ 60% d'entre avaient transité par le Niger, selon des chiffres officiels.

  • 150.000 migrants -

Quelque 150.000 migrants, en grande majorité ouest-africains, sont attendus cette année à Agadez par les autorités.

"Quand les frontières sont fermées en Egypte, ou que des groupes veulent éviter le Soudan, on a aussi ici des ressortissants d'Afrique de l'est : des Érythréens, des Somaliens, des Kényans", note Rhissa Ag Boula, un fils d'Agadez devenu conseiller du président nigérien Mahamadou Issoufou.

Le prix de la traversée du Sahara est fixé à 150.000 francs CFA (230 euros) par personne, selon des migrants interrogés par l'AFP. Des convois de pick-up, chargés de passagers jusqu'à la garde, emportent chaque lundi leurs cargaisons humaines en Libye, dans des conditions de sécurité précaires.

Si l'Organisation internationale pour les migrations (OIM) dénombre 1.800 morts ou disparus en mer début 2015 entre Afrique et Europe, "ce que nous voyons en Méditerranée pourrait n'être que le sommet de l'iceberg", craint Giuseppe Loprete, son représentant au Niger.

"Des centaines" de migrants périssent chaque année entre Sahara et Libye, par manque d'eau, de nourriture, dans des accidents ou du fait d'"abus" divers, affirme-t-il.

Fin 2013, 92 Nigériens, dont de nombreuses femmes et enfants, sont morts de soif dans le désert, abandonnés par des passeurs qui devaient les emmener en Algérie.

Le parlement nigérien, pour contrer les trafiquants, a voté début mai une loi très sévère pénalisant leurs crimes, qui les rend passibles de peines allant jusqu'à 30 ans de prison.

Mais ce texte s'annonce difficile à mettre en application. La plupart des candidats à l'exil sont en effet des ressortissants de la Cédéao, la Communauté des Etats d'Afrique de l'ouest, qui compte quinze Etats-membres, dont le Niger.

  • Libre circulation -

Or à l'instar des ressortissants de l'Union européenne, qui peuvent aller où ils veulent dans l'espace Schengen, "la libre circulation est une réalité" pour ces personnes à l'intérieur de la Cédéao, observe Rhissa Feltou, le maire d'Agadez.

Au Niger, les Africains de l'ouest "ne peuvent être considérés comme des migrants" et ont le droit d'aller "jusqu'aux frontières", rappelle-t-il.

Autre problème, la corruption rampante dans cet Etat sahélien très pauvre, où les forces de sécurité sont accusées par beaucoup de fermer les yeux sur les trafics moyennant subsides.

D'autant que leur nombre est limité, pour un territoire à protéger plus grand que la France, qui plus est entouré par la Libye, le Mali, le Tchad et l'Algérie, où les groupes jihadistes sont fortement représentés.

"A un moment donné, quand il y a eu Ebola, le gouvernement a essayé de limiter les flux de migrants pour éviter une éventuelle propagation de la maladie. Mais cela n'a pas marché. Le pays n'a pas les moyens d'arrêter cela", estime Rhissa Ag Boula.

Reste l'aide attendue de l'Europe par de nombreux acteurs nigériens. En visite mi-mai à Niamey, le ministre français de l'Intérieur Bernard Cazeneuve a promis l'ouverture de plusieurs centres d'accueil des migrants... sans aborder la question des financements.

Une mesure qui ne saurait suffire. "Il faut faire du développement dans les pays d'origine", afin d'éviter les départs en amont, plaide Giuseppe Loprete.

La solution, connue, se heurte toutefois à la mauvaise volonté de l'Europe de financer des projets en Afrique. "Pourtant, si on avait commencé il y a deux ans, il n'y aurait pas 150.000 partants potentiels attendus à Agadez", remarque, sibyllin, le patron de l'OIM au Niger.

jf/sba

© 1994-2015 Agence France-Presse

Chad: 23 killed in Chad suicide bombings blamed on Boko Haram

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Source: Agence France-Presse
Country: Chad

6/16/2015 - 01:31 GMT

Twenty-three people were killed and more than 100 wounded in twin suicide bombings targeting police in the Chadian capital Monday, with the government blaming Boko Haram militants for the bloodshed.

They were the first such attacks in the capital of the central African nation, which has been on the frontline of the regional fight against the Nigerian Islamist group.

"Boko Haram chose the wrong target. These lawless and faithless terrorists will be flushed out and neutralised wherever they are," the government said in a statement.

It said 23 people were killed and another 101 wounded in the simultaneous bombings outside the police headquarters and police academy in N'Djamena.

Four "terrorists" were also killed, it said without giving details.

Earlier, a police official had told AFP that two suicide bombers carried out the attacks, which came as police cadets were attending a training course at the academy.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility but French President Francois Hollande also accused Boko Haram militants of being behind the "barbaric attack".

"There is no doubt that Boko Haram is responsible and will be brought to justice for this new humanitarian horror," Hollande said during a visit to Algiers, where the regional threat posed by jihadists was high on the agenda.

Chad, a former French colony, is a close ally of France in its counter-terrorism Operation Barkhane in the Sahel region. The French army has set up its headquarters for the campaign in N'Djamena.

  • 'Crisis cell' -

The Chadian government said the situation was quickly brought under control Monday, but the rare assault on the capital prompted the creation of a "crisis cell" and vehicles with darkened windows were banned from N'Djamena.

Chadian security forces were also seen taking up positions on the streets.

President Idriss Deby was expected to return home during the day from an African Union summit in Johannesburg, an official said.

In his absence, government ministers held a crisis meeting to discuss the bombings.

Chad is part of a four-nation coalition also including Nigeria, Cameroon and Niger that was created to tackle the Boko Haram insurgency after the group stepped up cross-border attacks.

Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau has on several occasions threatened to attack Chad and other countries in the coalition.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, in a statement, condemned Monday's twin attacks and praised Chad "for its courageous role in the fight against Boko Haram".

He also welcomed progress on sending an African Union-backed multinational force to tackle the rebels.

The UN Security Council also issued a statement condemning the attacks "in the strongest terms", and expressed its condolences to the families of the victims.

Last week, Abuja hosted a summit where Nigeria and fellow coalition members plus Benin rubber-stamped an 8,700-strong regional force to replace the current four-nation grouping.

The long-awaited Multi-National Joint Task Force, which had originally been due to become operational in November, has its headquarters in N'Djamena, under a senior Nigerian officer.

Boko Haram has been waging a six-year campaign of violence in northeastern Nigeria that has left at least 15,000 people dead and increasingly spilled across borders.

  • 'International problem' -

Chad's involvement in the fight against Boko Haram began in January when Deby sent troops to assist neighbouring Cameroon, whose far northern region was coming under attack from the rebels.

More than 70 Chadian soldiers have died in operations against the Islamists, including attacks around Lake Chad where the borders of Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon and Niger meet.

Nigeria's new President Muhammadu Buhari, who has vowed to make crushing Boko Haram a priority, visited Chad and Niger earlier this month to build up the regional coalition against the Islamists.

"Boko Haram declared that they are in alliance with ISIS (Islamic State), so terrorism has gone international. They are in Mali, they are in Nigeria, they are in Syria, they are in Iraq, they are in Yemen," he told AFP at the summit in South Africa on Monday.

"It's an international problem now," he said.

Boko Haram, whose name roughly translates as "Western education is forbidden", aims to create an Islamic caliphate in the territories it controls and in March declared allegiance to the Islamic State group.

bur-st/mtp

© 1994-2015 Agence France-Presse

Mali: Mali: Humanitarian Bulletin, April - May 2015

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Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Country: Mali

HIGHLIGHTS

• Recent violence and attacks in the north have caused the displacement of more than 59,000 people.

• Increase of civilian victims due to improvised explosive device.

• More than 60,000 people at risk of flooding.

Mali: Mali: Bulletin Humanitaire, avril - mai 2015

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Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Country: Mali

FAITS SAILLANTS

  • Les derniers affrontements et attaques dans le nord du pays ont provoqué le dé-placement de plus de 59 000 personnes.

  • Augmentation des victimes civiles d’Engin explosifs improvisés.

  • Plus de 60 000 personnes à risque d’inondations selon le scénario des acteurs impliqués dans la préparation.

Chad: N'Djamena frappée par un double attentat-suicide, Boko Haram accusé

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Source: Agence France-Presse
Country: Chad

N'Djamena, Tchad | AFP | lundi 15/06/2015 - 15:59 GMT

La capitale tchadienne N'Djamena a été frappée lundi pour la première fois par un double attentat-suicide qui a fait 23 morts, attribué à Boko Haram par le gouvernement, en première ligne dans la guerre contre ce groupe islamiste nigérian.

Les deux attaques ont visé le commissariat central de N'Djamena et l'école de police, faisant 23 morts et 101 blessées, a annoncé le gouvernement tchadien dans un communiqué.

Quatre "terroristes" ont également été tués, selon le communiqué lu à la radio nationale du gouvernement qui assure que "la situation est sous contrôle". "Boko Haram se trompe de cible, ces terroristes sans foi ni loi seront débusqués et mis hors d'état de nuire où qu'ils soient", déclare le gouvernement.

Le double attentat n'avait toutefois pas été revendiqué lundi après-midi.

"Cette attaque ne découragera pas le Tchad de combattre ces bandits et le gouvernement poursuivra la lutte contre les criminels", assure le communiqué.

  • réunion de crise -

Plus tôt dans la journées, un responsable de la police de N'Djamena avait indiqué à l'AFP que deux kamikazes avaient attaqué simultanément le commissariat et l'école de police, où se trouvaient de nombreux stagiaires en formation.

Selon une autre source policière, le "modus operandi" des assaillants portait la marque des islamistes de Boko Haram.

Après les attaques, de nombreuses forces se sont déployées dans la ville, où les mesures de sécurité avaient été considérablement renforcées depuis plusieurs mois face à la menace d'attaques de Boko Haram.

Le gouvernement a tenu de son côté une réunion de crise sur ces attentats en l'absence du président Idriss Déby Itno, attendu dans la journée à N'Djamena de retour d'Afrique du Sud où il a participé au sommet de l'Union africaine, selon une source officielle.

La France, l'ancienne puissance coloniale, a rapidement condamné ces attaques meurtrières et assuré le Tchad de son "soutien dans la lutte contre le terrorisme", dans une déclaration du ministère des Affaires étrangères.

"La France condamne les attaques perpétrées le 15 juin contre le commissariat général et l’école de police de N’Djamena", a indiqué le porte-parole du Quai d'Orsay.

Le Tchad est un allié de poids pour Paris dans la lutte contre les groupes jihadistes en Afrique sahélienne et l'armée française a établi à N'Djamena l'état-major de son opération Barkhane de lutte contre ces groupes.

Après le Mali, le président Déby a engagé son armée en février au Nigeria contre les islamistes nigérians, dont le chef Abubakar Shekau a menacé à plusieurs reprises de s’en prendre aux intérêts tchadiens.

  • des attaques redoutées -

L'armée tchadienne participe en première ligne depuis février à une opération militaire régionale visant à chasser le groupe de pans entiers de territoire qu'il avait capturés dans le nord-est du Nigeria.

Fer de lance dans la guerre contre Boko Haram, le Tchad - comme le Cameroun voisin lui aussi engagé dans la guerre contre le groupe islamiste - redoutait depuis des mois des attentats de ce genre sur son sol. Il a toutefois déjà subi des raids de combattants de Boko Haram sur les rives du lac Tchad.

N'Djamena ne se trouve qu'à une cinquantaine de kilomètres du nord-est du Nigeria où sévissent les islamistes. Mais la ville, où est basé un important contingent militaire français, est relativement sûre et quadrillée par les forces de sécurité et les services de renseignements tchadiens.

Nigeria, Niger, Tchad, Cameroun et Bénin ont convenu le 11 juin, lors d'un sommet à Abuja, de mettre sur pied une force régionale dans le but de mieux lutter contre Boko Haram, désormais affilié au groupe jihadiste Etat islamique.

Cette MNJTF (selon son acronyme anglais), forte de 8.700 hommes et sous commandement nigérian, aura son quartier général à N'Djamena.

Le parlement tchadien a aussi approuvé le 20 mai une prolongation de l'intervention militaire contre Boko Haram.

Selon des sources militaires tchadiennes, environ 5.000 soldats tchadiens sont engagés dans la lutte contre Boko Haram. En avril, N'Djamena avait déploré la mort de 71 soldats dans le cadre de cette opération.

bur-mc/de

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