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Chad: Lake Chad Basin Displacement Affects Nearly Three Million People in Four Countries: IOM

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Source: International Organization for Migration
Country: Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria

Senegal - Displacement due to the Boko Haram insurgency has now reached almost three million in four countries - Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon and Chad – according to IOM.

According to the Nigerian government-led Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM), 2,241,484 internally displaced persons (IDPs) are now living in northeast Nigeria across 13 states, in camps and host communities.

IOM has directly assisted, as of April 2016, 229,082 affected people through the provision of emergency shelter and non-food relief items (NFIs), biometric registration, camp coordination and camp management (CCCM) capacity building, psychosocial assistance and livelihood support.

In Niger, displacement figures compiled by the government and UNHCR show a total of 319,036 displaced people, 48 percent of them internally displaced 31 percent of them refugees from neighbouring countries and 21 percent of them returnees.

Some 137,121 people in Niger have received direct assistance from IOM through shelter, NFIs, cash for work projects, community cohesion programs and income generating activities targeting youth at risk to minimize the risk of recruitment by armed groups.

Cameroon is currently hosting 270,264 displaced people, according to IOM and UNHCR. Some 63 percent are internally displaced, 24 percent are refugees and 13 percent are returnees. IOM has directly assisted 29,599 people through providing emergency shelter, NFIs and agricultural support to combat high levels of food insecurity in the country.

In Chad, IOM, WFP and UNHCR has recorded a total of 109,633 displaced people – 74 percent of them internally displaced, 15 percent refugees and 1 percent third country nationals. The number includes WFP estimates of unregistered people and rapid multi-sectoral assessments conducted by the Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) Cluster in host communities.

IOM has been directly supporting 71,368 people in Chad through various interventions, including emergency shelter, NFIs, voluntary relocation support and psychosocial support.

IOM has nine offices and sub-offices in the Lake Chad region: Nigeria (Abuja, Maiduguri, Yola and Bauchi), Niger (Diffa and Zinder), Cameroon (Maroua), and Chad (Ndjamena, and Baga Sola), with a total of 295 staff members.

IOM is co-lead of the emergency shelter, NFI and CCCM sectors or cluster/working groups in Nigeria, Niger, and Chad and implements DTM, in coordination with national governments in Nigeria, Cameroon and Chad.

IOM’s work to provide assistance to 460,000 people in the region to date has been supported by USAID/OFDA/PRM, ECHO, CERF, the European Union and the governments of Italy, France and Japan.

“But we are currently appealing for USD 25 million for urgent humanitarian assistance in the areas of shelter, NFIs, camp coordination and camp management, and psychosocial support,” said IOM Regional Director for West and Central Africa Richard Danziger.

For further information please contact Richard Danziger at the IOM Regional Office for West and Central Africa in Dakar. Tel: +221. 33 869 6200, Email: rdanziger@iom.int


Mali: Mali Crisis ECHO Factsheet April 2016

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Source: European Commission Humanitarian Aid Office
Country: Mali

Facts & Figures

  • 49 883 Malians internally displaced (Source: DTM/IOM Jan 2016)
  • 143 000 Malians have sought refuge in Niger, Mauritania and Burkina Faso (Source: ECHO, Jan 2016)
  • Mali has the 8th highest infant mortality rate in the world.
  • In 2016, 180 000 children under five with Severe Acute Malnutrition expected (Source: UN, Dec 2015)
  • EU humanitarian funding to Mali: €42.8 million in 2016
  • Since the beginning of the conflict in 2012: around €46 million per year

Key messages

  • The populations of northern Mali are exhausted by two consecutive food crisis and four years of conflict between the army, separatists groups and radical Islamist militias. Despite the signature of a peace agreement in June 2015, the deal has not yet provided peace dividends, the security situation remains volatile and humanitarian needs are far from having decreased.

  • Insecurity targeting national and international defence forces prevents state authority and basic services from being restored in Northern Mali. As a result, 1.5 million people still depend on international humanitarian assistance.

  • Humanitarian space is fragile and the situation volatile. To preserve access to people in need, it is crucial that the lines between humanitarian assistance and the political stabilization agenda are not blurred.

  • Conditions are not favourable for a safe and durable return of refugees and internally displaced people to large parts of the north. Access to basic social services such as health care, nutrition, water and education remain a major concern.

  • Acute malnutrition levels exceed emergency thresholds in certain areas of the country, while food insecurity looms for the poorest and most vulnerable families, especially in the north. According to the UN, it is estimated that 1.8 million people were food insecure at the end of 2015, and over 300 000 people will need emergency food assistance during 2016’s lean season.

Niger: Niger ECHO Factsheet April 2016

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Source: European Commission Humanitarian Aid Office
Country: Mali, Niger

Facts & Figures

  • Niger is the lowest ranking country in the UN’s Human Development Index
  • Almost 25% of the population is food insecure
  • 1.9 million acutely malnourished children
  • 15% of children under age 5 suffer from Global Acute Malnutrition and every second child suffers from chronic malnutrition
  • 154 000 Malian and Nigerian refugees and 153 000 IDPs (UNOCHA)

Key messages

  • Humanitarian needs in Niger continue to be immense as a result of persisting food insecurity, high global malnutrition of children under age five and the displacement of people fleeing the conflict in neighbouring Mali* and Nigeria*. Successive food crises, extreme poverty, displacement and rapid population growth continue to erode people’s resilience. Even in good agricultural years, between 4 and 5 million Nigeriens experience food shortages.

  • The situation has further deteriorated in 2015, with the spill-over of the conflict in Nigeria leading to increasing numbers of displaced and refugee populations in the Diffa region. Furthermore, the presence of mines and the disruption of markets have contributed to the deterioration of the situation. The European Commission’s humanitarian funding in 2016 has an initial allocation of €36 million.

  • Access to the population in need in Diffa, especially those living out of camps in the vicinity of Lake Chad, remains a challenge due to security constraints and the limitations entailed by the declaration of state of emergency. Despite the presence of more than 30 humanitarian agencies, capacity to implement activities on the ground is limited.

  • The European Commission is among the largest donors providing life-saving and emergency aid. In 2015, it supported the treatment of over 150 000 children under five years old suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition.

Mali: Mali : l'armée et des milices tuent injustement des Peuls pris pour des jihadistes (association)

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Source: Agence France-Presse
Country: Mali

Bamako, Mali | AFP | dimanche 24/04/2016 - 20:18 GMT

L'armée et des milices au Mali tuent et arrêtent "injustement" des civils peuls pris pour des jihadistes, a dénoncé dimanche une association malienne regroupant des membres de cette ethnie.

"Des milices formées par des jeunes de villages du Centre du Mali et l'armée malienne font l'amalgame et arrêtent ou tuent des Peuls pris pour des jihadistes. Ces dernières semaines, plus de quinze civils peuls ont été tués comme ça", a déclaré dimanche à la presse Oumar Aldjana, un responsable de l'association "Kawral poulakou" (l'union des Peuls, en langue pulaar), qui revendique plusieurs milliers de membres.

Une dizaine de civils peuls, "injustement" accusés d'être des jihadistes, ont également été arrêtés ces dernières semaines dans le Centre du Mali, a dit M. Aldjana lors d'une conférence de presse.

"On prend parfois tous les Peuls pour des jihadistes, mais c'est faux. Il ne faut pas faire d'amalgame. Nous sommes fiers d'être des Maliens mais nous sommes aussi fiers d'être Peuls".

"Sur les cas de tueries de civils peuls, je n'ai aucun élément pour répondre mais j'insiste : notre armée est respectueuse des droits de l'homme. Donc, je ne confirme pas ces tueries", a répondu à l'AFP une source militaire, demandant à ne pas être citée nommément.

L'association "Kawral poulakou" affirme par ailleurs soutenir l'accord d'Alger, pour le retour de la paix dans le nord du Mali, signé en mai-juin 2015 entre le camp gouvernemental et l'ex-rébellion à dominante touareg.

Elle s'est engagée à travailler au retour "au sein de la République" du Mali de certains jeunes peuls qui ont intégré les rangs des islamistes du "Front de libération du Macina" (FLM).

Le FLM, un groupe basé dans le centre du Mali, apparu début 2015, est dirigé par le prédicateur radical malien Amadou Koufa, un Peul.

Le FLM est allié au groupe jihadiste malien du nord du pays Ansar Dine. Ces deux groupes revendiquent régulièrement des attaques dans le Nord et le Centre.

Le nord du Mali était tombé en mars-avril 2012 sous la coupe de groupes jihadistes liés à Al-Qaïda, après la déroute de l'armée face à la rébellion à dominante touareg, d'abord alliée à ces groupes qui l'ont ensuite évincée.

Les jihadistes ont été en grande partie chassés par une intervention militaire internationale, lancée en janvier 2013 à l'initiative de la France, qui se poursuit actuellement. Mais des zones entières échappent encore au contrôle des forces maliennes et étrangères.

sd/mrb/mct

© 1994-2016 Agence France-Presse

Nigeria: 1,934,765 IDPs live in formal camps, host communities and satellite camps

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Source: Government of Nigeria
Country: Nigeria

A total of 1, 934, 765 displaced persons are currently living in formal camps, host communities and satellite camps in liberated communities as a result of insurgency in North Eastern States of Borno, Yobe, Taraba, Gombe, Bauchi and Adamawa states.

This was disclosed by Yola Camp Coordinator , Saad Bello, who, on behalf of the Director General of NEMA, Muhammad Sani Sidi, took the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Samanthan Power, round the facilities at Malkohi IDP Camp in Yola, Adamawa State at the weekend.

He said there were 32 formal camps in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States with a total of 189,783 IDPs. Borno has 19 camps with 150,858 IDPs; Yobe has 9 camps with 31,988 IDPs and Adamawa 4 camps with 6,937 IDPs.

The Camp Coordinator added that there were 14 satellite camps in liberated communities, mainly in Borno State with 216, 184 IDPs. The camps with the highest population are Ngala with 70,505; Dikwa 53, 636; Bama 27,000 and Damboa/Sabon Gari 25,311.

Saad said host communities in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states have a total of 1,391,613 IDPs. Borno state has the highest with 1,158,362; Adamawa 125,689 and Yobe 107,562.

He said “Federal Government through the coordinating agency, NEMA and relevant line Ministries, Departments and Agencies have been trying to meet the needs of the IDPs in the provision of food, nutrition, non-food items (NFIs), temporary shelter, medicament, psycho-social therapy, security and protection.

He said as the government continued in the efforts to meet the needs of the IDPs, more supports were critically required for the IDPs across the three identified kinds of camps before they return back to their communities.

The critical areas where further support is needed are food, non-food items (including basic household needs), shelter, WASH, education, nutrition, protection, health and sexual reproductive health, and psycho-social helps.

The U.S. Ambassador to UN , Samanthan Power, who led a high level delegation from US to the Malkohi IDPs camp and host communities told them that they were there to determine what more could be done to defeat Boko haram so that they can return back to their communities.

“I know how difficult these last years have been for you and on behalf of President Barack Obama, I express my sympathy and my condolences for all you have lost and our resolve to try to make things better together”, she said.

Nigeria: Nigeria: Protection Actors Snapshot: Agencies with registered projects in OCHA Online Project Systems (OPS) - Completed and Ongoing Activities (Jan - Mar 2016)

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Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Protection Cluster
Country: Nigeria

Mali: Les localités bénéficiant ou pas de l’intervention humanitaire dans le Cercle de Ménaka, Région de Gao

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

Mali: Mali - Les localités bénéficiant ou pas de l’intervention humanitaire dans le Cercle de Ménaka, Région de Gao, avril 2016

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


Mali: Mali: Emergency Dashboard, March 2016

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Source: World Food Programme
Country: Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Niger

Nigeria: Lake Chad Basin Crisis: Emergency Dashboard, March 2016

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Source: World Food Programme
Country: Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria

Algeria: FAO’s Commission ensures sustainability of Desert Locust preventive control in West and Northwest Africa

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Source: Food and Agriculture Organization
Country: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Chad, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Senegal, Tunisia

The FAO COMMISSION for controlling the Desert Locust in the Western Region (CLCPRO) strengthens national capacities of locustaffected countries in West and Northwest Africa in planning, training, research and effective and timely response to Desert Locust invasions in order to prevent upsurges and plagues.

The Commission contributes significantly to food and livelihoods security in northern Africa through its regional approach in preventing serious damage that locusts can inflict on pastures and agricultural production in the concerned member countries.

The Commission fosters sustainable Desert Locust management by implementing harmonized tools and processes for locust monitoring and control that is fully supported by each member country’s national budget

Nigeria: Nigeria: Protection Impact Snapshot - Completed and Ongoing Activities (Jan - Mar 2016)

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Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Protection Cluster
Country: Nigeria

Mali: Synthèse sur la situation des marchés au Mali, Mars 2016

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Source: World Food Programme
Country: Mali

Points Saillants

État d’approvisionnement des marchés :

  • L’état d’approvisionnement des marchés est jugé satisfaisant dans l’ensemble à travers le pays.

Tendance des prix des céréales et du bétail :

  • Tendance des prix au producteur en légère hausse de +3% par rapport à février 2016, à la baisse par rapport à la moyenne de 5 dernières années sauf pour le riz local.

  • Tendance des prix à la consommation des céréales en légère hausse de +1% par rapport à février 2016 notamment pour le mil, le sorgho et le riz local, stable pour le maïs et le riz importé. Tendance à la baisse par rapport à la moyenne des 5 dernières années.

  • Prix en hausse pour les ovins (+8%) et les caprins (+4%) par rapport à la même que l’année passée.

Termes de l’échange (ToT) petits ruminants/céréales :

  • De façon globale, les ToT sont en amélioration à Gao (+21%), Mopti (+7%) et à Tombouctou (+7%) en mars 2016 par rapport à la même période l’année passée.

Contraintes liées au fonctionnement des marchés :

  • La situation sécuritaire dans les régions du nord du Mali reste volatile.

Cameroon: Cameroun : Rapport intersectoriel sur la situation dans l’Extrême Nord (1 — 31 mars 2016)

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Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees
Country: Cameroon, Central African Republic, Nigeria

DONNEES CLEES

169,970 Personnes Déplacées Internes.
72,727* Réfugiés vérifiés et préenregistrés par le HCR depuis Mai 2013.
56,875 Réfugiés vivant au camp de Minawao.
4,404 Nouveaux arrivés enregistrés par le HCR depuis Janvier 2016.

*Ce chiffre comprend 15 852 réfugiés identifiés hors camp à l’issue de l’exercice de profilage.

FINANCEMENT

USD 56, 361,252 Requis par les agences et les partenaires pour couvrir l’ensemble des besoins dans le cadre du « 2015 Refugee Response Plan »

PRIORITES

  • Projet d’adduction d’eau de Mokolo.
  • Monitoring de la frontière.
  • Vérification et enregistrement des arrivées spontanées.
  • Construction d’abris familiaux au camp de Minawao.
  • Réponse aux besoins des Personnes Déplacées Internes et des communautés hôtes.

DEVELOPPEMENTS MAJEURS

  • La situation sécuritaire dans la région de l’Extrême-Nord demeure toujours préoccupante du fait des nombreuses incursions et attaques Kamikazes et pose des mines par des combattants de Boko Haram dans les localités frontalières camerounaises. L’armée nigériane a lancé une offensive le 23 mars 2016 à Kala Balgué (Nigeria), obligeant les combattants de Boko Haram à se regrouper le long des villages frontaliers. En vue d’empêcher toute infiltration en terre camerounaise, l’armée a renforcé ses positions le long des localités frontalières. Néanmoins, quelques incidents ont été enregistrés en territoire camerounais au cours de la période en revue faisant 10 morts.

  • Le rythme des arrivées spontanées a considérablement diminué au cours du mois de Mars (302 personnes) comparé aux mois de Janvier (2,425 personnes) et Février (1,404 personnes).

Chad: Revue de Presse Humanitaire au Tchad, du 12 au 25 avril 2016

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

Avant-propos

Les articles sélectionnés dans cette revue de presse ont pour but d’informer sur la situation humanitaire au Tchad ou sur le contexte général. Cette sélection d'articles ne reflète pas nécessairement la position d’OCHA-Tchad. Merci de tenir compte de cette réserve.

LES TITRES

  • Les déplacés du lac Tchad: Choisir entre Boko Haram et la faim (Le Vif, 19/04/16)
  • Tchad: des réfugiés nigérians tentent de surmonter leurs traumatismes (L’Express, 20/04/16)
  • Situation nutritionnelle préoccupante en Afrique de l’Ouest et au Sahel (La Nouvelle Tribune, 17/04/16)
  • Lake Chad Basin Displacement Affects Nearly Three Million People in Four Countries: IOM (OIM, 22/04/16)
  • De probables déficits de pluie cette année (Le Progrès, 18/04/16)

Mauritania: Mauritanie : Camp de Mbera: Qui fait quoi ? (Avril 2016)

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Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees
Country: Mali, Mauritania

World: Global analysis of food and nutrition security situation in food crisis hotspots

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Source: World Food Programme, Food and Agriculture Organization, European Commission - Joint Research Centre
Country: Central African Republic, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, El Salvador, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Honduras, Liberia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, World, Yemen

Executive summary

This report provides a global overview of the food insecurity situation in global food crisis hotspots due to different crises and natural disasters, to support the programming of the Pro-resilience Action (PRO-ACT) 2016 funding mechanism, a component of the Global Public Goods and Challenges (GPGC) thematic programme of the European Union. The needs assessment consists of estimating the number of food-insecure people in countries that have been affected by a food crisis in 2015 based mainly on publicly released reports. The table below summarises the available data as in January 2016 in 70 countries analysed for this report. In a few cases (Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria and Cameroon), the numbers only relate to particular areas within the country, and are therefore not representative of the national level. Great efforts have been made to harmonise the approaches across countries. However, as the input from the data sources may differ significantly across countries, the final figures may not correctly represent the current situation in the field.

1 Background

In 2012, the EU made a policy commitment to focus interventions on building the resilience of vulnerable communities by better targeting the root causes of food insecurity both in the geographical and thematic instruments of the new Multi-annual Financial Framework. This includes component 3 “Supporting the poor and food insecure to react to crises and strengthen resilience” of the Food Security and Sustainable Agriculture (FSSA) thematic instrument under the Global Public Goods and Challenges Programme (GPGC). This FSSA resilience-building thematic mechanism aims to ensure the complementarity of instruments for high-impact aid. It has an indicative budget of €525 million over the 2014-2020 period. The specific actions and the list of countries that would receive support are decided every year based on the following criteria: i) evidenced-based needs assessment (number of food-insecure people); ii) nature of the food and nutrition crisis; iii) capacity and complementarity of instruments; iv) other factors of vulnerability, including political considerations.

This report addresses the two first criteria (needs assessment and nature of the crises) in the framework of the 2016 financial programming of the Pro-resilience Action (PRO-ACT). The principle is to evaluate the number of people who were in a food insecurity situation in the previous year (2015 for this exercise), i.e. in Phase 2 and above of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), and to identify as far as possible the main causes of food insecurity in selected countries. The PROACT interventions complement the humanitarian interventions of the previous year to help the community rebuild their livelihoods and improve their resilience to future shocks.

The needs assessment is conducted in two phases: (i) identification of the main areas of concern (countries and regions) based on a rapid review of known crises; and (ii) detailed analysis of each selected country. The needs assessment is global and aims to include all countries that have been affected by a food crisis in 2015. The origin of the food crisis may be a particular shock or disaster such as an earthquake, cyclone, drought, etc. and/or protracted crises, namely prolonged armed conflicts. Countries that are chronically vulnerable to food crises and have large populations of foodinsecure people are included. A total of 70 countries were identified, estimating the number of foodinsecure populations classified (wherever possible) according to two categories of IPC phases. Twenty countries were then further analysed, and a detailed narrative on their situations is provided in this report. They are countries with discrepancies in their assessments from different sources and countries with complex situations that combine several risk factors, for instance countries with a very low socioeconomic development that are also subject to violent conflicts. The following countries were eventually selected for the detailed analysis: Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan and South Sudan in the Horn of Africa; Gambia, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone in West Africa; the Central African Republic (CAR); Yemen and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) in Asia; Haiti and the countries of the Central American Dry Corridor (Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua); and Papua New Guinea. The types of crises affecting each of those countries are described in the respective sections. In addition, a dedicated section summarises the impacts of the 2015 El Niño episode on food security in countries most affected and of interest to EU Food Security programmes. The number of countries that were analysed increased from circa 40 for the previous analysis in January 2015 to 70 in this edition of the report (January 2016), mainly because of the impact of El Niño.

Nigeria: Bringing Back Chibok Girls Only Start of Nigeria’s Challenge

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Source: International Peace Institute
Country: Nigeria

April 25, 2016 by Hilary Matfess

More than two million people have fled their homes throughout northeast Nigeria since 2009, largely as a result of Boko Haram raids on their communities. The majority of the able-bodied displaced population are women and girls. Female-headed households have also become more common, as the males are being killed by violence. In light of renewed advocacy for the more than 270 girls abducted from the town of Chibok two years ago, it must be recognized that the task at hand is much larger than rescuing this one group. Boko Haram is holding many more women and girls captive, and those who escape or are rescued lack adequate humanitarian assistance, and are often subjected to sexual abuse and face significant obstacles to re-entering society.

Boko Haram has engaged in mass abductions of women and girls for many years. These captives are subject to systemic rape within the confines of forced marriages, and are often deployed as suicide bombers. Despite the scope and scale of the Boko Haram crisis, which has claimed more than 30,000 lives and destabilized communities in Chad, Cameroon, and Niger (in addition to Nigeria), the women and girls I spoke with on a recent research trip told me the Nigerian government and international community have provided little support to those who have managed to flee the group’s violence.

“We do not feel safe here,” one woman told me. This was not because of the threat from Boko Haram, but because “there is no food and bad housing.” Many others expressed a desire to return home when their communities were safe, but were resigned to remaining in internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps in the city of Maiduguri as the military attempts to put down the insurgency.

The lack of a long-term plan to care for the needs of these displaced people—especially one that attends to the needs of women and girls—looms as a threat to the northeast region’s ability to recover from the crisis. It also effectively punishes a local population that has demonstrated remarkable resilience in the face of sub-Saharan Africa’s most lethal insurgency and the greatest security threat to Nigeria since it returned to democracy in 1999.

The crisis has placed a clear strain on the limited resources of the Nigerian government and international humanitarian system. Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, houses a disproportionate number of the displaced. Nearly all the schools in the city have been converted into temporary shelters, which has compounded the challenges caused by the Western education-opposing Boko Haram. The swelling ranks of beggars on Maiduguri’s streets underlines the need for employment-generating programs, improved health services, education, and general humanitarian support.

The numbers of the Chibok girls merely hint at the scale of Boko Haram’s abductions. Amnesty International estimates that more than 2,000 women have been taken in recent years. Nearly all of those I spoke to in Maiduguri described being abducted in sweeping round-ups as the extremists overran towns. Women taken as wives are typically in their early teens. One of these individuals, Amina, said the group prefer young girls because they are naïve and easier to control. The defining characteristic of these marriages is sustained sexual abuse and rape.

One common requirement of a Boko Haram wife is that she attend “Koranic education.” Miriam, who was held by Boko Haram for five months before escaping to Madina, was subjected to such indoctrination. She recalls, “they preached to us that our [previous] husbands are infidels. They said ‘your men are not good at preaching…you should come be with us.’ They preach this nonsense every day, three times a day. All they want to do is have the women believe in what they say so that we will marry them.”

Within some Boko Haram cells, the marriage ceremony is formalized to the point that the chosen wife must complete a certain level of Koranic education, public ceremonies are conducted, and dowries of about 1,500 naira are even given to the bride, though Miriam was quick to note that “there is never anything consensual about it.”

Despite consistent calls for the Nigerian government to “Bring Back Our Girls,” in line with the popular campaign around the Chibok abductees, and the Nigerian military’s claims to have freed thousands of people from Boko Haram in recent months, the women I spoke with had escaped from the brutality and psychological abuse all on their own. They typically left at night when their captors left camp to attack villages. Others, such as 20-year-old Fatiah, were bolder; she told me that she tried to kill her Boko Haram husband. “He began to trust me,” she recalled. “He gave me some batteries. I squeezed them to put some of their juice in his drink so that he would die and I could escape, but he would not take the drink.” Fatiah eventually exploited a rivalry between her husband and another member of Boko Haram to flee. Not all those who attempted to escape were as successful; those caught were killed immediately and an untold number may have died from the harsh conditions en route to resettlement areas.

For those who have made it out, the future remains uncertain. IDPs living in camps enjoy only a limited supply of food, health services, and, in some instances, counseling provided by the government and its international partners. An aid worker who focuses on psychological care told me that women face stigma and rejection by their host communities and many of their families will not take them back if they attempt to return. And, though most official camps boast some educational resources that should help in making the transition to a new life, their quality is generally poor.

On condition of anonymity, camp employees also reported that the Nigerian government’s claims to be providing three meals a day to IDPs are inaccurate. The displaced often don’t receive any cooked meals and are not provided with firewood, pots, salt, or any means of earning money to purchase these things, which would help to improve their rations of uncooked grains. Meanwhile, the threat of sexual violence from Nigerian military and anti-Boko Haram vigilantes remains ever-present. “Women are leaving the camps to live in host communities or are risking their lives, returning to places even the police won’t go” to escape the attacks, according to an official from Nigeria’s National Emergency Management Agency.

Those living outside of the formal camps lack even the meager assistance offered within. Though the Borno State and federal government’s humanitarian agencies are aware of the large number of informal settlements throughout the region—in Maiduguri only about 18% of the IDP population live in formal camps—there has been nearly no attempt to provide these people with assistance. Several women living in these informal settlements spoke of the scarcity of food and the need to beg.

The Nigerian government’s recent announcements of programs for the rehabilitation of defected fighters— including providing emotional support, counseling, and deradicalization—as well as reintegration of the vigilantes targeting the group, is a small step in the right direction for tackling Boko Haram. However, programs to address the future of the victims of the insurgency, particularly women and girls, are also clearly needed to help create a more stable future. The campaign to bring back the Chibok girls is well-intentioned, but it barely scratches the surface in terms of addressing the complex humanitarian, social, economic, psychological, and other needs of the displaced.

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Hilary Matfess is a researcher at the Center for Complex Operations at the National Defense University, Washington, DC.

Originally published in the Global Observatory.

World: Une contribution de l'Union Européenne permet au PAM de prévenir la malnutrition pour les plus vulnérables durant la période de soudure.

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Source: World Food Programme
Country: Chad, World

N’DJAMENA – Le Programme alimentaire mondial des Nations Unies (PAM) se réjouit de la généreuse contribution de la Commission européenne, a travers la Direction Générale de l’Aide Humanitaire et Protection Civile (ECHO), d’un montant de trois millions d’Euros. Cette contribution va permettre à l’agence onusienne de venir en aide à 53 000 enfants et 12 000 femmes enceintes et allaitantes dans la Bande sahélienne - une région où la situation nutritionnelle est préoccupante - lors de la saison de soudure (Juin-Septembre 2016).

Au niveau national, le taux de malnutrition aiguë global est, selon la dernière enquête nutritionnelle conduite en novembre 2015, de 13%. Dans le Sahel, il atteint 18 à 20 pour cent, dépassant le seuil critique de 15 pour cent définit par l’Organisation mondiale de la santé (l’OMS).

«Cette importante contribution de l’un de nos principaux donateurs représentera une partie essentielle de notre réponse à la crise qui s’annonce dans le Sahel. Elle va permettre au PAM de fournir des produits à haute valeur nutritionnelle aux enfants âgés de moins de 2 ans, une période essentielle pour leur croissance. L’assistance aux femmes enceintes et allaitantes est également cruciale pour la prévention de la malnutrition,» a déclaré Mary-Ellen MCGroarty, directrice du PAM au Tchad.

L’assistance du PAM lors de la saison de soudure combinera une assistance alimentaire aux ménages les plus vulnérables avec un soutien nutritionnel spécialisé. La malnutrition présente des risques graves pour la santé des enfants, et peut même causer la mort. Elle sappe les facultés intellectuelles et la productivité et perpétue la pauvreté dans chaque famille et société qu'elle touche.

« Le nombre des personnes en besoin d’assistance alimentaire durant la soudure 2016 a augmenté d’environ 60% par rapport à l’an passé. Pour le service humanitaire de l’Union européenne, il est prioritaire de sauver et autonomiser les populations vulnérables à l’insecurité alimentaire. Plus de 40% de nos programmes au Tchad sont consacrés à la sécurité alimentaire, » a affirmé Olivier Brouant, chef du bureau ECHO au Tchad.

La période de soudure s’annonce d’autant plus éprouvante cette année avec les effets cumulés d’une saison des pluies erratique et ceux, potentiels, du phénomène El Niño. Il est estimé qu’un million de personnes feront face a une situation de crise au Tchad (Cadre Harmonisé, Mars 2016).

La contribution de la Commission européenne va également permettre d’apporter un soutien dans la gestion et le traitement des données liées à la sécurité alimentaire et de renforcer le système d’alerte précoce. Des programmes de formation et de transferts de technologie vont être mis en place avec le gouvernement et les ONG partenaires.

Le PAM est la plus grande agence humanitaire chargée de la lutte contre la faim dans le monde, fournissant une aide alimentaire dans les situations d'urgence et travaillant aux côtés des communautés locales pour améliorer la nutrition et renforcer la résilience. Chaque année, le PAM aide quelque 80 millions de personnes dans environ 80 pays.

Suivez-nous sur Twitter: @WFP_WAfrica ; @WFP_FR

Pour plus d’informations, veuillez contacter

Nathalie Magnien, WFP/Tchad, Mob. +235 66 99 30 40

Nigeria: GIEWS Country Brief: Nigeria 25-April-2016

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Source: Food and Agriculture Organization
Country: Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria

FOOD SECURITY SNAPSHOT

  • Cropping season in 2016 started in South, while seasonably dry conditions still prevail in northern states

  • Favourable rains in major producing regions led to increased crop production at national level in 2015

  • Coarse grain prices increased steeply in January and February 2016

  • Food security situation remains critical in northern parts, especially in Borno and Yobe, due to civil conflict

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