Highlights

• The total number of people displaced is estimated to be more than 130,000, of whom almost 6,951 are refugees and 65,705 people are officially registered in the Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM): 8,581 returnees, 56,725 IDPs and 399 third-country nationals. An additional 58,300 people are estimated to be living in sites.

• In May, a joint WHO and UNICEF mission followed by an OCHA, DFID,
  BPRM and UNICEF visited the Central African returnee sites hosting over 60,000 people to assess the humanitarian situation and find solutions for the interruption of provision of basic health services due to lack of funding.

• Nearly 400,000 children aged 9 months to 14 years were vaccinated in an emergency measles campaign in seven health districts affected by an outbreak in the regions of Lake, Salamat, Mandoul and Guera. The campaign also included Vitamin A supplementation and deworming.

• As of the end of May, UNICEF Chad had received 17% of the total funding required for its emergency activities in 2016.

SITUATION IN NUMBERS

2,200,000 Children affected (UNICEF HAC 2016)

176,900 Children under 5 with Severe Acute Malnutrition in 2016 (Nutrition Cluster 2016)

130,984 People displaced (IDPs, returnees, TCN, refugees) in the Lake Region (DTM and UNHCR, May 2016)

UNICEF Humanitarian funding needs in 2016 US$ 62.4 million

Funds available in 2016 US$ 13.5 million

Situation Overview & Humanitarian Needs

Impact of violence in the Lake region

While the overall security situation remains stable, Boko Haram continues to target the military in the Lake region. On 12 May a military vehicle drove on an IED near Ngouboua, on the border with Nigeria, causing one death and five injured.

The total number of people displaced in the Lake region as a result of the ongoing crisis is estimated to be more than 130,984, of whom almost 6,951 are refugees and 65,705 people are officially registered in the Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM): 8,581 returnees, 56,725 IDPs and 399 third-country nationals. An additional 58,300 people are estimated to be living in sites where a formal registration exercise has not yet taken place but where IOM has done rapid assessments or partners have carried out distributions.

From 24 to 26 May an inter-cluster mission visited 5 new sites and three villages of displacement (Abourom, Bia, Loudjia, Nguilbia, Salia, Yarame, Yare and Zigueye) in the Lake region. The mission found IDPs and returnees, mostly arrived following military operations launched between July and September 2015, with more recent arrivals fleeing attacks as late as March 2016. These sites have not yet benefitted from humanitarian assistance.

Measles outbreak

An emergency response to the ongoing measles outbreak has taken place in the health districts of Bol, Bagasola, Liwa and Kouloudia (Lake), Bedjondo (Mandoul), Mongo (Guera) and Haraze (Salamat). According to Chad’s Ministry of Health epidemiological surveillance committee, as of 25 May, 577 measles cumulative cases (since January) including 5 deaths, given a fatality rate of 0.86% were recorded. Suspected measles cases have so far been reported in 64 health districts across 20 Regions of Chad (out of 23 Regions in the country).

Refugees, returnees from CAR and stateless persons in the South

61,203 returnees from CAR continue to live in returnee sites in the South and the site of Gaoui, in the outskirts of N’Djamena. The lack of funding continues to cause great concern among humanitarian actors. Emergency shelter in the sites is largely made up of tarpaulin that has withstood the sun and wind for two years, but will not likely be durable enough to withstand the current rainy season. 295 shelters were reported damaged or destroyed in the site of Gaoui during a storm on the evening of 12 May. A visit to the site on 23 May by UNICEF, the WASH cluster, the CCCM cluster and the Director of welfare at the Ministry of Social Affairs confirmed this and also noted only 7 out of 14 water pumps remained functional, as well as only about 60 out of the original 130 latrines. The showers were no longer functional, and open defecation and hygiene around water points have raised critical concerns over the need to disinfect the site’s drinking water.

Food insecurity and malnutrition

A screening conducted in Mongo by authorities and partners including UNICEF,showed a proportion of Global Acute Malnutrition of 22.6%. Of the 15,895 children under five years old screened for malnutrition, 6.1% were found to have Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM),. An emergency response has been immediately mobilized, with ECHO providing additional funds to support the delivery of ready-to-eat therapeutic foods and drugs required. The Nutrition Cluster is mobilizing partners to conduct further mass screening activities in the East of the country to determine the extent of the situation.

A nutritional survey with SMART methods is under preparation for July 2016, which is towards the peak of the lean season. The SMART survey done in November 2015 showed worrying results, considering that it was conducted in the post-harvest period and showed a nutritional situation comparable to the 2014 lean season. The new survey will provide comparable information that will enable to clearly establish the nutritional situation in Chad.

Results from the food security survey conducted by the Chadian government with WFP and other partners in April showed that 400,000 people are severely food insecure. Food insecurity has increased by ten percentage points in the regions of of Kanem, Batha, Assoungha and Wadi Fira, compared to the November survey. Overall, two million people were found to be food insecure in the eight regions of the Sahel Belt. In the department of Mamdi (Lake Region), IDPs and returnee households present a food insecurity rate of 15% against 8% in the host population. The population movements have greatly contributed to the deterioration of food insecurity in this department.

21 June 2016 – More than 240,000 people, or a third of the population, in Niger’s Diffa region have been uprooted from their homes since 3 June attacks by Boko Haram insurgents, the single largest displacement since 2013, a senior United Nations official said today.

According to Viviane Van Steirteghem, representative of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Niger, many have been settling along Route Nationale 01, the main road crossing the region.

After 3 June, the sites along that road had received an additional 60,000 to 70,000 people, resulting in increased pressure on water resources, she said. The newcomers, settling in three of the main sites, had arrived with their families and with their cattle. Those sites had initially been quite homogeneous in terms of linguistic groups and occupations of the inhabitants, but it was no longer the case. There are additional tensions now.

Ms. Van Steirteghem, who visited Diffa twice in the past 14 days, said UNICEF’s assistance focused on the coordination of the water response, initially water trucking, and now drilling, as people were expected to settle on the sites for quite some time.

In Bosso, women and children make up the majority at the displaced persons’ sites. There had been cases of measles reported, despite a massive vaccination campaign in December 2015. Since they lived in temporary housing, they were extremely vulnerable when the rainy season arrived, she said.

An increase in diarrheal diseases and respiratory tract diseases was feared, as well as cases of importation of cholera, for which preparedness was difficult to operationalize in the current conditions, she warned. Malaria was also a corollary of the rainy season, and with the Ministry of Health and the support of a number of non-governmental organization partners, UNICEF was planning a massive distribution of mosquito nets to help families protect themselves.

Women and children on the sites are highly vulnerable. Some children had come unaccompanied. Many of them had been traumatized. Protection services were being offered to allow children to express what they felt and relieve some of their stress. Women going to get water at night were very vulnerable to gender-based violence and UNICEF was preparing messaging to help them strategize and go in groups to avoid being targeted.

The school year had just finished and all the children would be able to take their examinations in the neighbouring town. UNICEF was preparing for the next school year, taking into account the increase in the number of children.

Ms. Van Steirteghem said that the appeal for the Diffa crisis was 25 per cent funded out of the required $74 million.

Eléments de contexte :

La situation humanitaire à Diffa est complexe, elle est caractérisée par la combinaison de défis tant structurels que conjoncturels. Si au niveau mondial, le Niger fait partie des pays qui ont enregistré les indicateurs de développement humain les plus faibles tout en étant parmi les pays ayant enregistré les plus grands progrès dans l’IDH (Rapport IDH 2014), au niveau national, la région de Diffa est l’une des plus affectées par les mouvements de populations, dans un contexte marqué par l’insécurité alimentaire, la malnutrition et l’insuffisance des services sociaux de base.

En effet, la crise sécuritaire qui sévit dans le nord-est du Nigéria a entraîné un afflux massif de populations dans la région de Diffa où d’importants mouvements de populations restent visibles. Depuis février 2015, la région de Diffa fait face à une situation d’insécurité sans précédent, avec des attaques enregistrées à Bosso, à Diffa et dans les îles du lac Tchad par les éléments du groupe armé Boko Haram. A la suite de l’attaque de l’île de Karamga en février 2015, les autorités ont ordonné aux populations d’évacuer toutes les îles nigériennes du lac Tchad. Cette situation a entraîné le déplacement forcé de vingt-cinq mille sept cent (25 700) personnes vers la terre ferme (Source : Plan de Réponse Humanitaire 2016). Un bon nombre de ces personnes ont été renvoyées à Yobé et Borno au Nigeria où l’état d’urgence est en vigueur depuis mai 2013. La majorité de ces personnes sont vulnérables et vivent encore dans une situation de grande précarité là où elles sont temporairement installées.

Une réponse humanitaire multisectorielle principalement basée sur la vulnérabilité des populations est en cours dans la région de Diffa.

A ce jour, des opérations militaires demeurent également en cours dans cette région, essentiellement en réponse aux exactions du groupe Boko Haram.

Dans ce contexte, en vue de prévenir une aggravation des souffrances humaines qui pourrait être occasionnée par d’éventuelles opérations de relocalisation par les autorités du Niger, la présente note technique est rédigée dans le but d’aider l’Equipe Humanitaire Pays et l’UNCT au Niger à prendre les décisions nécessaires, concernant la faisabilité et les modalités d’une éventuelle intervention des acteurs humanitaires - à la demande du gouvernement - dans la relocalisation des populations dans la région de Diffa. Les considérations mises en avant ici sont tirées des dispositions pertinentes du Droit International Général, du Droit International Humanitaire, du Droit des Réfugiés, et du Droit applicable aux personnes déplacées à l’intérieur de leur propre pays.

Aussi, une lecture des récents développements de la situation sécuritaire, humanitaire et de protection de la population déplacée et civile dans la Région de Diffa, nous oblige à souligner les principes suivants, qui sont à prendre en considération dans le contexte particulier de la région de Diffa.

Facts & Figures

• 65 million people are forcibly displaced worldwide:

• 21.3 million refugees,

• 40.8 million internally displaced - 1.8 million seeking asylum.

• Largest sources of refugees: Syria, Afghanistan, Somalia, South Sudan , Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Key messages

• The number of forcibly displaced people (refugees and internally displaced people) has continued to rise alarmingly in 2015 and 2016, calling for increased humanitarian assistance worldwide.

• The EU is a leading international donor for refugees. It gave €1.064 million for humanitarian assistance dedicated to refugees and IDPs financial year 2015, as well as €200 million in ongoing projects from development assistance. The funding covers projects that help in access to shelter, protection, food and other basic services such as health, nutrition, water, sanitation, hygiene and education.

• Humanitarian aid aims at upholding basic human rights and protecting children and adults against violence, abuse and exploitation through protection and advocacy activities.

• In April 2016, the European Commission, in association with the European External Action Service (EEAS), adopted a new development-led approach to forced displacement, aimed at harnessing and strengthening the resilience and self-reliance of both the forcibly displaced and their host communities. Political, economic, development and humanitarian actors should be engaged from the outset and throughout displacement crises to work with third partner countries towards gradual socio-economic inclusion of the forcibly displaced. The objective is to end forced displacement and make people's lives better and more dignified during displacement.

Situation in numbers

1.69 million People internally displaced since 15 December 2013
(OCHA, Humanitarian Snapshot 5 May 2016)

907,447* Estimated internally displaced children under 18 years

Outside South Sudan
725,876 Estimated new South Sudanese refugees in neighbouring countries since 15 December 2013
(UNHCR, Regional Refugee Information Portal, dated 15 June 2016)

UNICEF South Sudan Humanitarian Action for Children (HAC) Appeal January - December 2016: US$ 154.5 million

*Disaggregated data is yet available, as registration has not been completed across the country. Children under 18 years have been calculated based on census.

Highlights

• On 11 June, UNICEF supported the successful reunification of the 4,000th child with her family after becoming separated during the conflict, as depicted in the photo above. 8,800 children are still waiting to find their parents, and Family Tracing and Reunification (FTR) efforts continue.

• Food insecurity is a key concern throughout the country, with rising levels of malnutrition. In a majority of cases, SMART surveys conducted in South Sudan this year show Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) levels above the 15% WHO emergency threshold. As a result of increasing food insecurity, nutrition programmes threaten to become overstretched. As of mid-May, UNICEF and partners have admitted 87,613 children to various SAM programmes in the country, representing already more than half of the total target for 2016.

• It is estimated that up to 876,000 children in South Sudan are suffering from psychosocial distress, highlighting the need for an effective Child Protection response. However, the UNICEF Child Protection response remains underfunded. In the face of this critical funding situation, UNICEF continues to provide Gender-Based Violence (GBV) prevention and response services in four states, with a 40% reduction in services since the beginning of 2016.

Situation Overview & Humanitarian Needs

Over 2.4 million people have been displaced since fighting broke out in Juba in December 2013. This includes 725,876 people who have crossed into neighbouring countries. According to the UN Mission in South Sudan, the six Protection of Civilian (PoC) sites are currently sheltering 158,799 internally displaced people (IDPs): 95,126 in Bentiu, 32,791 in Malakal, 27,959 in Juba, 2,004 in Bor, 700 in Melut, and 219 in Wau.

Despite some progress in the political arena following the formation of the Transitional Government of National Unity, the faltering economy, the depreciation of the South Sudanese Pound, and the displacement of populations remain ongoing challenges. The situation is compounded by worsening food insecurity, with 2.8 million facing crisis or emergency level food insecurity. WFP warns that the food security situation “remains dire,” as thousands continue to flee the country in search of food and livelihood opportunities, particularly in Western and Northern Bahr el Gazal and Central and Eastern Equatoria regions. Partly as a result of food insecurity, more than 70,000 South Sudanese have arrived in neighbouring Sudan since the beginning of 2016, with the majority of these seeking refuge in Darfur. According to UNHCR, Sudan is currently host to some 232,000 South Sudanese; 230,000 more have sought refuge in Ethiopia, 207,000 in Uganda, and 57,000 in Kenya.

During the reporting period, an interagency mission comprising ministry officials, UN agencies, and NGOs visited Biringi, Greater Baagari Payam of Wau County in Western Bahr el Gazal, which had been cut off from humanitarian assistance since December 2015. As part of the interagency mission, UNICEF undertook Mid-Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC) screening of 375 children under five and 90 pregnant and lactating women, providing nutritional supplements to women and children affected by Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) and Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM). In addition, 375 children received Vitamin-A and 294 children were treated with deworming medication, while 1,024 children and youth were vaccinated against meningitis and 240 children against measles. Furthermore, all the families were provided with WASH-related Non-Food Items (NFIs).

Diffa, Niger | AFP | Wednesday 6/22/2016 - 03:24 GMT | 705 words

by Patrick FORT

Outside the Diffa grand mosque in Niger's southeast, two soldiers stand at the ready, rifles pointed at the wave of worshippers walking towards them.

Unbidden, the men raise their "boubous", the traditional wide-sleeved robes worn across West Africa. They need to show they're not hiding explosives under the tunics.

This is one of the ways that Boko Haram insurgents have changed life in Diffa, the regional capital of a territory of 600,000 people situated uncomfortably close to the border with Nigeria.

The attacks by the Nigeria-based Islamists, the swarms of refugees from the violence, and government security measures to combat Boko Haram have combined also to strangle the local economy.

"There are no more customers," said Mamane Noure Abdou, owner of a half-empty store selling peanuts and drinks. "People are afraid or have fled."

"There's no money, no jobs, no fields (to tend), nothing," he added, saying his profits have dropped by a third compared to 2015.

In its quest to form a hardline Islamic state, Boko Haram's seven-year insurgency has left at least 20,000 people dead in Nigeria and made more than 2.6 million homeless.

Extending the attacks to neighbouring countries, the group has prompted a regional military fightback involving troops from Niger, Chad and Cameroon as well as Nigeria.

• State of emergency -

Some 2,000 Chadian soldiers currently are set to launch a counter-offensive against the group in the region, in coordination with Nigeria, Niger and Cameroon.

In an effort to protect its citizens, Niger has imposed security measures in the southeast which have further slowed down the country's economy.

In March 2015, the local governor evacuated some 25,000 people living on the nearby islands of Lake Chad, many of whom resettled in Diffa.

He also suspended trade in fish and pepper, the region's most important products, and banned motorcycles -- the leading local mode of transport -- because they had been used by Boko Haram fighters to get around.

Then he slapped a curfew on night-time traffic.

"We don't do anything anymore," said mechanic Mohamed Ali. "We just sit around."

A year ago, Ali, 22, was the proud owner of a motorcycle repair shop set up in the space next to Abdou's small grocery store.

Now the shop has become a "fada", or gathering place, where mats cover the floor, and Ali is unemployed.

About 13,000 people in all have lost their jobs because of the motorbike ban, according to a civil society source.

• 'Lost all activity' -

"I hold it against Boko Haram, but the measure wasn't well thought out," said Ali, who "really misses" the engines.

On the other hand, the motorcycle ban proved to be good news for Adama Malamari, a onetime motorcycle taxi-driver, who swapped his two-wheeler for a four-door.

"We sold the motorcycle and other things and bought our taxi," the 22-year-old said.

Malamari said he makes more money now though his work is more difficult because of the state of the roads, the police roadblocks, and the thousands of inexperienced drivers.

Couriers have been hardest hit by the crisis, many simply walking away from the job, said Sabou Ali, the region's secretary general in charge of couriers.

"There is insecurity on the roads because of Boko Haram," he said. "We have lost all activity in the forbidden zones", such as the islands and regions evacuated by the authorities.

"Roads and markets have been closed, traffic has slowed," Sabou Ali added, saying that costs have also risen.

It used to cost 400 CFA francs (0.60 euros, 88 US cents) a litre to fuel up a truck on petrol from Nigeria, but now 530 CFA francs.

Pepper, a local speciality, too has been impacted by the violence and security measures, with most of the local farmers now displaced and living on international aid.

Buyers who resold the commodity in cities such as Niamey in the west and Zinder in south central Niger meanwhile no longer work.

"It's been six months since I've bought anything," said Bra Boulama, a trader who estimated that pepper used to account for 20,000 jobs. "I'm down to my last stocks and I don't know what I'll do."

"If the situation doesn't improve," said grocery owner Abdou, "we'll leave Diffa."

pgf/su/ccr

© 1994-2016 Agence France-Presse

The Government of Norway and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) have signed a new agreement worth USD 7 million aimed at enhancing the resilience of agricultural livelihoods in South Sudan and rapidly improving the food security of vulnerable families.

The agreement was signed by Her Excellency Tone Tinnes, the Norwegian Ambassador to South Sudan, at the National Ministry of Animal Resources and Fisheries compound in Gudele, Juba, site of the FAO-supported central veterinary cold chain, partially established with Norway funding and supporting the Ministry and livestock activities.

The signing ceremony programme included speeches from the Minister of the National Ministry of Animal Resources and Fisheries, Hon. James Janka Duku, Ms Tinnes, and FAO Representative, Serge Tissot, followed by a tour of the cold chain facilities in the compound. Hon. Minister Duku noted the close relationship between FAO and the Ministry and reiterated his appreciation of the continued support from Norway. “The support pledged by the Government of Norway to assist vulnerable South Sudanese families, who depend entirely on agriculture for their food security and livelihood is greatly appreciated,” he said.

Norway has been a generous contributor to FAO’s emergency livelihood response programme, and in 2015 provided funds to preposition vital agricultural inputs to ensure farmers received them in time for planting in 2016. Funds under this new agreement will continue to support the preparation for and implementation of FAO’s emergency livelihood response programme from mid-2016 into 2017 across both rural and urban settings. “I am pleased with the impressive results of this programme and the huge impact it is having on South Sudanese families”, noted Ms Tinnes, “… in spite of the huge challenges faced, FAO has successfully procured seeds locally and is supplementing Government efforts by introducing agriculture, water harvesting and gardens in schools. This is just a small solution to some of the problems this country is facing”. Ms Tinnes highlighted the importance of finding lasting solutions to the challenges facing South Sudan through greater collaboration between the Government, the South Sudanese people and donors.

“The livelihood kits distributed this year by FAO thanks to funding from Norway have meant that thousands of farmers have been able to restart or continue producing food”, said Mr Tissot. “It is critical that we continue helping vulnerable farmers, fishers and herders to build stronger, more resilient livelihoods and become more self-sufficient in food production. Agricultural livelihoods play a critical role in ensuring national food security and economic growth and contributing to future peace and stability.”

So far in 2016, under the emergency livelihood response programme, FAO has been able to distribute ahead of the planting season, crop seeds and agricultural tools to more than 180 000 households. In addition, FAO is distributing vegetable and fishing kits to more than 150,000 rural households across South Sudan. Over three million animals have been vaccinated and/or treated during the dry season vaccination campaign.

Highlights

• Completeness for weekly reporting was 39% for the non-conflict affected states and 83% for the IDP sites.

• This week malaria surpassed ARI as the top cause of morbidity in IDPs.

• Malaria cases in Bentiu PoC and Malakal PoC exceeded expected levels in the week.

• Two suspect cholera cases were reported from Kassaba Hai and Kor William.

• 23 new suspect measles cases were reported from seven counties in six states.

• There were no new suspect hemorrhagic fever case reported from Aweil.

• Complicated malnutrition and malaria were the commonest cause of mortality in IDPs.

Special focus on measles

• 23 new suspect measles cases were reported from Yirol West (8), Mayom (2), Gogrial West (2), Tonj South (5), Rubkona (6) (Table 4.1).

• No new confirmed measles outbreaks.

• Measles outbreak response including surveillance, case management, and vaccination are ongoing in all the other affected counties.

Key messages

• The European Union is one of the largest contributors of humanitarian aid to the Sahel. As such, its assistance to this region has been reaffirmed and has reached over EUR 203 million so far in 2016. The funding will support the 1.2 million Sahelian people affected by food insecurity as well as the treatment of 550 000 children affected by severe acute malnutrition. This represents a quarter of all food security needs and 43% of child malnutrition care needs in the Sahel.

• The ongoing food and nutrition* crisis in the Sahel is compounded by the erosion of people’s resilience, due to the quick succession of the crises, the absence of basic services and the ramifications of conflicts in the region.

• The latest surveys conducted indicate a deterioration of the nutritional status in many Sahel countries. The situation in northern Nigeria and Chad is quite critical, even more as the lean season has started.

• Emergency needs in the Sahel will persist unless the root causes of food insecurity and under nutrition are addressed, and the resilience of the poorest people is strengthened. The European Commission has championed the creation of AGIR*, a global alliance to strengthen resilience in West Africa which has set itself a ‘Zero Hunger’ goal by 2032.

• The European Commission’s Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) is contributing to the resilience objective of the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for stability and addressing root causes of irregular migration and displaced persons in Africa. Through this contribution, the aim is to strengthen the resilience of the most vulnerable communities and more concretely link relief, rehabilitation and development efforts

Key messages

• Humanitarian needs in Niger continue to be immense as a result of lasting food insecurity, high global malnutrition of children under age five and the displacement of people fleeing the conflicts 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 €38 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 200 000 children under five years old suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition. In 2016, more than 265 000 severely malnourished children are planned for treatment on EU funds, which will cover 66% of the national caseload.

Highlights

• Food stocks are stretched. WFP requires immediate contributions to meet the needs of new arrivals and existing refugees in neighbouring countries, given the continued instability and high food insecurity levels in South Sudan.

• The revised South Sudan Regional Refugee Response Plan (RRRP) was launched on 15 July in Nairobi. Governments, UN agencies and NGOs attended the event.
  The plan requests USD 701.6 million to provide protection and assistance to 973,000 refugees in Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, Uganda, the DRC and Central African Republic (CAR). A new feature of the revised RRRP is the inclusion of all South Sudanese refugees, pre– and post- December 2013 and addition of CAR and the DRC to the plan.

Overview

On 07 July, heavy fighting erupted in Juba between the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) and SPLA in opposition (SPLA-IO) forces. The violence, which left hundreds dead and injured, resulted in massive displacement of civilians, disruption of transport networks around the capital, including the closure of the Juba International Airport.
According to OCHA estimates, as of 11 July, more than 36,000 people were displaced and sought refuge in various locations throughout Juba, including the UNMISS base in Tomping, UN House in Jebel, WFP compound,
ADRA compound, and several churches.

A ceasefire declared by both parties on 11 July appears to be holding. However, tension remains high in Juba and in other parts of the country, with clashes reported in Leer,
Wau and Torit. The Juba International Airport reopened on 13 July and some commercial airlines, which had earlier suspended their flights have resumed. Furthermore, transport networks have reopened in the city albeit with reports of looting and market disruption, which will have immediate negative impact on people’s need for food and other essential commodities.

Given the fluid and tense security situation coupled with unprecedented levels of food insecurity and economic decline in South Sudan, South Sudanese continue to flee to neighbouring countries. UNHCR reports indicate that, following the recent outbreak of violence in Juba, some borders have been affected, such as the Uganda-South Sudan border crossing, where security is tightened on the South Sudan side. This has led to a significant decrease in the number of new arrivals crossing into Uganda. Host governments, UN agencies and NGO partners have stepped up border monitoring and emergency preparedness in Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan and Uganda in case of a further influx of South Sudanese refugees.

Mirriah, Niger | AFP | vendredi 15/07/2016 - 11:45 GMT

par Boureima HAMA

Souffle court, yeux révulsés, masque à oxygène sur le nez: Hamissou, un bébé d'à peine six mois, gît, dans un état désespéré, sur la table de réanimation de l'hôpital de Mirriah, dans le sud du Niger, victime d'une malnutrition qui fait des ravages chez les enfants dans ce pays parmi les plus pauvres du monde.

Réanimé une première fois, il est retombé dans le coma. Si son état ne se stabilise pas rapidement, une pénurie de sang au cerveau risque de l'emporter, indique une source médicale.

Le diagnostic a révélé que le garçon souffrait de "malnutrition et déshydratation sévères" et de "problèmes de circulation sanguine".

Brassard tricolore

Ses parents, qui vivent dans un petit village satellite de la ville de Mirriah, l'ont emmené à l'hôpital en dernier ressort.

Hagarde, yeux remplis de larmes, Indo, une proche de Hamissou, soupire: "il était malade depuis des semaines et on a tenté de le guérir avec les moyens de bord".

"Ils lui ont d'abord administré des décoctions de plantes", déplore le Dr Fatoumata Diaouné, médecin à ALIMA, un projet nutritionnel et de santé, implanté à Mirriah, dans la région de Zinder, et financé par l'Union européenne.

Pendant que le petit Hamissou lutte contre la mort, dans les salles voisines, d'autres mamans, visiblement angoissées, agitent des petits éventails pour soulager de la chaleur leurs enfants squelettiques couchés sur des lits.

Tous souffrent de malnutrition sévère, fatale pour les enfants lorsque l'insuffisance de l'alimentation se greffe à des maladies telles que le paludisme, les diarrhées ou les pneumonies.

Plus loin, l'ambiance est plus joyeuse: assises sur les bancs en bois, une dizaine de mères arborent de larges sourires et s'apprêtent à quitter l'hôpital. Leurs enfants victimes de malnutrition viennent d'être déclarés "guéris".

Avant de retourner dans leurs villages, elles reçoivent un "périmètre brachial", un brassard tricolore qui leur permet de surveiller elles-mêmes l'état de leurs enfants et de vérifier s'ils ont trop maigri en contrôlant la grosseur de leur bras.

"Chaque semaine, elles doivent mesurer. Dès que ça dépasse le vert, elles doivent les ramener" à l'hôpital, explique un responsable d'ALIMA.

"On a bien compris: si ça tombe dans le rouge alors la malnutrition est encore là", résume, Koubra, une mère de 30 ans, qui caresse la tête de sa fille de 13 mois requinquée après une semaine de soins.

Le taux de malnutrition grimpe

Avec son million d'habitants, la région de Mirriah fait partie des zones du Niger où la malnutrition sévit sous une forme grave.

"On est en pleine pic de la malnutrition, on a jusqu'à une quarantaine d'admissions par jour", avance le Dr Fatoumata.

Le taux de décès atteint 5%, relève-t-elle. "Ici, ce sont plus de 25.000 enfants malnutris qui sont traités chaque année", glisse Sayadi Sani de l'ONG nigérienne Befen (Bien-être pour la femme et l'enfant).

En dépit des efforts déployés par les ONG et les autorités locales, le taux de malnutrition pour l'ensemble du pays continue de grimper: de 13,3% en 2013, il est passé à 14,8% en 2014 puis à 15% en 2015, soit le seuil d'urgence" fixé par l'Organisation mondiale de la santé (OMS).

Dans ce pays aride, le deuxième plus pauvre du monde selon le classement du Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, la malnutrition chronique, qui compromet le développement physique et cognitif, touche les enfants de moins de 5 ans.

Entre janvier et avril, plus de 176.000 enfants, dont plus de 69.500 victimes de malnutrition sévère, ont déjà été traités dans ces structures spécialisées, selon les ONG.

Les maladies infectieuses, le manque d'eau potable et d'hygiène "contribuent significativement à la détérioration" du statut nutritionnel des enfants. Mais Rabi Sani, une assistante sociale de Mirriah, compte la persistance de "croyances ancestrales" parmi les facteurs qui favorisent la malnutrition en milieu rural.

"Les interdits alimentaires", poussent les mères à "priver" leurs bébés du lait maternelle après l'accouchement et aussi de certains aliments riches en vitamines", dénonce-t-elle.

Ces femmes "racontent que manger des oeufs rend leurs enfants sourds et muets" ou "que consommer de la viande fera d'eux des mendiants. Il aussi combattre ces croyances sordides !", tranche-t-elle.

bh/pgf/jlb

© 1994-2016 Agence France-Presse

Highlights

• Cameroon has the highest number of internally displaced persons and refugees as part of the sub-regional crisis as a result of the ongoing conflict with Boko Haram, following Nigeria.

• Since the beginning of 2016, 23,150 children under 5 (including 2,669 refugee children) have been admitted for therapeutic care for severe acute malnutrition (SAM)

• 702 children unaccompanied and separated as a result of the CAR refugee crisis and the Nigeria crisis have been either placed in interim care and/or are receiving appropriate follow-up through UNICEF support.

• The funding situation remains worrisome which are constraining lifesaving activities. Child protection, education, HIV and health remain the most underfunded sectors. UNICEF’s Humanitarian response funding gap is at 83%.

Situation Overview & Humanitarian Needs

Cameroon continues to face three concurrent humanitarian emergencies, including an ongoing nutrition crisis in the North and Far North, internal displacement and the continued influx of refugees from Central African Republic in the East and Adamawa regions and from Nigeria in the Far North.

In the Far North region, 190,591 people, 61% of whom are children, have been internally displaced, 83% of whom have been displaced by the ongoing conflict with Boko Haram. Nearly 65,000 refugees from Nigeria have come across the border as a result of the conflict, with 3,829 new arrivals so far in 2016. 56,830 of the refugees live in Minawao camp.

As of April 2016, 259,145 refugees from CAR are living in sites and host communities throughout the East and Adamawa regions.

The refugees and displaced are coming into host communities with very limited resources and regions that are already facing a chronic nutrition crisis as part of the Sahel. An estimated 61,262 children under 5 in Cameroon are expected to suffer from life-threatening severe acute malnutrition (SAM) in 2016 as a result of this ongoing crisis.

HIGHLIGHTS

• 53,210 Refugees received non-food items across South Sudan

• 7,000 Refugee children reaches with measles vaccination in Ajung Thok camp

• 2,150 Refugee families were allocated agricultural land in Greater Equatoria

• 290 Refugees and partners received protection training from UNHCR

Unity: UNHCR completed the verification of Yida refugees, confirming the presence of 6,288 individuals, down from 70,876 as of 31 May 2016.

Unity: Nearly 8,500 refugees in Ajuong Thok camp have received ID cards bearing the seal of both South Sudan’s Commission for Refugee Affairs and UNHCR. Distribution of ID cards will continue during the coming months to reach those eligible amongst a population of 42,374.

Greater Equatoria: Local authorities and host communities in Lasu and Makpandu settlements began allocating agricultural land to some 2,150 refugee families as part of UNHCR’s intervention to help refugees become more self -reliant.

Jonglei: For the first time since 2009, UNHCR carried out a distribution of non -food items for some 625 Ethiopian refugee families in Pochalla, near the border with Ethiopia.

Situation Sécuritaire

Des attaques et des incursions des combattants de Boko Haram en territoire camerounais ont été enregistrés cette semaine. En effet, dans la nuit du 9 au 10 juillet, trois civils ont été tués dans la localité d’Aldjé dans le département du Mayo Sava et plusieurs maisons ont été incendiées. La localité de Kolofata a connu deux attaques kamikazes qui ont occasionné des morts et blessés. La population est en alerte ainsi que les forces de sécurité.

Presque tous les jours, des villages sont incendiés, pillés, des éleveurs et des pêcheurs assassinés et des troupeaux de bétails emportés. Les combattants de Boko Haram semblent se limiter à des opérations de prédation principalement dans les zones rurales, ce qui tend à renforcer la crise humanitaire dans la région.

Monitoring de protection

Comparativement à la situation de protection de la semaine dernière au cours de laquelle 24 incidents de protection avaient été identifiés, la semaine sous-revue a permis d’en détecter 25. Le département de Mayo Sava a été le plus affecté avec 48% des incidents, suivi de Logone et Chari avec 32% et Mayo Tsanaga avec 20%. Les incidents les plus fréquents été les violations du droit à la vie et l’intégrité physique avec 17 cas (64%), suivi des violations du droit à la propriété avec 7 cas (28%) et 1 cas de violation du droit à la liberté de mouvement (4%).

Sécurité

Une incursion des combattants de Boko Haram en territoire camerounais a été enregistrée durant cette période. En effet, dans la nuit du 9 au 10 juillet, trois civils ont été tués dans la localité d’Aldjé dans le département du Mayo Sava et plusieurs maisons ont été incendiées.

Les opérations militaires dans la sous-préfecture de Touboro et particulièrement à Mbaiboum ont baissé en intensité. Une mission de sécurité s’est rendue dans la sous-préfecture de Touboro du 6-10 juillet pour s’enquérir de la situation de sécurité en général du fait des différents incidents rapportés au cours des trois dernières semaines. Plusieurs actions ont été prise lors de cette mission, y compris: explications aux autorités du bien-fondé du principe du droit humain inviolable de libre circulation des réfugiés et rappel aux réfugiés du devoir de respect des lois et règlements du pays hôte.

This is the fourth OCHA Flash Update on the situation in Juba, which provides a summary/overview of the situation and response.

Three days into the tenuous ceasefire in Juba, many people have begun to return to their homes. Humanitarians have now visited all of the reported collective sites and estimate that some 12,860 people remain displaced, including around 4,300 in the UNMISS sites and some 8,560 outside.

On 14 July, an inter-agency mission visited several areas where high displacement counts had been reported by community members, including Gurei, Lemon Gaba, St. Francis Primary School and Joppa. There were no remaining displaced populations seen at collective sites in the areas visited, with the exception of St. Francis Primary School. Many community members noted that people had left the sites yesterday and earlier this morning. There was a lot of movement observed on the roads, with people seen to be carrying items and reportedly returning back to their homes. Many cited that lack of food was the main driver for moving back to their homes and reported that they did not feel completely safe. Also on 14 July, a humanitarian organization visited ADRA, and found that most families had departed.

Humanitarian organizations have continued to respond in locations with the highest needs. Across all sites, the main morbidities reported by health organizations are malaria, Acute Respiratory Infections (ARI), Acute Watery Diarrhoea (AWD) and war wounded. There have been 17 reported deaths due to illness and injury in UN House since Friday (8 July).

With regard to Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), on 14 July, for the first time since 8 July, water was delivered to the UN House Protection of Civilians (PoC) sites. WASH items were also distributed in PoC1, Tongping, St. Joseph’s, and All Saints Mobil Cathedral. At Tongping, water delivery (36,000 litres) and distribution of WASH items was carried out, and at St. Theresa’s in Kator, repair of handpumps is underway and water trucking has been taking place.

Food security and nutrition activities are ongoing across multiple sites. At UN House, the markets in the PoC are reported to be out of food. General food distribution was scheduled for this and next week and Food Security and Livelihoods (FSL) organisations are discussing the possibility of a reduced-ration distribution with remaining food stocks. Nutrition activities have resumed in PoC1 and are expected to resume in PoC3 tomorrow. Blanket Supplementary Feeding Program (BSFP) has been conducted in Tongping, St. Joseph’s, St. Teresa’s in Kator and All Saints Mobil Cathedral.

Protection partners continue to undertake monitoring, including a vulnerability assessment of more than 600 new arrivals at PoC3 community centre. Child friendly space kits have been delivered to both U House and UNMISS Tongping. Gender-based violence caseworkers are present in both PoC 1 and 3 and are supporting referrals and psycho-social support. UNMAS surveyed UN House residential and office compound as well as the PoC. One site within the PoC was cordoned off and will require further investigation.

Non-food items/Emergency Shelter (NFI/ES) assessments have been undertaken in UN House, St. Joseph’s, St. Theresa’s in Kator and Don Bosco in Gumbo. Priority needs identified across thes locations included mosquito nets, blankets, and sleeping mats; shelter needs were identified at St. Teresa’s in Kator.