Madame Astou Gaye Mbacke owns a cereal processing facility in central Senegal that produces high-quality processed foods for the national market. In partnership with the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Processing and Post-Harvest Handling, she has received training on—and will soon introduce other entrepreneurs to—food technologies that have made her business, the Touba Darou Salam Cereal Processing Unit, a success.

Because of Mbacke’s partnership with Feed the Future, her facility now has a food extruder, which gives it the technological capacity to turn cereal grains into instant enriched flour—a process that cuts the work of preparing grains for porridge from hours to minutes. Not surprisingly, the flour is popular with women, who are freed from laborious meal preparation and can train other family members to add water to the instant flour for a nutritious porridge. But its popularity doesn’t end there. Within a month of introducing it, Mbacke was contracted by three mayors in Senegal to provide 2 million tons of the instant flour products, mostly for feeding programs. What’s more, demand for her products is expected to exceed production capacity by the end of the year.

Mbacke’s facility also creates jobs. She employs 115 people, most of whom did not previously have steady work, and some who once depended on handouts to eke out a living. Her employees now have the income to send their children to school, pay for school fees and supplies, and even upgrade their traditional huts into solid concrete houses.

In addition, all of her employees have received U.S. Agency for International Development-funded training from the Dakar-based Institute for Food Technology (IFT). As a result of this training, they have gained skills in the new technologies, which make them highly valuable workers in the food processing industry.

Mbacke channels her entrepreneurial energy into other productive enterprises: She leads a 3,000-member association of Senegalese women who are engaged in agro-processing businesses and provides loans to entrepreneurs to create food distribution businesses to serve local and national markets.

Purdue University, which leads the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Processing and Post-Harvest Handling, has helped support local entrepreneurs in Senegal, mostly women, to produce high-quality, market-competitive flour products. The program also offers women business and management skills training to improve existing businesses or build new ones. Some women processors, like Mbacke, have adopted new food technologies and are operating their businesses with continued technical support from IFT.

Plans are underway for Mbackle's facility to be an incubator for other women entrepreneurs, and select processors will receive IFT training in workshop settings on the extrusion. The partnership offers a unique opportunity to rapidly and effectively disseminate advanced food processing and nutrition technologies and has created a model for future scale-up to the other regions.

Welthungerhilfe is continuing to distribute food

Bonn/Berlin, 12.8.2016. Half of the population of South Sudan is dependent on humanitarian assistance for survival. Although there is no longer fighting in the capital Juba, many people are fearful of leaving the refugee camps. There is an outbreak of cholera in Juba itself, and the start of the rainy season means that many parts of the country can only be reached from the air.

As one of the few aid organisations present, Welthungerhilfe is continuing to distribute food in the north of the country near Bentiu. Each month almost 200,000 refugees receive urgently needed food, such as sorghum, lentils, oil and salt. Particularly undernourished children receive special food. According to UN figures, 250,000 children are acutely undernourished. “Without us, these people would starve, because they are stuck in the only camp in the region. They cannot return to their villages, as the presence of numerous different armed fighters makes the areas unsafe. It is especially dangerous for women; they become victims of unspeakable violence in the country. The refugee camp is overcrowded and the conditions during the rainy season are particularly horrific,” explains Jonas Wiahl, Welthungerhilfe Country Director, describing the situation on the ground.

Welthungerhilfe is active in a total of four states in the country. It is also supporting thousands of refugees in northern Uganda with urgently needed drinking water. After the last outbreak of fighting in July, more than 50,000 South Sudanese saved themselves by fleeing into the neighbouring country of Uganda.

If requested, we can arrange a local interviewee for you.

Welthungerhilfe is one of the largest private aid organisations in Germany, with no political or religious affiliation. It was founded in 1962 under the umbrella of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). At that time, it was the German section of the 'Freedom from Hunger Campaign', one of the first global initiatives for the fight against hunger.

Le Réseau de systèmes d’alerte précoce contre la famine (FEWS NET) surveille les tendances des prix des aliments de base dans les pays vulnérables à l'insécurité alimentaire. Pour chaque pays et chaque région couvert par FEWS NET, le Bulletin des prix fournit un ensemble de graphiques indiquant les prix mensuels de l’année commerciale en cours pour certains centres urbains, et permettant à l’utilisateur de comparer les tendances actuelles à la fois aux moyennes quinquennales, qui indiquent les tendances saisonnières, et aux prix de l'année précédente.

Au Sénégal, le riz, le mil, le sorgho et le maïs constituent la base de l’alimentation des ménages. L’arachide représente aussi bien une source importante de protéine et communément une culture de rente. Le riz importé est consommé quotidiennement par la grande majorité des ménages, particulièrement dans les centres urbains de Dakar et Touba. Le riz produit localement dans la vallée du fleuve Sénégal y est consommé. St. Louis est le principal marché dans la vallée du fleuve Sénégal. Le mil est consommé dans les régions centrales où Kaolack représente le marché régional le plus important. Le maïs est produit et consommé dans les zones autour de Kaolack,
Tambacounda et dans la vallée du fleuve Sénégal. Du maïs est aussi importé, principalement du marché international. Il existe une forte demande pour tous les produits à Touba et à Dakar. La récolte des céréales et celle de l’arachide débutent en Octobre et les stocks de céréales locales baissent de niveau tout au long de l’année de commercialisation qui s’achève en Octobre. Le Sénégal dépend plus des importations à partir du marché international, surtout le riz, que du commerce transfrontalier qui concerne essentiellement le bétail provenant du Mali et de la Mauritanie pour approvisionner Dakar et les marchés environnants.

Le Réseau de Systèmes d’Alerte Précoce Contre la Famine surveille les tendances des prix des aliments de base dans les pays vulnérables à l'insécurité alimentaire. Pour chaque FEWS NET pays et la région, le Bulletin des prix fournit un ensemble de tableaux indiquant les prix mensuels à la campagne en cours dans certains centres urbains et en permettant aux utilisateurs de comparer les tendances actuelles à la fois les prix de cinq ans en moyenne, une indication des tendances saisonnières, et les prix l'année précédente.

Le mil, le maïs, le niébé et le riz importé sont les produits alimentaires les plus importants consommés au Niger. Le mil est consommé aussi bien par les ménages ruraux que les ménages pauvres urbains dans l’ensemble du pays. Le maïs et le riz importé sont plus importants pour les ménages urbains, tandis que le niébé est principalement consommé par les ménages pauvres des régions rurales et urbaines en tant que source de protéine. Niamey est le marché national le plus important et un centre du commerce international ; elle approvisionne en outre les ménages urbains.
Tillaberi est aussi un centre urbain approvisionnant les localités environnantes. Le marché de Gaya est le principal marché urbain pour le maïs avec des liens transfrontaliers. Maradi, Tounfafi et Diffa sont des marchés de regroupement régionaux et des marchés transfrontaliers pour le Niger et d’autres pays de la région. C'est dans ces marchés que vont régulièrement acheter leur nourriture les ménages et les éleveurs des régions déficitaires en céréales du nord. Agadez et Zinder sont également d’importants marchés nationaux et régionaux. Nguigmi et Abalak se trouvent dans des zones pastorales, où la population dépend largement des marchés céréaliers pour leur approvisionnement alimentaire. Ces deux marchés sont particulièrement importants pendant la saison des pluies, lorsque les éleveurs sont confinés dans la zone pastorale.

The Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) monitors trends in staple food prices in countries vulnerable to food insecurity. For each FEWS NET country and region, the Price Bulletin provides a set of charts showing monthly prices in the current marketing year in selected urban centers and allowing users to compare current trends with both five-year average prices, indicative of seasonal trends, and prices in the previous year.

Le mil, le riz et le sorgho constituent les aliments de base de la majorité de la population malienne. Le mil est l'aliment le plus consommé traditionnellement, mais depuis 2005 le riz est devenu un substitut populaire chez les ménages urbains. Le sorgho est généralement plus important pour les ménages ruraux que pour les ménages urbains. Les marchés inclus sont révélateurs des conditions locales dans leurs régions respectives. Ségou est l’un des marchés les plus importants tant pour le pays que pour la région, dans la mesure où il se trouve dans une très vaste zone de production de céréales. Bamako, la capitale et le centre urbain le plus étendu du pays, fonctionne comme un marché de regroupement. Elle reçoit des céréales de Koulikoro, Ségou et Sikasso destinées à la consommation et fait également office de marché de regroupement pour les échanges avec les régions nord du pays (Kayes et Koulikoro) et avec la Mauritanie. Les marchés des régions déficitaires du pays (Tombouctou et Gao) reçoivent leurs approvisionnements en mil et en riz de Mopti, Ségou et Sikasso.

Le Réseau de systèmes d’alerte précoce contre la famine (FEWS NET) surveille les tendances des prix des aliments de base dans les pays vulnérables à l'insécurité alimentaire. Pour chaque pays et chaque région couvert par FEWS NET, le Bulletin des prix fournit un ensemble de graphiques indiquant les prix mensuels de l’année commerciale en cours pour certains centres urbains, et permettant à l’utilisateur de comparer les tendances actuelles à la fois aux moyennes quinquennales, qui indiquent les tendances saisonnières, et aux prix de l'année précédente.

Le sorgho, le mil, le maïs blanc et le riz local et d’importation sont les produits alimentaires les plus importants. La consommation de mil est la plus forte dans les régions est et nord du pays. Le riz local est un autre produit alimentaire de base, en particulier pour les ménages plus pauvres. Le riz importé et le maïs blanc sont le plus couramment consommés dans la capitale et ses environs. Le marché d'Atrone à N’Djamena, la capitale, est le marché le plus important pour les céréales. Moundou est un important centre de consommation pour le sorgho et le deuxième marché en importance après la capitale. Le marché d’Abéché est situé dans une zone de production au nord. Le marché de Sarh est à la fois un marché de détail local et un marché transfrontalier.

Le Réseau de systèmes d’alerte précoce contre la famine (FEWS NET) surveille les tendances des prix des aliments de base dans les pays vulnérables à l'insécurité alimentaire. Pour chaque pays et chaque région couvert par FEWS NET, le Bulletin des prix fournit un ensemble de graphiques indiquant les prix mensuels de l’année commerciale en cours pour certains centres urbains, et permettant à l’utilisateur de comparer les tendances actuelles à la fois aux moyennes quinquennales, qui indiquent les tendances saisonnières, et aux prix de l'année précédente.

Le mil, le maïs et le sorgho sont les produits alimentaires les plus importants pour la consommation ménagère. Le mil est le produit de base des ménages les plus vulnérables, tandis que le maïs et le sorgho contribuent aussi au panier alimentaire de la majorité des autres ménages. Le marché de Sankaryare est le plus vaste et le plus important de Ouagadougou; il approvisionne d’autres marchés du pays et dans la région. Koudougou se trouve dans l'une des régions les plus peuplées du pays, où une majorité des ménages dépend du marché pour son ravitaillement alimentaire. Djibo se situe dans la zone sahélienne, hautement vulnérable. Pouytenga est un marché de regroupement pour les produits du Nigeria, du Ghana, du Bénin et du Togo. Solenzo est un marché rural situé au milieu d’une zone de production excédentaire. Bobo Dioulasso est un important centre tant pour la consommation que pour la production : elle fait office de capitale économique du Burkina-Faso et se trouve dans une importante zone de production céréalière.

Le Réseau de systèmes d’alerte précoce contre la famine (FEWS NET) surveille les tendances des prix des aliments de base dans les pays vulnérables à l'insécurité alimentaire. Pour chaque pays et chaque région couvert par FEWS NET, le Bulletin des prix fournit un ensemble de graphiques indiquant les prix mensuels de l’année commerciale en cours pour certains centres urbains, et permettant à l’utilisateur de comparer les tendances actuelles à la fois aux moyennes quinquennales, qui indiquent les tendances saisonnières, et aux prix de l'année précédente.

L'Afrique de l’Ouest peut être divisée en trois zones agro-écologiques ou en trois bassins commerciaux (bassins de l’ouest, bassin du centre, bassin de l’est). Les deux sont importants pour l'interprétation du comportement et de la dynamique du marché.
Les trois principales zones agro-écologiques incluent la zone Sahélienne, la zone Soudanaise et la zone Côtière où la production et la consommation peuvent être facilement classifiées. (1) Dans la zone Sahélienne, le mil constitue le principal produit alimentaire cultivé et consommé en particulier dans les zones rurales et de plus en plus par certaines populations qui y ont accès en milieux urbains. Des exceptions sont faites pour le Cap Vert où le maïs et le riz sont les produits les plus importants, la Mauritanie où le blé et le sorgho et le Sénégal où le riz constituent des aliments de base. Les principaux produits de substitution dans le Sahel sont le sorgho, le riz, et la farine de manioc (Gari), avec les deux derniers en période de crise. (2) Dans la zone Soudanienne (le sud du Tchad, le centre du Nigéria, du Bénin, du Ghana, du Togo, de la Côte d'Ivoire, le sud du Burkina Faso, du Mali, du Sénégal, la Guinée Bissau, la Serra Leone, le Libéria) le maïs et le sorgho constituent les principales céréales consommées par la majorité de la population. Suivent après le riz et les tubercules particulièrement le manioc et l’igname. (3) Dans la zone côtière, avec deux saisons de pluie, l’igname et le maïs constituent les principaux produits alimentaires. Ils sont complétés par le niébé, qui est une source très significative de protéines.
Les trois bassins commerciaux sont simplement connus sous les noms de bassin Ouest, Centre, et Est. En plus du mouvement du sud vers le nord des produits, les flux de certaines céréales se font aussi horizontalement. (1) Le bassin Ouest comprend la Mauritanie, le Sénégal, l’ouest du Mali, la Sierra Leone, la Guinée, le Libéria, et la Gambie où le riz est le plus commercialisé.

(2) Le bassin central se compose de la Côte d'Ivoire, le centre et l’est du Mali, le Burkina Faso, le Ghana, et le Togo où le maïs est généralement commercialisé. (3) Le bassin Est se rapporte au Niger, Nigéria, Tchad, et Bénin où le millet est le plus fréquemment commercialisé. Ces trois bassins commerciaux sont distingués sur la carte ci-dessus.

By Moustapha Diallo, IFRC

At 70 years of age, Aliou Djima walks painfully. Due to a disability, his strength is not what it once was. Four years ago, he left his village of Gadeye when conflict erupted in northern Mali to seek refuge with his wife and eight children in the south.

After several weeks of wandering, the ten family members were at last hosted by one family where “everything was lacking” he says. When insurgents were dislodged from the north, they decided to return to their home village, the family among the thousands which have been gradually returning home. Like Djima, most are facing hardship in rebuilding their lives as they have lost their livelihoods and many are returning empty-handed to damaged homes.

In a region prone to cyclical food shortages and malnutrition, ongoing insecurity makes their lives even more difficult, and further weakens their resilience.

Through a project funded by USAID and the Office of U. S. Foreign Disaster Assistance, the Mali Red Cross, with support from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), is helping families such as Djima’s to become more resilient by restoring their livelihoods through the distribution of livestock, animal feed, seeds, cash, agricultural inputs and income generating activities in the regions of Gao and Timbuktu.

Djima’s family is one of 140 families in Gao which have received goats and animal feed under this project, in a bid to rebuild the assets of those affected by the ongoing conflict and food insecurity in northern Mali.

“Goats are capable to withstand weather conditions and can give families milk and meat, as well as cash from sales. However, in Timbuktu we distributed sheep to 60 families as it was their preference,” says Gaoussou Togora, project manager at Mali Red Cross.

All families have been trained by the Red Cross in livestock management to make sure the goats and sheep remain healthy.

“My deepest wish is to see the goats reproduce rapidly so we can sell some of the offspring to meet our other needs,” says Djima. “We are already drinking the milk they provide.”

The project has also seen the distribution of rice seeds to 1,000 households, training and cash transfers to 200 women’s cooperatives in developing income generating activities, and the provision of agricultural inputs to 40 associations.

CONTEXT ANALYSIS

Six years have passed since the beginning of the Jama‘atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS), commonly known as Boko Haram, violent armed conflict in North-East Nigeria. The last few months has witnessed the Nigerian security forces recapturing the main towns and many of the villages of 22 of the 27 Borno Local Government Areas (LGAs) and 15 out of the 17 LGAs in Yobe, revealing the humanitarian needs of civilians previously under the control of Boko Haram.

People in emergency include 250,000 people in newly re-opened areas who have congregated in ‘satellite’ camps at the Borno LGA capitals, including Bama, Dikwa, Monguno, and Damboa. Given the onset of the lean season and rainy season, the near-term outlook is also grim for the 180,000 food insecure people in Maiduguri’s outer rim and 120,000 Maiduguri camp residents. In Yobe emergency food security conditions prevail for over 250,000 people in the informal settlements of Damaturu, in LGAs still facing the impact of the conflict (Geidam, Gujba and Gulani) and LGAs severely affected by reduced agricultural production.

IDPs continue to be exposed to protection risks, in particular those amongst the most vulnerable who have specific needs, such as the elderly, child-headed households, women, boys and girls and those with disabilities. Women report sexual and gender-based violence when fleeing the armed conflict. While the Nigerian military has recaptured many LGAs, there are minimal law enforcement and/or government structures in these LGAs. IDPs are also faced with restrictions on their freedom of movement, which limits access to basic services and livelihoods. These civilians do not have access to much-needed life-saving services. There are very few if any humanitarian actors on the ground outside state capitals.

At present, the only way to access most of the LGAs in Borno is by road under strict military escort. The planned civil-military coordination structure is needed to ensure common guidance on engaging with the military and joint humanitarian planning and movement to and within LGAs. Similarly, a review of the UN NE Security Response Plan will ensure security arrangements are scaled up to match response activities in Maiduguri, and other LGAs of Borno and Yobe.

KEY FINDINGS

• Because of the effects of the conflict on markets and livelihoods, households in 8 wards of Maiduguri’s outskirts and in 12 LGAs located in the north and east of Borno and 4 LGAs in Yobe are facing emergency (Phase 4) food security conditions.

• In total 800,000 people are severely food insecure and require immediate food assistance in Borno and Yobe States. Over 550,0001 people in Borno State2 are severely food insecure, including 180,000 in Maiduguri’s outskirts, 120,000 camp residents and approx. 250,000 IDPs in newly re-opened areas. In Yobe State some 250,000 people are severely food insecure including 200,000 in rural areas and at least 55,000 IDPs and host populations in Damaturu.

• Some 73,000 children under two in these communities should urgently receive ready-to-use supplementary specialized nutritious foods appropriate for children aged 6-23 months. Food supplements for 27,000 pregnant and lactating mothers are also recommended.

• Without interventions in 2016 an estimated 67,000 children aged 6-59 months with severe acute malnutrition(SAM) are likely to die: this amounts to 184 every day in Borno & Yobe.

• There are at least 242,000 children with Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM) in Borno and 136,000 in Yobe.

• It is expected that due to seasonality, food security and malnutrition will worsen between May and September 2016. In addition, 2016 rainfall is expected to be unstable and abnormally low in the north and some other parts of Nigeria as indicated by the Seasonal Rainfall Prediction (SRP) issued by the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMET).

• Health and nutrition services and access are limited in host communities, especially in newly re-opened areas.

• 75% of water and sanitation facilities in Borno and 9% in Yobe require rehabilitation.

• Shelter support (rehabilitation of existing structures and temporary shelter) is required in all visited IDP camps and many host communities.

• The situation and circumstances in different newly re-opened areas, areas opening up, and host communities differs, requiring a situation-specific response.

• The vast majority of IDPs are children, women and older persons with severe protection needs that need to be addressed and integrated in multi-sectorial responses.

• The population has experienced high levels of violence, rendering people traumatized and in urgent need of psychosocial support.

The Diffa region of Niger has been hosting Nigerian refugees fleeing terrorist violence in the northern states of Niger since 2013. The situation deteriorated dramatically in 2015, with the first attacks on Niger territory in February 2015. The situation became a mixed situation, which included not only Nigerian refugees and returnees (Niger nationals who had migrated but returned to Niger), but also IDPs, who surpassed the numbers of those fleeing Nigeria. The majority of the displaced are currently living in spontaneous sites along the one main road in the region, the Route Nationale 1, while others have settled in local towns and villages with host families. UNHCR have also established two camps in the region, the refugee camp of Sayam Forage (population approximately 6,000) and the IDP camp of Kabelawa (population approximately 10,000). At the end of May and beginning of June 2016, the insurgents carried out a series of violent attacks in the Department of Bosso, in the Diffa region. This has caused another wave of displacement and unprecedented humanitarian needs.

Population Statistics

In May 2016, following a rapid basic census of the population in a number of the spontaneous sites, the Government of Niger estimated that were 241, 256 displaced persons in the Diffa region. This included: 82,524 refugees, 31,524 returnees and 127,208 IDPs. Following the attacks at the end of May and beginning of June, the Regional Directorate for Civil Status and Refugees (DREC-R), supported by UNHCR carried out a rapid registration of newly displaced refugees at a series of key sites. Approximately 69,000 people were counted. During the month of July, the Government stated that there are now at least 280,000 displaced persons in the Diffa region.

The Diffa region of Niger has been hosting Nigerian refugees fleeing terrorist violence in the northern states of Niger since 2013. The situation deteriorated dramatically in 2015, with the first attacks on Niger territory in February 2015. The situation became a mixed situation, which included not only Nigerian refugees and returnees (Niger nationals who had migrated but returned to Niger), but also IDPs, who surpassed the numbers of those fleeing Nigeria. The majority of the displaced are currently living in spontaneous sites along the one main road in the region, the Route Nationale 1, while others have settled in local towns and villages with host families. UNHCR have also established two camps in the region, the refugee camp of Sayam Forage (population approximately 6,000) and the IDP camp of Kabelawa (population approximately 10,000). At the end of May and beginning of June 2016, the insurgents carried out a series of violent attacks in the Department of Bosso, in the Diffa region. This has caused another wave of displacement and unprecedented humanitarian needs.

Population Statistics

In May 2016, following a rapid basic census of the population in a number of the spontaneous sites, the Government of Niger estimated that were 241, 256 displaced persons in the Diffa region. This included: 82,524 refugees, 31,524 returnees and 127,208 IDPs. Following the attacks at the end of May and beginning of June, the Regional Directorate for Civil Status and Refugees (DREC-R), supported by UNHCR carried out a rapid registration of newly displaced refugees at a series of key sites. Approximately 69,000 people were counted. During the month of July, the Government stated that there are now at least 280,000 displaced persons in the Diffa region.

Deng Mou/Filip Andersson

Since last week, World Food Programme (WFP) has been airlifting food to more than 4,000 vulnerable households in Aweil Town alone.

According to Elisabeth Henry, Coordinator of the implementing agency Joint Aid Management International (JAM), the food situation in the area is still worrying.

“It is bad, it is deteriorating. The 4,000 households we have reached are not the only one suffering”, she says, and appeals to people in the area to be patient.

Valerie Guanieri, Regional Director at the World Food Programme office in Nairobi, has concluded a food security assessment in Aweil.

“This year, there are some particular hunger challenges in the state that we are addressing through food distribution and nutrition assistance to the populations. We have already done two rounds of distributions, where we have reached a total of 200,000 people in the state. Our aim is to assist 400,000 vulnerable people with food as well as with nutrition support.”

After meeting the WFP Regional Director, the top government official in the area, Ronald Ruay Deng, commended the intervention of the international community to alleviate the hunger situation.

“Since the crisis started, WFP has really stood strongly in their support of the conditions of our citizens in the state. We thank them for really highlighting this problem to the global public, said Ruay, adding that the needs are still “huge” and that more aid is necessary.

UNMISS has played a part in supporting the delivery of the food aid.

“We are not directly involved, but we are core members in the food security cluster meetings and were initially involved in this plan for urgent assistance to the needy population by providing the cluster members with additional information we gathered on the ground during UNMISS patrols in the area", says John Rubaramira, Team Leader of the Mission’s Relief, Reintegration and Protection office in Aweil, adding that these kinds of early warnings are crucial for humanitarian delivery to work.

Apart from such gathering and sharing of information, UNMISS also provides humanitarian partners with technical support, force protection and assessments of the situation in different and sometimes hard-to-reach areas.

KEY FIGURES

1,843
Voluntary returns to Mali facilitated since January 2016

112
New arrivals from Mali in 2016

4,433
Malian refugees with specific needs (as of 1 August 2016)

11,449
Malian households in Mbera camp (as of 1 August 2016)

30L
of potable water available per person per day

FUNDING 2016

USD 19.4 M
Requested for the operation

PRIORITIES

• Maintain protection and assistance for all Malian refugees in Mbera camp.

• Strengthen support to refugees’ self-reliance.

• Maintain peaceful coexistence between the refugees and host communities.

HIGHLIGHTS

• In July, 32 newly displaced sought refuge in Mauritania following the eruption of interethnic violence in northern Mali. Most of the refugees originate from the Mali-Mauritanian border town of Nampala. UNHCR registered and assisted them to settle in Mbera camp.

• Between 25 and 28 July, an extensive Non-Food basic Items distribution took place in Mbera camp. UNHCR distributed more than 17,000 rugs, buckets and jerry cans, more than 82,607 soap bars, more than 23,000 mosquitoes net and more than 13,000 basins.

• On 5 August, in Mbera camp UNHCR launched ceremony for the tree planting campaign “a refugee for a tree” in the presence of the local authorities, UNHCR, IOM, SOS Desert, WLF and Intersos. Music group “Tefleust” played songs for the environment, encouraging participants to start tree planting.

Les rélocalisations volontaires des réfugiés ont été relancées le 8 juillet 2016. Les raisons qui poussent les réfugiés à choisir de se rendre au camp de Sayam Forage sont principalement le sentiment constant d’insécurité et l’absence d’opportunité socioéconomiques.

AMOUNT: EUR 64 800 000

The present Humanitarian Implementation Plan (HIP) was prepared on the basis of financing decision ECHO/WWD/BUD/2016/01000 (Worldwide Decision) and the related General Guidelines for Operational Priorities on Humanitarian Aid (Operational Priorities). The purpose of the HIP and its annex is to serve as a communication tool for ECHO1's partners and to assist in the preparation of their proposals. The provisions of the Worldwide Decision and the General Conditions of the Agreement with the European Commission shall take precedence over the provisions in this document. This HIP covers the Central African Republic (CAR), Chad and Cameroon. It may also respond to sudden or slow-onset new emergencies in Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Sao Tomé and Principe, if important unmet humanitarian needs emerge, given the vulnerabilities of these countries.

0 . MAJOR CHANGES SINCE PREVIOUS VERSION OF THE HIP

Second modification as of 22/07/2016

An increased field presence and some recent improvements in access have enabled the assessment of needs of populations in areas previously not accessed by humanitarian assistance. These assessments have revealed additional emergency situations in all four countries affected by Boko Haram violence, prompting key partners to scale up their response to address the massive humanitarian needs of the affected populations.

In addition to the great number of IDPs and refugee populations in the region (IDPs estimated to be 2.6 million, refugees over 176,000) who are highly dependent on humanitarian assistance, the host and local communities are also increasingly affected, which is impacting their coping capacity. Staple food prices are reported to have increased by an alarming 30% to 50% in the region due to the disruption of regional trade exchanges. Special assistance to affected local communities is therefore also urgently needed.

The areas affected by the Boko Haram violence are part of the Sahel belt and suffer from recurrent droughts and long lean seasons. The recent massive displacements have compounded the structural food insecurity and chronical under-nutrition known in these areas, leading to over 6.7 million people requiring emergency food assistance in the four countries.

In order to reinforce the humanitarian response to the consequences of the Boko Haram crisis in Cameroon, an amount of EUR 2 million is added to this HIP.

In the last few months, the humanitarian consequences of the conflict between national armed forces and Boko Haram in North-East Nigeria and in neighbouring countries around Lake Chad, notably in Cameroon, have resulted in the further deterioration of the nutritional status of affected populations, as well as in increased protection needs. The Far North region of Cameroon currently hosts 65,103 Nigerian refugees and 191,591 internally displaced persons (IDPs), of which 158,490 fleeing Boko Haram's attacks.

The volatile security situation, with continuous violence on civilian populations and threats on humanitarian workers, has been affecting the delivery of humanitarian assistance, leaving critical gaps still unaddressed. In Cameroon, additional food security and livelihood support are critically required in the Far North over the coming months, enabling access to food by the most affected displaced and local populations, while reinforcing their resilience. Specific attention is required to the protection needs of beneficiaries, with protection concerns to be integrated in all interventions. Support is also required to facilitate access.

The additional funding will be partly used to enhance ongoing actions.

OFEIBEA QUIST-ARCTON

Children are among the hardest hit by seven years of Boko Haram's violent insurgency in northeastern Nigeria. Doctors Without Borders warns acutely malnourished children risk starvation and even death. Tens of thousands of people are seeking shelter, food and medical aid, uprooted from their homes by the militants the Nigerian military claims they have defeated.

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By Chika Oduah

ABUJA — Nigeria's health ministry is kicking off a polio vaccination campaign in the northeast, after two fresh cases of the virus were discovered there earlier this month. But the ongoing conflict against Boko Haram may slow down response efforts.

The two new cases in Borno state were discovered within days of what was supposed to be a major milestone for Nigeria, two years without a case of wild polio. It would have started a 12-month countdown to Nigeria and the rest of Africa being certified polio-free.

WHO campaign

But instead, the battle continues. The Ministry of Health, in partnership with UNICEF and the World Health Organization, is launching an operation to vaccinate five million children in the northeast, including one million in Borno state, which is the heart of the Boko Haram insurgency.

Children in areas controlled by Boko Haram did not have access to polio vaccinations during the past two years. In 2013, gunmen killed nine polio immunization workers. The attack was blamed on Boko Haram.

UNICEF said the connection between the conflict and these fresh polio cases cannot be denied.

Nigerian Ministry of Health media officer Olajide Osundu told VOA the ministry is working hard to mitigate risks during this new vaccination drive.

“There is nothing the Ministry of Health will do there without the knowledge and cooperation of the military. So they have already been informed. They will be part of the team that will go around to guarantee safety of the health workers,” said Osundu.

The issue goes beyond polio response.

On July 28, just two and a half weeks ago, unidentified assailants attacked a U.N. humanitarian convoy traveling from Bama to the Borno state capital Maiduguri. The attack prompted the United Nations to temporarily suspend aid operations.

Other medical concerns

Nearly a quarter of a million children in Borno state suffer from life-threatening malnourishment and around one in five will die if they do not receive treatment, according to UNICEF.

Doctors Without Borders has maintained a permanent presence in Borno state since 2014, working to address malnutrition and diseases like cholera and measles.

Doctors Without Borders media officer Shaista Aziz says security precautions slow down work.

“We are working in a volatile area. We are working in an area where there are a lot of people on the move so security is a concern, not only for us and for our teams, but also for everybody else,” said Aziz.

Nigeria's health ministry has not offered a timeline for the polio vaccination drive. Officials say the important thing is to get as many children as they can immunized as soon as possible.