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World: International Year of Pulses closes with call to build upon strong momentum

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Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Country: Burkina Faso, World

Beans, lentils and chickpeas are small but powerful allies in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals

10 February 2017, Rome/Ouagadougou - The International Year of Pulses (IYP) has helped raise awareness globally of the many benefits of pulses, and boosted knowledge sharing and partnerships, but gains must be further strengthened to achieve the international community's Sustainable Development Goals. That was the message from the Year's official closing ceremony, hosted by Burkina Faso with the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

"It is essential to maintain the momentum," said FAO's Deputy Director-General Maria-Helena Semedo at today's ceremony. "Training programmes on the value of pulses should be supported, particularly for schoolchildren, farmers and extension workers. Policies and programmes should focus more on pulse producers, particularly small-holder farmers and young people," she said.

Burkina Faso's President, Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, said: “To better cope with the triple problem of soil fertility management, reducing the adverse effects of climate change and the issue of food security, producing and consuming pulses is a great opportunity, especially for the most vulnerable people.”

Defined as edible dried seeds of plants in the legume family, pulses are packed with minerals such as iron, zinc and folate. From hummus and falafel to dahl and baked beans, pulses have been an important part of diets around the world for centuries.

Finger on the pulse

With the slogan ‘Nutritious Seeds for a Sustainable Future', the International Year of Pulses was launched in November 2015, and the UN General Assembly nominated FAO to lead implementation. Since then, connections have been fostered among key actors from farmers' organizations to the private sector to facilitate information exchange and policy dialogue on the production, trade and consumption of pulses.

Leaders in policy and research have tackled the top pulse issues at several international fora, and national committees have been established. A technical pulses database was created, a cookbook featuring recipes from international chefs was published, and the official multilingual IYP website, with over half a million visits, promoted a rich array of information on pulses.

During today's ceremony, the six IYP Special Ambassadors, represented by leading Egyptian TV chef Magy Habib, were thanked for their dedication and valuable services.

Power-packed pulses to help end hunger

Pulses are a valuable ingredient in achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2 which aims to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.

The plants contribute to climate change adaptation and mitigation. They add large amounts of beneficial nitrogen to the soil and require little fertilizer. Growing pulses with other crops enhances soil fertility, improves both crops' yields, and contributes to a more sustainable food system.

In addition, pulses have a very low water footprint compared to other protein sources, can be grown in very poor soils, and help reduce the risk of soil erosion and depletion. For poor farmers, growing pulses contributes to stable livelihoods, additional income and improved nutrition.

Production on the rise

Overall, global pulse production has been slowly but steadily increasing. In 2014, global production reached 77 million tonnes, up 21 million tonnes since 2001.

In Burkina Faso, where pulses are generally grown by rural women, production is also on the rise. The government estimates that 700 000 tonnes of cowpea and 56 000 tonnes of bambara (or voandzou) beans will be produced this year - around 20 percent more than last year. Though the International Year of Pulses has now officially closed, there has been a sound call to keep the momentum alive and continue activities beyond 2016. FAO will carry on working with stakeholders from governments to family farmers to champion pulses as small but powerful allies in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.


Senegal: GIEWS Country Brief: Senegal 06-February-2017

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Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Country: Senegal

FOOD SECURITY SNAPSHOT

  • Favourable rains and continued Government support contributed to bumper 2016 cereal output for second consecutive year

  • Cereal prices on the decline in December but higher than year earlier levels

  • Improved food security situation anticipated in marketing year 2016/17 (November/October)

Above-average cereal production gathered in 2016

Harvesting of maize and millet, the major grains produced in the country, was completed in November 2016, while the rice harvest was completed in January 2017. Favourable weather conditions and continued Government support to the agricultural sector have contributed to a significant increase in cereal production for the second year in a row. Preliminary estimates put the 2016 aggregate cereal production at about 2.25 million tonnes, 5 percent above the previous year’s bumper output and about 55 percent above-average. Maize output was almost double the level of the previous five years, while production of millet, the most important staple crop, decreased by about 7 percent compared to the 2015 output, but was still 24 percent above average. The good precipitation levels also improved pasture conditions throughout the country.

A bumper crop was already gathered in 2015 following favourable rains and Government support. The 2015 aggregate cereals production was estimated at some 2.15 million tonnes, 72 percent above the previous year’s level and 56 percent above the average of the previous five years.

Cereal prices on the decline

Good supplies from the new 2016 harvest have resulted in price declines for coarse grains. However, prices in December 2016 were still above their year‑earlier levels. For example, aggregate millet prices in December 2016 were 12 percent higher than their levels in December 2015. By contrast, prices of local and imported rice were nearly at the same levels as in the previous year. Generally, domestic production covers a little over half of the country’s cereal utilization requirements. Therefore, Senegal continues to rely heavily on rice imports from the international market to meet its food requirements.

Food security situation mostly stable reflecting two consecutive years of bumper harvests

A large segment of the Senegalese population relies on traditional agriculture and livestock-related activities to maintain their livelihoods, and, therefore, remains in a state of chronic vulnerability due to unpredictable seasonal rains and climatic conditions. Moreover, the high import dependency rate for food exposes the population to fluctuations in the global market.

The bumper harvests gathered over the last two years are expected to significantly improve the fragile food security situation. However, according to the last “Cadre Harmonisé” analysis conducted in the country, about 345 000 people were estimated to be in Phase 3: Crisis and above.

World: For the long run A mapping of migration-related activities in the wider Sahel region

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Source: Clingendael
Country: Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Eritrea, Gambia, Greece, Iraq, Italy, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey, World

By Jaïr van der Lijn

1 The context

Since the start of the migration crisis in 2015, the European Union (EU) has focused its political and financial attention on restricting irregular migration flows to the EU from amongst others the Sahel-Lake Chad-Libya region—Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad,
Gambia, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria and Senegal. In 2015 the total influx of irregular migrants into the EU spiked and was dominated by the flow of refugees from in particular Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq fleeing violence and entering via Greece. From the region under review only Nigeria, with 2 percent of the total 2015 Mediterranean arrivals, made it into the top 10.
However, after the 18 March 2016 EU-Turkey agreement, the arrivals via Italy have become by far the most dominant once again. Since 2013 this flow has been comparably stable. After quadrupling to 170 100 in 2014 the numbers were 153 842 in 2015 and 181 436 in 2016. About 40 percent of this flow originates from the countries under review, of which about half emanate from Nigeria. The other roughly 60 percent of the arrivals via Italy in 2016 originate predominantly from Sudan, Eritrea and a number of West African and South Asian countries.
This paper aims to provide a quick mapping of the crisis management and peace operations as well as the most relevant international and regional actors that deal or may deal with irregular migration-related issues in the Sahel-Lake Chad-Libya region.

In addition, it provides a first appreciation of these efforts. For such an assessment, the following contextual issues that complicate European policies to address irregular migration in the region are important background factors:

(1) Most of the irregular migration in the Sahel region (84 percent) is intra-regional, follows a historical pattern and often has a seasonal character.

(2) As Burkina Faso, Gambia, Mali, Niger,
Nigeria and Senegal are members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) which aspires to become a common market like the EU through ‘the removal, between Member States, of obstacles to the free movement of persons, goods, services and capital, and to the right of residence and establishment’ many of the countries under review do not favour policies to strengthen borders within the region.

(3) A number of the countries in the region have limited political will to restrict or control irregular migration to Europe as they benefit strongly from the remittances that migrants send home. Remittances are a stable source of the GDP in the Gambia (24 percent), Senegal (12 percent), Mali (8 percent) and Nigeria (4 percent), far more important than official development assistance (ODA).

(4) Particularly in some of the transit countries the trafficking networks are deeply embedded in the national and local political economy, and indirectly and sometimes directly sustain governmental actors and institutions.
Consequently, strengthening government capacity may increase government activity in combating some trafficking networks, but may not necessarily reduce irregular migration.

(5) Large sections of the trafficking routes run through unstable regions such as northern Mali and Libya, where governments, crisis management and peace operations as well as relevant organizations do not have a firm foothold. In such regions the government is but one of the security actors, and strengthening its capacity is not always considered to be a neutral act. As such it may not always be a conflict-sensitive approach and may even have destabilizing effects in the long run.
On the other hand, throughout the region there is a sense of urgency in dealing with the demographic pressure and particularly the increasing numbers of unemployed and marginalized youth; ungoverned or weakly governed spaces in and around porous borders; underdevelopment; and terrorist organizations. In spite of the above difficulties, these interests open up room for cooperation with the EU and its member states.

Niger: World Bank Supports West Africa Agricultural Productivity Program

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Source: World Bank
Country: Benin, Guinea, Niger, Togo

WASHINGTON, February 3, 2017—The World Bank approved today additional credits for the West Africa Agricultural Productivity Program (WAAPP-1C). The total amount is $68 million, with $20 million for Benin, $23 million for Guinea, $15 million for Niger, and $10 million for Togo.

“One of the main challenges in West Africa is satisfying the demands of a rapidly growing population that is expected to increase from 300 million in 2011 to about 500 million by 2030,” said Rachid Benmessaoud, Country Director for Nigeria and Coordinating Director for West Africa Regional Integration Program. “This additional financing will build on WAAPP’s successful achievements so far and speed up adoption of improved technologies and innovations.”

The Program was already able to increase beneficiaries’ yields and income by at least 30 percent and reduce the hunger period by half and improve nutrition standards, resulting from the adoption of new crop varieties, improved crop management practices, and improved small scale food processing technologies.

Activities to be financed through additional financing will include:

  • the transformation of the National Centers of Specialization into Regional Centers of Excellence;

  • the consolidation and expansion of the regional exchange of agricultural technologies and innovations through the regional technology market for scaled up dissemination and adoption;

  • the modernization of the agricultural extension services and technology transfer systems, including expanded use of innovative approaches being piloted under the project in some countries— Innovation Platforms (IPs) and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)-based instruments such as the E-extension and E-voucher instruments; and

  • the strengthening of both the national seed production and distribution systems and the regional seed market to ensure the availability and use of certified quality seeds.

Drawing on the experiences from WAAPP Burkina Faso and Benin, the additional financing will also finance activities related to citizens’ engagement in each of the four recipient countries.

For more information about the World Bank’s work in Benin, Guinea, Niger, and Togo visit:

http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/benin

http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/guinea

http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/niger

http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/togo

For more information about IDA, please visit: www.worldbank.org/ida

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MEDIA CONTACTS

In Conakry and Niamey
Habibatou Gologo
Tel : +223 20 70 22 06
hgologo@worldbank.org

In Cotonou and Lome
Sylvie Nenonene
Tel : +229-21-30-5857
Snenonene@worldbank.org

In Washington
Ekaterina Svirina
Tel : +1 (202) 458-1042
esvirina@worldbank.org

Niger: La Banque mondiale renforce son soutien au Programme de productivité agricole en Afrique de l’Ouest

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Source: World Bank
Country: Benin, Guinea, Niger, Togo

WASHINGTON, le 3 février 2017 – La Banque mondiale a approuvé aujourd’hui des crédits supplémentaires d’un montant total de 68 millions de dollars en faveur du Programme de productivité agricole en Afrique de l’Ouest (PPAAO). Cette enveloppe de financement se répartit comme suit : 20 millions de dollars sont destinés au Bénin, 23 millions de dollars à la Guinée, 15 millions de dollars au Niger, et 10 millions de dollars au Togo.

« La population ouest-africaine passera de 300 millions d’habitants en 2011 à environ 500 millions en 2030. Comment satisfaire la demande d’une population qui croît rapidement ? C’est l’un des plus grands défis auxquels est confrontée l’Afrique de l’Ouest, explique Rachid Benmessaoud, directeur des opérations de la Banque mondiale au Nigéria et coordinateur du programme d’intégration régionale en Afrique de l’Ouest. Ce financement additionnel mettra à profit les réalisations déjà obtenues dans le cadre du PPAAO et permettra d’accélérer l’adoption de technologies améliorées et d’innovations agricoles. »

Grâce à l’introduction de nouvelles variétés de cultures, de pratiques culturales améliorées et de petits systèmes de transformation des produits agricoles, le programme est déjà parvenu à accroître d’au moins 30 % les récoltes et les revenus des petits producteurs concernés, tout en réduisant de moitié la période de soudure et en améliorant la situation nutritionnelle des ménages.

Les crédits supplémentaires approuvés aujourd’hui financeront principalement les activités suivantes :

  • la transformation des centres nationaux de spécialisation en centres régionaux d’excellence ;

  • la consolidation et l’expansion des échanges régionaux de technologies et d’innovations agricoles afin de généraliser leur diffusion et leur adoption ;

  • la modernisation des services de vulgarisation agricole et des systèmes de transfert de technologies, en étendant notamment les approches novatrices actuellement expérimentées par le projet dans un certain nombre de pays (plateformes d’innovation et outils basés sur les technologies de l’information et de la communication tels que les services de vulgarisation agricole électroniques et les bons prépayés électroniques pour l’accès aux intrants) ;

  • le renforcement parallèle des systèmes nationaux de production et de distribution de semences et du marché régional de semences, afin de garantir la disponibilité et l’utilisation de graines certifiées.

En outre, dans chacun des quatre pays concernés, ces fonds additionnels financeront des activités liées à la participation citoyenne, en s’inspirant de l’expérience acquise par le PPAAO au Burkina Faso et au Bénin.

Pour en savoir plus sur les activités de la Banque mondiale au Bénin, en Guinée, au Niger et au Togo :

http://www.banquemondiale.org/fr/country/benin

http://www.banquemondiale.org/fr/country/guinea

http://www.banquemondiale.org/fr/country/niger

http://www.banquemondiale.org/fr/country/togo

Pour en savoir plus sur l’IDA : ida.banquemondiale.org

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CONTACTS MÉDIAS

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Habibatou Gologo
Téléphone : +223 20 70 22 06
hgologo@worldbank.org

À Cotonou et Lomé
Sylvie Nenonene
Téléphone : +229-21-30-5857
Snenonene@worldbank.org

À Washington
Ekaterina Svirina
Téléphone : +1 (202) 458-1042
esvirina@worldbank.org

World: Famine looms in four countries as aid system struggles to cope, experts warn

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Source: Guardian
Country: Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, World, Yemen

Campaigners say tens of millions in urgent need in Yemen, South Sudan, Nigeria and Somalia are in hands of an overwhelmed, outdated humanitarian network

Karen McVeigh and Ben Quinn

Famine is looming in four different countries, threatening unprecedented levels of hunger and a global crisis that is already stretching the aid and humanitarian system like never before, experts and insiders warn.

Tens of millions of people in need of food aid in Yemen, South Sudan, Nigeria and Somalia are at the mercy not only of an overwhelmed aid system but also the protracted, mainly conflict-driven crises in their own countries, the humanitarian leaders say.

Read the full article here

South Sudan: South Sudan 2017 Humanitarian Response Plan (January - December 2017)

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Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Country: Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sudan

Objectives

Under the 2017 South Sudan Humanitarian Response Plan, humanitarian partners aim to respond to the most life-threatening needs of 5.8 million people out of an estimated 7.5 million in need of humanitarian protection and assistance across South Sudan.

In the face of rapidly growing needs, the plan represents the result of robust prioritization and difficult decision-making by humanitarian partners. It focuses on intervening in locations where the most lives are at risk and implementing activities with the greatest life-saving potential. Recognizing that South Sudan is first and foremost a protection crisis, a separate strategic objective on protection has been re-instated, and the centrality of protection has been reiterated throughout all aspects of the plan. The plan acknowledges that, given the expansion and deepening of the crisis, humanitarians will be able to meet only the most urgent and severe needs.
It is therefore circumspect in its ambitions and, rather than aiming to build resilience, focuses on responding in a way that bolsters the ability of those most at risk – particularly in hard-to-reach areas – to respond to the threats they face. The plan was developed in complement to the United Nations Country Team’s Interim Cooperation Framework (ICF), which includes efforts to build resilience and strengthen basic services, with every effort made to eliminate duplication and ensure maximum synergies between the plans. As South Sudan is a uniquely challenging and costly operational environment, the plan endeavours to maximize efficiency, in line with the Grand Bargain signed at the World Humanitarian Summit, including through the use of common logistical services core pipelines. Throughout 2017, humanitarian partners will continue to urge relevant authorities to allocate resources for humanitarian action, in line with their responsibilities.

  • 1 Save lives and alleviate the suffering of those most in need of assistance and protection Aims to reduce excess death, injury and disease in South Sudan through strictly prioritized response in areas where needs are most severe. This objective encapsulates humanitarian partners’ commitment to good programming, conflict sensitivity, and upholding the core principle of do no harm, including through meaningful two-way communication with communities affected by the crisis. It stresses the importance of people’s ability to access humanitarian assistance and protection in safety and dignity

  • 2 Protect the rights and uphold the dignity of the most vulnerable Recognizes that South Sudan is first and foremost a protection crisis and underscores the centrality of protection of civilians to the response. This objective highlights the role of humanitarians in advocating to prevent further violence, calling on all parties to uphold their responsibilities under international humanitarian law, establishing effective and dignified services for survivors, and promoting programming that reduces the protection risks faced by different population groups, particularly women, girls and boys. It also calls for all elements of the humanitarian response to be informed by a more in-depth understanding of the unique needs and vulnerabilities of different population groups.

  • 3 Support at-risk communities to sustain their capacity to cope with significant threats Focuses on supporting at-risk communities to prepare for and manage the threats they face as a result of the multiple and inter-locking crises in South Sudan. The objective is circumspect, finite and focused on promoting concrete actions that humanitarians can take to help communities cope, including through the use of innovative modalities in hard-to-reach areas and encouraging community-based contingency planning. Recognising that the humanitarian contribution is bounded, humanitarian partners will engage intensively with authorities and development actors to promote resilience-building and the restoration of basic services across South Sudan, particularly through the Interim Cooperation Framework.

South Sudan: Humanitarian organizations appeal for $1.6 billion amidst rising needs

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Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Country: South Sudan

(Juba, 13 February 2017): Humanitarian organizations are appealing for US$1.6 billion to provide life-saving assistance and protection to 5.8 million people across South Sudan in 2017.

“The humanitarian situation in South Sudan has deteriorated dramatically due to the devastating combination of conflict, economic decline and climatic shocks,” said Mr. Eugene Owusu, the Humanitarian Coordinator for South Sudan. “In 2017, we are facing unprecedented needs, in an unprecedented number of locations, and these needs will increase during the upcoming lean season.”

Humanitarian organizations estimate that some 7.5 million people across South Sudan are now in need of humanitarian assistance and protection. Since the conflict in South Sudan began in December 2013, about 3.4 million people have been forced to flee their homes, including nearly 1.9 million people who have been internally displaced and about 1.5 million who have fled as refugees to neighbouring countries.

Horrendous atrocities have been reported, including widespread sexual violence. Food insecurity and malnutrition have skyrocketed, and the risk of famine is significant for thousands of people in conflict-affected communities and food deficit areas if early actions are not taken.

“With needs rising rapidly, we have rigorously prioritized the 2017 Humanitarian Response Plan to target those who most urgently require assistance and protection,” said Mr. Owusu. “It is imperative that this appeal is funded early, and funded fully, so that the aid workers deployed across South Sudan can respond robustly and rapidly.”

In South Sudan, humanitarian organizations use the window of opportunity provided by the dry season to deliver supplies by road. When the rains set in – usually in May – most roads become impassable and supplies must be delivered by air, multiplying the cost of the humanitarian operation, which is one of the largest and most complex in the world. Swift action during the dry season is therefore imperative.

“In 2016, we reached more than 5 million people, but the crisis deepened and spread as conflict continued. In 2017, we are determined to reach more people but we urgently need the funding to do so,” said Mr. Owusu. “I appeal to the international community, which has given so generously to this young country, to support us now. If we fail to act swiftly, lives may be lost.”

One hundred and thirty-seven aid organizations including 62 national Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) -a 55 per cent increase from 2016-, 63 international NGOs and 12 United Nations entities aim to implement projects under the 2017 Humanitarian Response Plan.

For more details, please consult the Humanitarian Response Plan and the Humanitarian Needs Overview.

Download the press statement here.

For more information, contact the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in South Sudan: Frank Nyakairu, nyakairu@un.org / +211 922406012 Guiomar Pau Sole, pausole@un.org / +211 920100411

For more information about the humanitarian situation in South Sudan, visit: www.unocha.org/South-Sudanhttp://southsudan.humanitarianresponse.info/

Facebook: UNOCHA SouthSudan | Twitter @OCHASouthSudan


South Sudan: UNMISS PoC Update No. 152

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Source: UN Mission in South Sudan
Country: South Sudan

UNMISS “Protection of Civilians” (PoC) Sites

  • As of 09 February 2017, a total of number of civilians seeking safety in six Protection of Civilians (PoC) sites located on UNMISS bases is 223,926 including 120,011 in Bentiu, 33,191 in Malakal, 38,942 in Juba UN House, 1,976 in Bor, 681 in Melut and 200 in Wau, in Western Bahr El Ghazal adjusted area 28,925.

World: Japan’s US$85 Million Donation Helps Feed Millions of Hungry People in 33 Countries

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Source: World Food Programme
Country: Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Guinea, Iraq, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Malawi, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Swaziland, Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey, Uganda, World, Yemen, Zimbabwe

YOKOHAMA – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) welcomed the announcement last week of a US$85.2 million cash contribution from the Government of Japan. The donation will enable WFP to provide vital food and nutrition assistance in 33 countries across Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

“This generous donation comes at a time when increasing numbers of vulnerable people around the globe are desperately seeking safety, food and hope for tomorrow,” said Kojiro Nakai, Officer-in-Charge of WFP Japan Office. “We are most grateful for Japan’s leadership in promoting the “humanitarian-development nexus” (the linking relief and development assistance) through sustainable solutions addressing both urgent hunger needs and underlying causes. Together with Japan, WFP will continue to work towards zero hunger.”

About half of the donation from Japan, or US$47 million, will support WFP’s operations in 23 African countries, particularly in response to slow-onset crises in Malawi, Lesotho and Swaziland, where the El Niño phenomenon has severely affected the food security of millions of people.

In Malawi, Japan’s funds will enable WFP to purchase maize, pulses and vegetable oil for nearly 420,000 food-insecure people to benefit from seamless relief, recovery and resilience-building activities in collaboration with partners including the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

About forty percent of the total contribution will be allocated to assist refugees and internally-displaced people in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Nigeria and neighbouring Cameroon. The largest portion of the contribution, totalling US$13 million, will provide life-saving food and vouchers to 340,000 people in Yemen, currently suffering one of the largest, yet least reported humanitarian crises.

WFP logistics operations will also benefit from Japan’s donation in Afghanistan, Sudan, and South Sudan, where the agency runs the United Nations Humanitarian Air Service, providing critical air transport and cargo services for the entire humanitarian community.

The contributions are broken down as follows:

Yemen (US$13 million), Iraq (US$7.1 million), Jordan (US$6 million), Niger (US$ 5.1 million), South Sudan (US$4.1 million), Turkey (US$4 million), Afghanistan (US$3.2 million), Mauritania (US$2.9 million), Somalia (US$2.9 million), Uganda (US$2.9 million), Malawi (US$2.6 million), Central African Republic (US$2.2 million), Democratic Republic of the Congo (US$ 2.2 million), Guinea (US$2.2 million), Ethiopia (US$2.2 million), Kenya (US$2.2 million), Lebanon (US$2 million), Burundi (US$1.5 million), Cameroon (US$1.5 million), Chad (US$1.5 million), Sierra Leone (US$1.5 million), Zimbabwe (US$1.5 million), Rwanda (US$1.5 million), Lesotho (US$1.2 million), Djibouti (US$1.1 million), Burkina Faso (US$1 million), Sudan (US$1 million), Syria (US$1 million), Nigeria (US$1 million), Swaziland (US$1 million), Republic of Congo (US$0.9 million), Libya (US$0.7 million), Egypt (US$0.5 million).

Cameroon: Cameroun: Weekly Notes #75 29 Jan – 04 Fév 2017

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

Sécurité

La situation sécuritaire dans la région de l’Extrême-Nord demeure préoccupante, et plus particulièrement dans l’arrondissement de Waza où la présence des combattants de Boko Haram a été signalée après la reconquête de la forêt de Sambisa par l’armée nigériane. Dans la nuit du 29 au 30 Janvier, un groupe de combattants de Boko Haram a attaqué le village d’Ouro-Moussa Kambo dans l’arrondissement de Fotokol. Un homme a été tué et trois autres blessés.

Le 31 janvier, un triple attentat-suicide a eu lieu au village Kochelé/Doublé, à une vingtaine de kilomètres de Mora. Six personnes parmi lesquelles les trois kamikazes ont trouvé la mort et douze autres ont été blessées.

Dans la région de l’Adamaoua, une mission onusienne conjointe pour la surveillance de la démarcation de la frontière Cameroun-Nigeria, a été attaquée par des hommes armés non identifiés le 31 janvier à Kontcha, à 30 km de la frontière dans le département du Faro et Deo. Cinq personnes ont trouvé la mort.

Par ailleurs, toujours dans l’Adamaoua, des commerçants Centrafricains sont tombés dans une embuscade tendue par un groupe armé d’Anti-balakas à Toubango (à 45 kms de Yamba) en revenant du marché frontalier de Yamba situé à 140 kms au nord-est de Meiganga. Une dizaine de personnes y ont trouvé la mort parmi lesquelles un réfugié installé à Yamba.

Développements majeurs

Dans le cadre d’un appui ponctuel pour le programme nutrition à Minawao, une mission exploratoire de l’organisation sud-coréenne « Good Neighbours » a séjourné à l’Extrême-Nord au cours de la période sous revue. Basée à Yaoundé depuis 2014 et intervenant dans le domaine du développement communautaire dans les régions du Centre et du Sud Cameroun, cette mission prévoie d’apporter un appui d’une valeur de 20 millions de FCFA. Elle a identifié comme axes prioritaires l’approvisionnement en intrant nutritionnel (produits alimentaires locaux) pour les enfants malnutris modérés et les enfants ne faisant plus partie du programme de traitement de la malnutrition sévère ; et le renforcement du réseau communautaire de dépistage et de sensibilisation sur la malnutrition.

Région de l’Extrême-Nord

Statistiques

Le camp de Minawao compte un total de 61 102 individus (16 430 ménages) enregistrés au 04 Février.

Protection

Un total de 133 individus (63 ménages) est arrivé spontanément au centre de transit de Gourounguel au cours de la période sous revue, en provenance de Maiduguri, Mubi au Nigéria, et quelques localités du Cameroun (Zelevet, et des villages près de Mora). Ressortissantes des Etats de Borno et de l’Adamawa au Nigéria, ces demandeurs d’asile arrivent au Cameroun en vue de regroupement familial et en quête d’assistance et de protection.

Par ailleurs, un total de120 individus (46 ménages) ont été screenés et transférés du centre de transit vers le camp de Minawao.

Dans le cadre de l’amélioration de l’environnement de protection des réfugiés, un atelier de formation conjoint HCR/ONUFEMMES s’est tenu du 1er au 03 Février à Maroua, à l’intention des agents de police. Un total de 60 officiers supérieurs et sous-officiers des départements du Logone et Chari, du Mayo Sava, du Mayo Tsanaga et du Diamare ont ainsi été formés sur la protection internationale et les violences basées sur le genre

Mobilisation communautaire

Dans le cadre de la promotion de la coexistence pacifique, deux séances de sensibilisation ont été organisées à Minawao et ont touché 2 180 personnes. La première portait sur l’interdiction de la consommation des médicaments de la rue, et la seconde sur l’interdiction de séjour des personnes étrangères au camp en raison de l’entrée et du séjour récurrents d’individus non autorisés. Les réfugiés sont invités à dénoncer les familles qui reçoivent des visiteurs dans leurs ménages sans informer ou encore des personnes qui viennent directement s’installer au camp sans passer par le screening au centre de transit.

Régions de l’Est, de l’Adamaoua et du Nord

Protection

Le 2 février, des affrontements entre anti-Balaka et le Retour, Réclamations, Réhabilitation (3R) à Bocaranga, préfecture d'Ouham-Pendé, en République centrafricaine, ont conduit à des mouvements de populations civiles vers le Cameroun, notamment à Mbaiboum. Une mission de monitoring vers cette localité a constaté l’arrivée de 73 personnes (26 ménages). Ces nouveaux arrivés rencontrés par nos équipes ont tous été accueillis au sein des familles déjà installés à Mbaiboum. Un premier screening précèdera l’enregistrement et la documentation. Les nouveaux arrivés ont indiqué que certains membres de leurs familles arriveront à leur tour à Mbaiboum dans les prochains jours.

Education

En vue d’améliorer les taux de fréquentation des élèves réfugiés à l’Est, les services communautaires du HCR ont tenu une rencontre avec les élèves réfugiés du lycée de Guiwa Yangamo et du lycée bilingue de Bertoua avec pour but d’identifier les difficultés auxquelles font face ces élèves au sein de l’établissement et de la communauté. La modicité des moyens de subsistance face à des besoins toujours croissants, l’insuffisance des fournitures et manuels scolaires apparaissent comme les principales causes d’absentéisme et d’abandon scolaire. Les élèves ont également été sensibilisés sur l’importance de l’éducation, sur le rôle central qu’ils doivent jouer pour améliorer leurs performances scolaires, et sur les mariages et grossesses précoces des jeunes filles.

Biométrie

L’opération de vérification/enrôlement des réfugiés à la biométrie dans les régions de l’Est, de l’Adamaoua et du Nord se poursuit, notamment dans les centres de Mandjou à l’Est et de Garga Limbona dans l’Adamaoua où un total de 1 888 individus (994 femmes et 894 hommes) a été enrôlé au cours de la semaine sous rubrique. Ceci porte à 130 793 (69 112 femmes et 31 681 hommes) le nombre de personnes vérifiées depuis le début de l’opération en Février 2016.
L’opération se poursuivra dans les localités de Libongo à l’Est et de Boforo dans l’Adamaoua.

Sécurité alimentaire

L’enquête auprès des ménages qui s’inscrit dans le cadre du processus de ciblage basée sur la vulnérabilité se poursuit à Batouri et Meiganga. Quatorze jours après le début de la collecte des données, un total de 32 048 ménages sur 48 344 ménages planifiés, a été enquêté, soit un taux de réalisation de 66%. La collecte des données se poursuit sur le terrain selon le planning établi dans les 02 régions. Cette enquête a pour but de réajuster et d’affiner le ciblage pour les distributions des vivres en priorisant les plus vulnérables, suite à la diminution de 50% de la ration alimentaire des réfugiés centrafricains du fait d’un sous-financement alarmant du PAM.
A la suite de certains manquements remarqués lors de la supervision de la distribution générale des vivres du mois de Janvier dont le non-respect des procédures standardisées et l’absence de standardisation des récipients servant d’outils de calibrage lors des distributions, le HCR a tenu une séance de travail avec le FICR / CRC en vue de rectifier ces manquements. A l’issue de cette réunion, le partenaire s’est engagé à procéder à la standardisation des récipients de distribution et à respecter les procédures et les mécanismes de veille. La FICR/CRC a par ailleurs sollicité l’appui du HCR pour déployer sur le terrain des hangars mobiles acquis pour faciliter les distributions en dehors des sites.

Promotion du volontariat

Dans le cadre de la célébration de la 51ème édition de la fête de la jeunesse au Cameroun le 11 Février prochain et en vue de renforcer les capacités d’employabilité des jeunes, les Volontaires des Nations Unies (VNU) du HCRMeiganga ont échangé avec 70 jeunes (40 camerounais et 30 réfugiés) dont les jeunes animateurs communautaires de la Délégation de la jeunesse de Meiganga et le bureau du comité des jeunes réfugiés. Ceux-ci ont été entretenus sur « comment devenir VNU » avec pour objectif de susciter en eux des vocations de volontariat dans la mesure où les jeunes réfugiés peuvent être candidats aux postes de VNU

Gambia: WFP Provides Critical Support To Households Hit By Windstorm And Flooding

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Source: World Food Programme
Country: Gambia

BANJUL – Up to 10,000 people across the Gambia are set to receive cash assistance from the UN World Food Programme (WFP), enabling them to buy food and meet their immediate needs.

Families affected by the 2016 windstorm and flooding in areas in Banjul, Kanifing, West Coast Region, Lower River Region, Central River Region, North Bank Region and Upper River Region are receiving 3, 680 Dalasi per month over the next three months (totalling US$150) to stabilize their food security and nutritional status.

WFP’s response is part of a joint effort of the government, humanitarian partners and NGOs. In August 2016, heavy rains coupled with wind storms and flash floods damaged food stocks, livelihoods, property, infrastructure, schools, drinking water systems, rice fields and other food crops. All were affected but children under 5 years of age were most at risk, as they make up at least 26 percent of the affected population.

“WFP is committed to supporting the Government respond to the dire needs of the hardest hit communities”, said Angela Cespedes, WFP Representative and Country Director.

“We will be working together with partners to help alleviate the suffering caused by the windstorm and floods”, she continued.

WFP, in consultation with the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA), The Gambia Red Cross Society, Concern Universal and local authorities has registered all beneficiaries using a new digital registration platform – SCOPE.

The Gambia has experienced frequent climate related disasters over the past 5 years. As the Chair of the UN Disaster Management Group, WFP is assisting in coordinating a harmonized national disaster preparedness and response plan.

###

WFP is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience. Each year, WFP assists some 80 million people in around 80 countries.

Follow us on Twitter @wfp_media @WFP_WAfrica

For more information please contact
(email address: firstname.lastname@wfp.org):
Isatou Njai, WFP/Banjul, Tel: +221-9988889

Mauritania: The productive transfers /CASH+ approach in the Sahel

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Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Country: Mali, Mauritania

In southern Mauritania, it is about one PM when Nejiha returns from the Monguél village market. Her eldest daughter is busy preparing lunch under the khaïma, while her brothers play cards a few meters away, without being distracted by the smell of frying food in the courtyard. At age 55, Nejiha is the head of a family of nine children and four grandchildren since her ex-husband left her. She is one of the beneficiaries of the "Productive Transfers / CASH +" project implemented by FAO in the wilaya of Gogol. The project, funded by Finland, aims to strengthen the resilience of vulnerable populations in Mauritania and Mali.

The CASH+ approach flexibly combines unconditional cash transfers with transfers of inkind productive assets, accompanied by technical training, to benefit vulnerable and food insecure households. In the Gorgol region, two different transfers of a similar total value have been distributed, and their respective impact in the short and medium term are compared. The first kit, of which Nejiha benefited, includes three cash transfers for a total value of 96,000 MRO (USD 270), while the other kit combines a single cash transfer of 20,000 MRO (USD 56) and the provision of three goats.

Nejiha supports most of the expenses of the family, as her new husband Abdou, a meat cutter, only gets irregular income. As soon as the opportunity arises, Nejiha invests in income-generating activities, which she has done here. "With the first cash transfer, I immediately invested in a small business. I stock up my display at the market which allows me to earn between 6,000 and 7,000 MRO per month, thank God” Nejiha says. "To know in advance when I was going to get the cash allowed me to organize with my creditors, and to use the profits of my business wisely.” The second transfer enabled her to repay her creditors and to cover the family's food and health expenses, while the last one was mostly used to increase the capital of her business, repay family debts and pay school fees.

Despite the cumbersome tasks to be accomplished every day, Nejiha does her best to keep her children going to school. In the Gorgol region, where productive transfers are implemented, three-quarters of the women are heads of households. More than half of them are illiterate, operate on low incomes and are dependent on external aid, making them more vulnerable to food insecurity.

Cash transfers help ensure a better access to food and to income generating activities, that can in turn help vulnerable households better cope with shocks. A significant number of FAO’s beneficiaries take this opportunity to invest in projects that are useful not only in the short term, but in a sustainable way. According to Nejiha, this support came at the right time and undeniably served as a stepping stone, and is giving her confidence in the future.

Nigeria: Food security and humanitarian implications in West Africa and the Sahel, N°80 - December 2016 - January 2017

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Source: World Food Programme, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Country: Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal

KEY POINTS

  • Food situation remains good in the region with new harvests. The off season crop campaign in the region is ongoing.

  • Niger recorded a forage production deficit.

  • Locust infestation decreased in December in the areas affected by recent resurgences in Mauritania.

  • The FAO food price index dropped for the fifth consecutive year.

The agro pastoral prospects are globally positive in West Africa and in the Sahel, causing an increase of supply and a seasonal decline of prices across most of the region’s markets.

In Cameroon, the 2016 cereal production showed an overall decrease compared to the previous campaign, particularly in the Extreme-North region (-25 percent) as a result of the Boko Haram crisis.

The start of the off-season crop campaign in the region could contribute to the improvement of product availability as observed during the main season.

With the exception of Niger, the livestock farming conditions in the region is characterized by pastures that are still overall well supplied and water point levels that favor better livestock conditions. Niger recorded a general fodder production deficit; the pastoral situation requires more attention during this year.

South Sudan: WFP South Sudan Situation Report #163, 13 February 2017

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Source: World Food Programme
Country: South Sudan, Uganda

In Numbers

1.83 million internally displaced people (OCHA)

1,291,323 South Sudanese refugees (UNHCR)

223,994 seeking shelter with the UN (UNMISS)

4.6 million people projected to require food assistance from January—April 2017 (WFP estimate)

Highlights

  • In response to ongoing fighting in Upper Nile, WFP is preparing a response to assist recently displaced populations.

  • The 2017 prepositioning plan has been finalized through which WFP aims to deliver 114,000mt of food to secure locations throughout the country over the next four months.

Highlights

  • WFP is closely monitoring the security situation in Upper Nile where heavy fighting has been reported leading to the displacement of the local population. WFP and World Vision are planning to deploy an integrated rapid response mechanism (IRRM) team in the coming week to conduct a headcount and food distribution in Aburoc—a location where displaced populations have congregated. The IRRM team will also look at mitigation measures for protection concerns including mobility and vulnerability issues.

  • Ongoing fighting and insecurity in the Equatorias continues to result in high levels of displacement, with an average of 3,657 new arrivals reported in Uganda per day. The majority (86 percent) of new arrivals are women and children, and more than half are children under age 18.


Central African Republic: Central Africa spurs disaster risk reduction

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Source: UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction
Country: Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe

By Flaviane Belval and Evelyne Karanja

YAOUNDE, 13 February 2017– Collective action by regional organisations is a key means to help countries reduce their risk of disasters, and the Economic Community of Central African States is stepping up its efforts to rein in the impact of hazards amid rising pressure from climate change.

The ECCAS secretariat, plus its 11 member states and partners have together set out a disaster risk management and climate change action plan to be implemented over the course of this year.

The ECCAS groups Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Rwanda, and Sao Tome and Principe. Its member states include some of the least developed countries in the world.

Common disasters in their region number epidemics, droughts, floods, and storms.

Out of a total of 36 countries worldwide with ‘very high’ and ‘high’ risk profiles, half of them are African, according to the INFORM Index for Risk Management. Central African Republic, Chad, and Democratic Republic of Congo are in the top 10 ranking for the highest overall disaster risks.

Central African Republic and Chad are among the 10 countries globally facing the highest levels of risk in the Climate Change and Environmental Risk Atlas. Of the 32 countries identified globally as the most vulnerable in the atlas, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad and Democratic Republic of Congo are also at ‘extreme risk’ in the Food Security Risk Index and exhibit high levels of poverty and/or conflict and displacement, all of which compound the potential impact of hazards.

Countries around the world raised the bar for disaster risk reduction and climate change action in 2015, when they adopted an interlocking set of agreements as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The accords included the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the Paris Agreement on climate change and the Sustainable Development Goals.

The Fifth Session of the Central Africa Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction, in December in Cameroon’s capital Yaoundé, convened to focus on the need to synergise the Sendai Framework and the Paris Agreement in order to implement the Central Africa Strategy on Risk Prevention and Disaster Management.

"The regional platform placed under the aegis of ECCAS is a crucial body that allows stakeholders to share their achievements and constraints and to jointly face the challenges posed by disasters in a coordinated and harmonised way," said Ms. Elisabeth Huybens, Director of the World Bank Office in Cameroon.

A total of 75 representatives drawn from ECCAS states, national focal points in disaster risk reduction, climate, water and meteorology, UNISDR, the World Bank Group’s Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR), civil society and the Parliamentarians Network for Resilience to Disasters in Central Africa (REPARC) attended the meeting.

The session came just weeks after the adoption of the ‘Programme of Action for the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 in Africa’ at the Sixth Session of Africa Regional Platform and Fifth High Level Meeting on Disaster Risk Reduction, held in November in Mauritius.

One of the areas spotlighted in Yaoundé was the ECCAS disaster risk reduction data base, which will support the development of policies, strategies, institutions, early warning system and human resources was completed and validated.

Member States were also called upon to develop and strengthen disaster risk reduction frameworks and dialogue among all stakeholders, to ensure for better synergy in disaster resilience actions. They were also requested to ensure that their national strategies are developed and aligned with the Sendai Framework and other global agreements.

To ensure greater impact on policy decisions, the meeting also decided that REPARC – which was launched in 2015 with support from UNISDR and GFDRR – be involved in a multi-year programme entitled ‘Building Disaster Resilience to Natural Hazards in Sub-Saharan African Regions, Countries and Communities’, funded by the European Union in support of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States.

The recommendations are to be implemented before the next ECCAS platform, planned this October.

Nigeria: Feature - Nigeria's spiralling herdsmen-farmer violence fuels fears of humanitarian crisis

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Source: Thomson Reuters Foundation
Country: Nigeria

27,000 people in Kaduna have been forced to flee their homes due to violence between Muslim herdsmen and largely Christian farmers which has killed at least 800 people

By Eromo Egbejule

KAFANCHAN, Nigeria, Feb 13 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - When 60-year-old Ladi Habila heard gunshots ring around her village in Nigeria's Kaduna state on Christmas Eve, she cast aside the meal she had been preparing, and ran for her life.

Habila returned the next day to find her house razed to the ground, and the burnt body of her husband.

"My children lost their school books and certificates, all our clothes are gone and we are not sure where we will live," said Habila, whose children have been begging for food, and staying with relatives and even strangers in nearby towns.

"We lost everything and we cannot even go to the farm, so there is nothing for us to do," she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in a tiny room in a neighbour's house, where she and her two youngest children sleep on newspapers and old clothes.

Habila is among 27,000 people in Kaduna who have been forced to flee their homes due to violence between Muslim herdsmen and largely Christian farmers which has killed at least 800 people since September, according to church leaders in the region.

For years, the semi-nomadic, cattle-herding Fulani and more settled farming communities have clashed over land use as lower rainfall, advancing desertification and overgrazing drive the herdsmen towards more fertile land in the south of Nigeria.

But violence has soared in recent months between the herdsmen and farmers - due to the ongoing harvest season - and the worst bloodshed the region has witnessed in years could worsen unless the state intervenes, security analysts say.

The national disaster agency NEMA, which puts the death toll at around 200, said it had donated food and building materials to some of the affected communities in December, while the Kaduna state government said it was investigating violence.

Yet the displaced say they have received no compensation from the government, and insufficient aid, fuelling fears of a spiralling yet neglected humanitarian crisis in a nation already struggling with the Boko Haram insurgency and the threat of more attacks on oil pipelines by the Niger Delta Avengers militants.

"If the root causes of the violence are not addressed, if suspected perpetrators are not investigated and prosecuted, existing tensions will simmer and manifest in the form or more reprisal attacks," said Sola Tayo of think tank Chatham House.

"This could increase the likelihood of internal displacement among affected communities," the associate fellow added.

FEARS OVER FARMING

Local communities say the violence grew out of festering disputes over land towards the end of last year, then escalated sharply, exacerbated by north-south, Muslim-Christian tensions.

While farmers lay the blame squarely on the herdsmen, some experts and locals said the vilification of the Fulani had seen them also come under attack, fuelling a cycle of revenge.

This violence has ruined harvests and disrupted the livelihoods of hundreds of farmers across the region.

Half of people in Nigeria work in agriculture, which accounts for around a quarter of its gross domestic product (GDP), according to the World Bank and Central Bank of Nigeria.

Conflict between farmers and herdsmen in just four Nigerian states could cost the country at least $14 billion annually in lost potential revenues, aid agency Mercy Corps said last year.

Ayuba Rasong, a neighbour of Habila, turned to farming just a few years ago after retiring as a school principal. But his newfound joy was cut short when the Fulani attacked in December, destroying the 67-year-old's farm, crops and equipment.

"I don't know how to raise money to get back to farming or pay my children's (school) fees," the father-of-four said. "These herdsmen have taken my livelihood away from me."

Other farmers nearby are fearful of raids by the gun and machete-wielding Fulani, in this ethnically-charged conflict which may have claimed more lives in Nigeria than the jihadist group Boko Haram over the past year, security experts say.

Around 1,300 deaths have been caused by sectarian violence - mainly involving herdsmen and farmers in Kaduna - since January 2016, compared with some 850 inflicted by Boko Haram, according to the Council on Foreign Relations' Nigeria Security Tracker.

Further violence could have dire consequences for a region which is responsible for a large amount of the beans and maize produced in Nigeria, said Lagos-based research firm SB Morgen.

"Only a major intervention can prevent acute food shortage in these communities," SB Morgen said in report last month.

WOMEN HIT HARDEST

The escalating violence has left tens of thousands of people relying on their neighbours, wealthy individuals and churches for shelter, enough to eat and ultimately, to survive.

While some of the displaced are staying in schools used as temporary camps, most people are living with their relatives.

Clergyman Gideon Agwom said that while his church had organised a feeding programme to help more than 200 people, the demand for food was rising amid a lack of outside assistance.

"We need help because in the coming months, there could be food scarcity even in this recession," he said, referring to Nigeria's first recession in 25 years as oil prices fall.

Women and girls have been hit hardest by the violence, with some having suffered rape and others struggling to survive having been orphaned or widowed, local communities said.

"My poor wife and child," said 25-year-old Audu Gambo as he recalled coming home from a trip to the capital Abuja in September last year to find the corpse of his eight-months-pregnant wife, who had been shot, disembowelled and burned.

Local activists and groups, bemoaning a lack of aid from humanitarian organisations and the government, are using social media to raise awareness of the plight of the displaced, and appeal for items including blankets, sanitary pads and food.

Young women are having to use makeshift pads and reuse rags during their periods, said local human rights activist Ndi Kato.

"Women and children can't afford sanitary pads," she said. "Most have to defecate in the bush and newborns are in precarious situations because their parents can no longer afford healthcare."

(Reporting By Eromo Egbejule, Editing by Kieran Guilbert; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, property rights, climate change and resilience. Visit http://news.trust.org)

Nigeria: Internal Displacement in North East Nigeria: Operationalising the Kampala Convention in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states

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Source: International Committee of the Red Cross
Country: Nigeria

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

As a result of the non-international armed conflict between the Nigerian Government and the armed opposition (Jama’atu Ahlu s-Sunnati lil-Da’wa wal-Jihad / Islamic State West Africa Province group), more than 1.76 million people are internally displaced in the North Eastern region of Nigeria. The total number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in North East and North Central Nigeria is estimated at over 2 million people, making Nigeria host to the six largest IDP population in the world.

Borno, Adamawa and Yobe States currently have the largest number of IDPs, with approximately 1.68 million persons who have been displaced as a result of the conflict, including approximately 528,000 IDPs in Maiduguri Metropolis, Borno State. Given the large scale of the displacement, and the ongoing instability in many Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the North East of Nigeria, the Federal and State Governments have been facing, and continue to face, a critical humanitarian situation that is not expected to end anytime soon.

As a State Party to the African Union Convention for the Assistance and Protection of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (the “Kampala Convention”), the Nigerian Government has the primary duty and responsibility to assist and protect IDPs in its territory, with support from humanitarian organisations where needed. It is also obliged to incorporate the Convention into the domestic legal framework and promote conditions for voluntary, dignified and safe durable solutions to displacement.

In line with its obligations under the Kampala Convention, Federal and State Government Ministries,
Departments and Agencies have been responding to the needs of IDPs through various protection and assistance interventions, with the support of international and local humanitarian actors, including the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). However, given the scale and complexity of the displacement, the ICRC has observed throughout 2015 and 2016 that the humanitarian response is far from meeting the assistance and protection needs of IDPs.

In light of the critical humanitarian situation in the North East, the aim of this report is to assess the situation of IDPs in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, through the framework of the Kampala Convention. In doing so, the report seeks to highlight the current gaps and challenges in meeting the needs of IDPs and provide concrete recommendations to improve protection, assistance and durable solutions for IDPs. The report is based on findings from research carried out in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe States, as well as the Federal Capital Territory, between September 2015 and September 2016. The research included interviews with 550 IDPs in 31 locations, 7 focus group discussions, and 72 interviews at Federal, State and Local Government levels with stakeholders involved in assisting and protecting IDPs, including 41 interviews with civilian authorities and 15 with military and security forces.

The ICRC hopes that the findings and recommendations contained in this report can serve as a policy tool for the Nigerian Government in their response to conflict-induced internal displacement in the North East of Nigeria. Ultimately, the goal is to achieve better protection and assistance for IDPs through more effective “operationalisation” of the Kampala Convention, particularly in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe States.

Mauritania: The productive transfers/CASH+ approach in the Sahel

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Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Country: Mali, Mauritania

In southern Mauritania, it is about one PM when Nejiha returns from the Monguél village market. Her eldest daughter is busy preparing lunch under the khaïma, while her brothers play cards a few meters away, without being distracted by the smell of frying food in the courtyard. At age 55, Nejiha is the head of a family of nine children and four grandchildren since her ex-husband left her. She is one of the beneficiaries of the "Productive Transfers / CASH +" project implemented by FAO in the wilaya of Gogol. The project, funded by Finland, aims to strengthen the resilience of vulnerable populations in Mauritania and Mali.

The CASH+ approach flexibly combines unconditional cash transfers with transfers of inkind productive assets, accompanied by technical training, to benefit vulnerable and food insecure households. In the Gorgol region, two different transfers of a similar total value have been distributed, and their respective impact in the short and medium term are compared. The first kit, of which Nejiha benefited, includes three cash transfers for a total value of 96,000 MRO (USD 270), while the other kit combines a single cash transfer of 20,000 MRO (USD 56) and the provision of three goats.

Nejiha supports most of the expenses of the family, as her new husband Abdou, a meat cutter, only gets irregular income. As soon as the opportunity arises, Nejiha invests in income-generating activities, which she has done here. "With the first cash transfer, I immediately invested in a small business. I stock up my display at the market which allows me to earn between 6,000 and 7,000 MRO per month, thank God” Nejiha says. "To know in advance when I was going to get the cash allowed me to organize with my creditors, and to use the profits of my business wisely.” The second transfer enabled her to repay her creditors and to cover the family's food and health expenses, while the last one was mostly used to increase the capital of her business, repay family debts and pay school fees.

Despite the cumbersome tasks to be accomplished every day, Nejiha does her best to keep her children going to school. In the Gorgol region, where productive transfers are implemented, three-quarters of the women are heads of households. More than half of them are illiterate, operate on low incomes and are dependent on external aid, making them more vulnerable to food insecurity.

Cash transfers help ensure a better access to food and to income generating activities, that can in turn help vulnerable households better cope with shocks. A significant number of FAO’s beneficiaries take this opportunity to invest in projects that are useful not only in the short term, but in a sustainable way. According to Nejiha, this support came at the right time and undeniably served as a stepping stone, and is giving her confidence in the future.

Cameroon: Cameroun : Rapport d'activités ALIMA, janvier 2017

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Source: ALIMA
Country: Cameroon, Nigeria

1. Contexte général :

Présente au Cameroun depuis bientôt un an, ALIMA assure la prise en charge des soins pédiatriques et la prise en charge des cas de malnutrition aiguë sévère avec complication médicales pour les enfants de moins de 5 ans dans l’Hôpital de District de Mokolo ainsi que dans le District de Santé de Makary. Le premier programme vient d’entrer dans son 10éme mois d’activité a été monté et mis en place en collaboration avec l’Hôpital de District de Mokolo, le district sanitaire et la Délégation Régionale de la Santé Publique. Il en va de même pour celui mis en place dans le District de Santé de Makary, programme qui fait suite à la mission explo-action menée en décembre 2016.

2. Médical :

Mokolo
Au cours du mois de décembre, nous avons hospitalisé 326 patients et fait 7 mises en observation. La répartition entre les différents services est la suivante : 89 patients hospitalisés au CNTI (les infections respiratoires demeurent la 1ère cause de morbidité à 53%, suivie des diarrhées liquidiennes (25%)) et 237 au sein du service pédiatrique (les infections respiratoires restent la morbidité dominante (54.8%) suivie des diarrhées liquidiennes (11.3%). Au total 25.1% des patients étaient des réfugiés provenant du camp de Minawao. Les patients provenant des hors zone représentent 14% des hospitalisations réalisées (District de Santé de Mogode principalement). La gratuité et la qualité du projet provoquent un phénomène d’attirance des patients extérieurs au DS de Mokolo et permettent d’expliquent ce fort pourcentage.

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