ACT Alliance Alert Reference Number: 15/2013. ACT member The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) is planning to provide following assistance to Malian Refugees in the Mbera Camp and HCs: shelters, psychosocial support, nutritional support and agro-pastoral activities.
Mauritania
Assistance to Malian Refugees and Host Communities
Geneva, 7 May 2013
1. Brief description of the emergency and impact
The 2011 drought in the Sahel region has created food insecurity and malnutrition in Mauritania. Government reports confirm that the South-East of the country is the most affected by this natural disaster despite the intervention from different public and private service providers1. In addition, the military operations launched by France and other African countries in January 2013 have led to the increase of Malian refugees hosted in the Mbera Camp. As of April 21, 2013, the total number of Malian refugees in Mbera Camp is 74,452 people2 which include 21,636 refugees arrived between January and March 2013.
The security situation in the South-East Mauritania remains volatile. This is due to the presence of AQMI (Al Qaida au Maghreb Islamique) in the Sahel Region and also to the on-going armed conflict in North Mali. As a consequence of the deteriorating security situation, the Government of Mauritania has declared the Hodh El Charghi region (where Mbera Camp is located) as a military zone. Hence, the Government has increased the number of troops in order to further provide protection to the civilian population, and ensure convoys and escorts to humanitarian organizations.