HIGHLIGHT
Mali: On January 21 2014 a meeting was held at the request of the Ministry of Territorial Administration with the participation of all concerned ministries and UNHCR regarding the voluntary repatriation process. The meeting was to formally launch the process of negotiations between Mali and countries of asylum for the signing of the tripartite agreements. The first step will be a visit of Malian officials to the countries of asylum to talk to their counterparts, UNHCR, and refugees.
Mauritania: The Post Distribution Monitoring (PDM) report for the food distribution of October 2013 in Mbera camp (third PDM in 2013) has been finalized jointly by WFP and UNHCR. The report concludes that the food distribution system put in place at the beginning of 2013, coupled with the different nutritional programmes established in the camp, has resulted in improved food security at household level. While the rates of global malnutrition remain stagnant (21.6% in March 2013 and 22.2% in October 2013), the rates of severe malnutrition have gone down from 13.6% in March 2013 to 2.3% in October 2013. Increasingly, households are transitioning out of severe food insecurity into a moderate food insecurity situation. As of 28 February, 12 nutritional rehabilitation centers continue to be operational in the camp.
Niger: The situation of malnutrition improved in the camps in 2013. Whereas end of 2012, rates of malnutrition were alarming and prompted UNHCR/WFP/UNICEF in a tripartite partnership for supplementary wet feeding, one year later end of 2013, Post Distribution Monitoring realized jointly by WFP and UNHCR revealed a global decrease of the malnutrition rates among children below the 10 percent alert threshold (8.6%). This situation confirmed the impact of the prevention, control and management of nutrition activities especially through the Wet-Feeding programme which was turned into a dry feeding programme in one pilot camp only as of March 2014. If the national nutritional survey planned in May 2014 confirms this positive development, dry feeding will be extended to all camps.
