mali crisis update no. 4 - world food programme...mali crisis update no. 4 regional bureau for west...

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This bi-weekly update provides an overview of WFP’s response to the Mali crisis in Mali, Burkina Faso, Mauritania and Niger.

Mali Crisis Update No. 4 Regional Bureau for West Africa

14 December 2012

Food and nutrition assistance to people affected by the Mali crisis in Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania and Niger

The Mali crisis has triggered displacement and has generated additional needs amongst refugees and host communities in already vulnerable areas of the Sahel. Some 150,000 Malians are currently registered in Burkina Faso (37,626), Mauritania (54,117) and Niger (65,012), while nearly 199,000 people are internally displaced in Mali.

The operations in support of Malian refugees, IDPs and conflict affected populations in Northern Mali are currently being revised. The Regional EMOP is being extended into 2013, and a new Mali EMOP will provide combined assistance to IDPs, host and conflict affected populations (thus integrating the Mali component of the Regional EMOP).

WFP is strongly involved with humanitarian partners in the elaboration of contingency plans based on future scenarios to best prepare for potential new and increased needs. Prepositioning of food is among the priorities.

In Burkina Faso, WFP hosted the visit from the Danish Ambassador and the European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response.

In Niger, under the blanket supplementary feeding programme, three daily prepared meals in the form of wet rations are being provided in the refugee camps, targeting 10,500 children aged 6-59 months. This measure is in response to the very high malnutrition rates among refugee children in the camps.

Mali crisis in figures:

Nearly 199,000 people displaced in Mali.

Some 150,000 Malian refugees are currently registered in Burkina Faso, Mauritania and Niger.

Some 335,000 IDPs and Malian refugees were supported so far by WFP (200,000 refugees, and nearly 135,000 IDPs).

Over 200,000 non-displaced people in Northern Mali supported so far.

Additional resources are required to support the regional Emergency operation (shortfalls of USD 14.9 million).

(Photo: Distribution to IDPs in Bamako, Mali. WFP/Bouya Baba)

Resourcing priorities: Starting from 1 January 2013, WFP will assist the internally displaced, host communities, as well as other vulnerable groups under the new Mali EMOP 200525. WFP will require additional funding amounting to some USD 138 million to implement this operation. Furthermore, under the extended and revised Regional EMOP 200438, WFP will support refugees and host communities in Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mauritania. WFP is thus seeking donor support amounting to over USD 150 million to be able to provide urgent food and nutrition assistance to refugees fleeing the conflict in Northern Mali, and their host communities.

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Food distributions in Iniadiatafène, Timbuktu, Mali. Islamic Relief/Oumar Barry

Operational update

Regional

In response to this year’s Sahel crisis, WFP has been providing food and nutrition assistance to people in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and The Gambia. Preliminary findings from crop assessments conducted in all Sahel countries by CILSS/FAO/WFP/FEWSNET in October/November indicate that overall, results are favourable, both with regards to cereal production and the pastoral situation. Coarse grain prices have started their normal seasonal decline. Nevertheless, they remain at high levels compared to the 5-year average, especially for millet.

Overall, some 335,000 Malian IDPs and refugees were assisted so far, and over 200,000 non-displaced conflict affected people were supported in Northern Mali.

The humanitarian and security conditions for populations in Northern Mali remain of major concern, and the operational context to reach people in need remains challenging. Security concerns in the neighbouring countries hosting Malian refugees are on the increase.

Given the volatility of the situation in Northern Mali and the neighboring countries’ Sahel regions, humanitarian partners are in the process of elaborating contingency plans based on future scenarios to best prepare for potential new and increased needs.

Across the region under the Sahel response as well as the Mali crisis response, operations are currently being revised for extension into 2013. Hence, requirements for this continued response will further increase.

The Regional Emergency Operation, designed to provide assistance through targeted food distributions, cash transfers and nutrition activities for up to 555,000 beneficiaries until December 2012 (Burkina Faso 100,000, Mali 300,000, Mauritania 95,000 and Niger 60,000), is now being extended into 2013. The Mali component is being moved to a single-country EMOP in Mali to provide combined assistance to displaced and host populations.

Burkina Faso

To date, 37,626 Malian refugees are registered in Burkina Faso (UNHCR 2 December). Refugees are hosted mainly across sites in the Sahel region in the north-east of the country and in the urban areas of Ouagadougou and Bobo-Dioulasso. WFP provides general food distributions, in close collaboration with the Burkina Faso Red Cross, and targeted supplementary feeding for children with moderate acute malnutrition.

Various visits to the Goudebou refugee site were carried out over the reporting period. On 4 December, a WFP mission accompanied the Danish Ambassador, Bo Jensen, to the refugee site, to a health centre and school feeding activities. On 7 December, a mission accompanied the European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, Kristalina Georgieva to the refugee hosting area (pictured at right, WFP/Saidou Sawadogo). The delegation met with refugee leaders and newly-relocated

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Distributions to IDPs in Mopti, Mali. WFP/Seydou Cisse

refugees to whom WFP provides hot meals. The delegation also visited a school attended by both Burkinabé and refugee children.

From 27 November to 7 December, WFP assisted some 13,000 Malian refugees at the sites of Goudebou, Gandafabou, Damba, Fererio, and Gorom Gorom. At the Gorom Gorom distribution, fewer beneficiaries were present than planned as many of them are herders and were thus not on site the day of the distribution. In order to ensure that all beneficiaries are present for the next distribution, awareness sessions stressing the importance of attending the distributions will be carried out.

Mali

An estimated 199,000 people are currently displaced in Mali, over one quarter of whom are in northern Mali (Timbuktu, Gao and Kidal). Most IDPs are staying with host families though there are some informal settlements in Mopti and Bamako.

To date, under the Mali emergency operation and the regional emergency operation, WFP has reached 1.23 million beneficiaries in the eight regions of Mali. Through the Mali emergency operation, 1.1 million beneficiaries have been supported, including 200,000 located in northern Mali. Under the regional emergency operation, 134,630 internally displaced persons were provided with food assistance throughout Mali, with 70,500 in the North and 64,130 IDPs in the South.

In the northern occupied regions, WFP continues to provide targeted food distributions and treatment of moderate acute malnutrition where health centers continue to function. Blanket supplementary feeding activities to prevent acute malnutrition are ongoing for some 78,000 children aged 6 to 59 months (an increased age-group is being supported due to the non-functioning health centers) and 24,000 pregnant women and nursing mothers in Timbuktu.

In the southern government-held areas, WFP is still implementing targeted food distributions, nutrition treatment activities, food-for-asset activities and emergency school feeding in 290 schools. To date, 88,800 children aged 6 to 59 months with moderate acute malnutrition and 11,000 malnourished pregnant women and nursing mothers have received treatment through targeted supplementary feeding activities.

Local NGO AMRAD working with WFP for Third Party Monitoring, provided their first monthly report for the month of November. The NGO is monitoring WFP food and nutrition distributions, undertaking post-distribution monitoring at household level and visits of partners’ warehouses. In the 240 villages surveyed, by the field agents in the northern occupied regions, the majority of beneficiaries said they were aware of the ration they were entitled to and were satisfied with the process at distribution site (adequate waiting time, adequate quantity received). The report also indicates that almost 100 percent of the beneficiaries use all the food received exclusively for household consumption. Furthermore, no security incidents were registered over the reporting period. The NGO will continue to provide monthly reports as well as information on an ad hoc basis when requested. AMRAD will also monitor food prices in the each cercle of the north and preparations are ongoing for collecting food security information.

Preparatory activities for the implementation of unconditional cash transfers are being carried out. Meetings with technical partner NGO Welthungerhilfe and financial partner Orange took place on 6 December to validate the work plan of the coming weeks. Lessons learned drawn from this year’s response will be guiding the implementation of the programme for 2013.

Under Mali EMOP 200389, cash activities are not implemented in the North for security and practical reasons (activity is deemed too risky and could potentially harm the beneficiary, extensive monitoring is not possible, monetary institutions are non-functioning).

Under the new EMOP 200525, cash activities are planned for IDPs and host households receiving assistance in Bamako district. This is in line with the recommendations for types of activities to be implemented per

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Blanket supplementary feeding distributions in the M’bera refugee camp, Mauritania. WFP/Jean Michel Goman

geographical regions that were made by the food security partners during the working group analysis in the past month.

With the winding down of lean season emergency operations, food-for-assets activities have been scaled up to help restore and build specific assets for vulnerable populations who have been critically affected by the severe food and nutrition crisis. In 2013, these resilience building activities will continue under the country programme focusing on development activities. Additionally, cash-for-assets activities will be launched where market conditions permit, allowing populations to access food on the markets while working on community asset creation. These resilience building programmes will reinforce the critical link between emergency and development activities.

Mauritania

To date, 54,117 refugees are registered in Mauritania (UNCHR 5 December), most of whom are vulnerable women and children from pastoralist or trader households. The refugees are mainly settled at the M’bera camp. Alongside the provision of targeted food distributions to all refugee households, children 6-59 months with moderate acute malnutrition (MAM) and malnourished pregnant women and nursing mothers are receiving treatment through targeted supplementary feeding. Food distributions are being carried out on a monthly basis in partnership with the Mauritanian Government’s Food Security Commission (CSA) and UNHCR.

The results of the level II registration exercise indicates that 54,117 Malian refugees are currently hosted in M’bera camp. Following this announcement, WFP has adjusted its distributions plans. In line with the MOU between UNHCR and WFP outlining the collaboration between the two organizations for the provision of assistance to refugees, UNHCR is responsible for the registration of refugees, on which basis WFP provides its food rations.

Six treatment centers (CRENAMs) continue to operate in the M’bera camp, providing support to 4,218 children with moderate acute malnutrition and malnourished pregnant women and nursing mothers to date. Under blanket supplementary feeding activities, the second distribution of food commodities has thus far reached 2,900 children.

A feasibility study for the use of vouchers within M’bera camp is under preparation. These vouchers could be used by beneficiaries to buy meat and milk, two commodities that are currently missing in the camp.

In the last few months, food distributions to heads of sector, who are then responsible for redistributing this food to the households within the refugee camp, has been evaluated. It has been determined that direct delivery to households is a more certain way of ensuring the food commodities reach the intended beneficiaries. For the October distribution, a partial transition to delivering directly to households was accomplished. A complete transition to direct delivery is expected for the next round of distributions.

UNHAS continues to operate special flights upon the request of humanitarian delegations undertaking field missions. In November, the service assisted two medical evacuations and a total of 585 passengers.

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Distributions at Ayorou Refugee Camp, Niger. Cooperating partner Plan Niger

Niger

65,012 displaced people following the Mali crisis (refugees and returnees) are currently registered in Niger (24 October 2012), mainly living in camps and makeshift settlements in the severely food insecure Tahoua and Tillaberi regions of western Niger along the border with Mali. Since February, WFP has been providing food assistance to an average of 45,000 refugees per month through general food distributions and to 2,000 children aged 6-23 months through the blanket feeding programme.

In November, some 45,610 refugees were supported through food and nutrition assistance, including 1,863 children aged 6-23 months through blanket supplementary feeding activities.

Under the blanket supplementary feeding programme, three daily prepared meals, in the form of wet rations are being provided in the refugee camps, targeting 10,500 children aged 6-59 months. This measure is in response to the very high malnutrition rates among refugee children in the camps.

Selection of cooperating partners was made during a meeting with TFD partners on the camps and camp managers, and it was agreed that camp managers would be more suitable and able to carry out the operation, as they are already physically present on the sites.

Camp managers provide their knowledge and experience from the field in discussions with WFP on the appropriate non-food items required for implementing the community kitchens and cooking and distributing the cooked rations. Their knowledge is additionally beneficial for planning the integration of community-based related activities. Field level Agreements and budgets are being finalized, and will be signed before the end of the week.

Selection of cooperating partners has been made, and camp managers are deemed most suitable to carry out the operation. In fact, they have developed extensive knowledge and experience in the field in regards to the appropriate non-food items required for implementation of the community kitchens, as well as for preparation and distribution of the cooked rations. These camp managers will also assist in planning the integration of community-based related activities.

In order to assess the feasibility of cash and voucher transfers as well as to establish a roster of potential retailers for voucher activities, a joint WFP and UNHCR mission is currently visiting the three refugee sites of Abala, Mangaize and Ayorou in the Tillaberi Region and food markets on or near the sites. WFP will conduct the same exercise in refugee sites in the Tahoua Region. These missions will additionally assess the capacity of local markets to respond to an increased demand and the risk of inflation.

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Resourcing

While the emergency response to the Sahel crisis is coming to an end, continued funding towards longer term resilience building activities for continued support to vulnerable populations in the Sahel will be required. These activities will be implemented alongside the provision of life-saving assistance to those affected by the Mali crisis. Operations established in response to the Sahel and Mali crisis are currently being redesigned and/or extended for the next step of the response in 2013. This will lead to an increase in funding requirements of operations.

WFP is most grateful for the critical support which has been provided by multilateral donors, as well as of the African Union, Andorra, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, European Commission, Finland, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Private Donors, Republic of Korea, Switzerland, UN CERF, United Kingdom, and the USA.

Regional Emergency Operation 200438 Assistance to Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons Affected by Insecurity in Mali: Requirements for the regional emergency operation amount to US$ 80.8 million, of which US$ 7.3 million still need to be resourced (9 percent). This EMOP is extended until 31 December 2013, but no longer active in Mali, but only the neighboring countries starting at 1 January 2013. WFP is thus seeking donors' support amounting to over USD 150 million to be able to provide urgent food and nutrition assistance to refugees fleeing the conflict in Northern Mali and their host communities.

Mali EMOP 200389 Assistance to drought-affected populations faces a shortfall of US$ 7 million, equivalent to 11.1 percent of the total needs of US$63 million. The new Mali Emergency Operation 200525, starting on 1 January 2013, will cover the needs of the internally displaced in Mali, as well as these of the host communities and other vulnerable population groups. WFP will require additional funding amounting to some US$ 138 million to implement this operation (preliminary requirements amount to US$ 137.8 million).

Mali/Niger Special Operation 200316 UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) is fully funded, out of a funding requirement of US$9 million. Nevertheless, as an extension into 2013 is under preparation, additional contributions are needed for the operation to continue.

The new Mali Special Operation in support of the Logistics and the Emergency Telecommunications Clusters is appealing for funding amounting to US$3.1 million. In anticipation of a potential military intervention and an economic downturn in 2013, the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) in Mali is currently scaling up its emergency preparedness measures. In order to ensure business continuity for the humanitarian community and for the event of potential reduced access to private sector logistics services, the Logistics Cluster and the ETC are preparing a capacity augmentation. With the donor community’s support, the Logistics Cluster and ETC will secure the human resources, the financial and the material means, as well as the coordination of all partners, in order to efficiently support the humanitarian community. It has now been decided by WFP that the Logistics Cluster and ETC run their Mali situation response under WFP’s Mali Country Office’s auspices. Thereby, more transparency and flexibility can be guaranteed. The framework for the Logistics Cluster and ETC’s response will be a new WFP Special Operation. The project document is currently under preparation. We will contact you in the course of next week in order to discuss our detailed approach with you, as well as the financial requirements of this operation.

The above listed operations are included in the wider Sahel response (Regional Response Framework for the Sahel) which has total requirements of US$888 million. Current shortfalls amount to US$178 million (20 percent).

WFP calls on additional donor contributions to cover current and upcoming shortfalls. This will enable WFP to continue providing much needed assistance for refugees, IDPs, and host communities, as well as other vulnerable groups who may remain in need of assistance for the coming months.

Contact

Regional Bureau for West Africa, Senegal:

Thomas Yanga, Regional Director, Dakar/Senegal: +221 33 849 65 00, [email protected]

Claude Jibidar, Deputy Regional Director, Dakar/Senegal: +221 33 849 65 00, [email protected]

For further information: www.wfp.org

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

mali crisis update no. 4 - world food programme...mali crisis update no. 4 regional bureau for west...

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