Échange d'expérience au Sahel et dans la Corne de l'Afrique sur la gestion de l'insécurité alimentaire et la résilience

Film réalisé par le Groupe URD (Urgences, Réhabilitation, Développement)

La conférence « Exchange on Practices and Lessons Learnt on the Resilience in the Horn and the Sahel » a été organisée à Dakar les 2 et 3 juillet 2013 par le Bureau des Nations Unies pour la Coordination des Affaires Humanitaires et le Programme des Nations Unies pour le Développement.

 

 

Échange d'expériences au Sahel et dans la Corne de l'Afrique sur la gestion de l'insécurité alimentaire et la résilience from Groupe URD on Vimeo.

Elle a permis de faire ressortir les similarités et les différences entre ces deux contextes, y compris leur variabilité interne. Elle aussi permis de mettre en valeur des expériences tout à fait passionnantes : celles développées par OXFAM sur les systèmes de micro-assurance en Ethiopie ou celles mises en place par le gouvernement nigérien avec l’Initiative 3N, à titre d’exemple. Le rôle des institutions nationales a été mis en valeur avec le cas du Niger et du Kenya, celui des instances régionales avec la présentation de l’Autorité intergouvernementale pour le développement (l’IGAD, Intergovernmental Authority on Development). Des approches originales, comme celle du Sila au Tchad et de sa « déclaration de Goz Beida », ont montré comment des dynamiques inclusives et remontantes pouvaient, en s’articulant sur une « réflexion résilience », faire bouger les lignes.

 

Les grands facteurs de contrainte, comme les phénomènes de spéculation, d’accaparement des terres, mais bien sûr aussi de natalité non contrôlée, induisant une pression toujours plus forte sur les ressources ou les changements climatiques en cours, ont été analysés en détail à l’aune des expériences de ces deux régions qui comptent parmi les plus fragiles du monde, mais dans lesquelles les sociétés, comme les systèmes pastoraux, sont extrêmement résilients.

 

Mahamat Haroun Dahab, farmer, Chad: "What we really need here is schools, a flour mill and water"

 

By IRIN

The southeastern Chad border district of Tissi has seen an influx of people fleeing violence in neighbouring western Sudan, among them Chadian nationals who had either migrated there for work or fled earlier violence, and new refugees from Sudan’s Darfur area.

 

Mahamat Haroun Dahab’s family (his wife and four children) are among those from eastern Chad who left the country seven years ago during the conflict there, for Darfur. They recently returned to their Tissi village of Tadjou, after fleeing inter-communal violence. Dahab and his wife told IRIN their story.

 

Photo: Ann Weru/IRIN

Mahamat Haroun Dahab and his wife in the southern Chad village of Tadjou, in Tissi

 

[Dahab:] “I have been here for three months. I arrived in May when the Misseriya and Salamat [ethnic groups; the latter lives on both sides of the border] started fighting in Um Dhukun [Darfur]. I am not sure what they were fighting over. Around us there were people who were killed and injured.

 

“The journey from Sudan to the Chad border was by donkey. Then, once we were on the Chadian side, IOM [the International Organization for Migration] brought us here [to Tadjou village].

 

“We just packed what we had and sought safety; we did not have time to prepare ourselves.

 

“Here we are doing some farming, mainly of sorghum. Back in Um Dhukun I used to slaughter some sheep. I worked as a butcher. But I have always been a farmer.

 

“The land I had here before I fled is where I am planting my crops now; during the fighting this area was deserted and my land and house remained intact.

 

“None of my children have been to school. They are young and I don’t have enough money to register them.

 

“But I have no intention of going back to Darfur. Here, I can practice farming; there [in Um Dhukun] we had to buy things from the market.

 

“What we really need here is schools, a flour mill and water.

 

[Dahab’s wife - she did not give her name:] “We decided to leave [Um Dhukun] when our belongings, such as our [mobile] phones and livestock, started being taken by force by the Arabs.

“We are OK living here [in Tadjou] as we just go to the farm and come back.

 

“But the children really need schooling and some clothes. What we really want is schools.

 

“Myself, I have never been to school. I learned to speak Arabic because people around me speak it; but I can’t write anything or read. A person who doesn’t go to school can’t read Arabic.”

 

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Sensibilisation aux soldats maliens en questions humanitaires: l´expérience d´un formateur

 

Esther Huerta Garcia, Chargée de Communication pour l'Afrique de l'Ouest, ECHO

Sékou Oumar Diarra est un des 7 formateurs de l´équipe de sensibilisation aux questions humanitaires destinées aux forces armées présentes au Mali. Il fait partie de l´UNICEF, un des organismes des Nations Unies qui participent au programme de sensibilisation humanitaire aux bataillons du Mali dans le cadre de la mission de formation de l´Union Européenne (EUTM).

 

La formation humanitaire a pour objectif principal de sensibiliser les soldats maliens aux droits humanitaires et aux devoirs du combattant dans le cadre d´un conflit vis- à vis de la population civile, des femmes, des enfants des détenus civils et des prisonniers de guerre. © UNICEF

La sensibilisation au droit international humanitaire (DIH) au sein de la mission de formation de l’Union Européenne (EUTM Mali) a été initiée suite à la démarche du département d´aide humanitaire et protection civile de la Commission Européenne (DG ECHO). Après l’accord des planificateurs et les Etats-Membres sur l´introduction de la composante humanitaire dans les formations militaires, la DG ECHO s’est aussi assuré que la mission au Mali prenne contact avec les organisations humanitaires possédant l’expertise dans la domaine.

 

La formation humanitaire a pour objectif principal de sensibiliser les soldats maliens aux droits humanitaires et aux devoirs du combattant dans le cadre d´un conflit vis- à vis de la population civile, des femmes, des enfants des détenus civils et des prisonniers de guerre.

 

Pendant 4 mois, de mars à juin, l´Unité de coordination civil-militaire d´OCHA Mali a coordonné les sessions de sensibilisation qui abordaient, entre autres questions humanitaires, la protection de l'enfant.

 

Sékou Oumar Diarra a pris part aux sessions qui se sont tenues à Koulikoro, la capitale de la deuxième région administrative du Mali, se trouvant à 60 km à l´Ouest de la capitale. “La première session a touché le 11 mai 2013 environ 420 soldats des Forces Armées Maliennes (FAMA) du premier contingent”, affirme Diarra.

 

“C’était émouvant de voir de jeunes soldats Maliens qui avaient au départ beaucoup de ressentiment et de colère à l’encontre d’enfants ayant pris part au conflit ou qui étaient supposés avoir eu des relations avec les groupes armés revoir leurs positions et devenir très conciliants”, assure Diarra.

“Cette formation met à la disposition des soldats, des sous-officiers et des officiers des informations de base leur permettant d’améliorer leurs pratiques”, continue Diarra. “Le changement peut prendre du temps mais le fait de donner la bonne information aux bonnes personnes et au bon moment peut aboutir à un changement positif dans la gestion des enfants en période de conflit armé”.

 

“C’était un sujet nouveau pour eux, mais ils ont montré beaucoup d’enthousiasme à répondre à des questions concrètes sur des situations déjà vécues pour certains et à poser des questions dans une ambiance décontractée, bon enfant, mais toujours studieuse”, conclut Omar Diarra.

 

Les sessions formatives ont compté aussi avec l´appui du HCR, du FNUAP, de ONU-Femmes et du OHCHR qui ont focalisé l´attention des soldats sur les femmes, les déplacés et réfugiés et le droit international humanitaire.

Pour plus d'informations visitez http://ec.europa.eu/echo/about/index_en.htm
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World Humanitarian Day 2013

« What do you Think the World needs more of »

Today, Monday 19 August is World Humanitarian Day. It is an opportunity to celebrate the spirit of people helping people. The World Humanitarian Day is both a commemoration for people who lose their life trying to help people, but it is also a celebration of the amazing amount that people do every single day that is unrecognized.

 

This World Humanitarian Day marks 10 years since the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad was bombed and 22 UN and aid agency workers were killed.

 

August 19th sees the launch of a new global campaign for World Humanitarian Day. This year’s campaign, ‘The World Needs More__’, turns people’s words into real support for communities affected by humanitarian crises.

 

“It is clear that the world needs more #Humanity,” noted UN Humanitarian Chief Valerie Amos. “This year, humanitarian agencies are trying to help more than 70 million people. We know that humanitarian needs are growing and that if we are to meet those rising needs we must do things differently. We have to keep engaging with new partners and supporters. This campaign is a chance to do that.”

For more go to www.worldhumanitarianday.org
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Journée Mondiale de l’Aide Humanitaire 2013 

« De Quoi le Monde a-t-il le plus besoin ? »

 

 

Aujourd’hui, lundi 19 août 2013 nous célébrons la Journée Mondiale de l’Aide Humanitaire. Elle est l’occasion d’honorer l'esprit des hommes et des femmes qui aident les autres. C’est à la fois une commémoration pour ces personnes qui perdent leur vie à essayer d'aider les autres, mais aussi une célébration de la quantité incroyable de choses que les gens font chaque jour et qui reste inconnue.

 

Cette année, la Journée Mondiale de l’Action Humanitaire marque également le 10ème anniversaire de l’attentat contre le Siège des Nations Unies à Baghdâd au cours duquel 22 travailleurs humanitaires ont été tués.

 

Ce 19 août marque aussi le lancement d’une nouvelle campagne pour la Journée mondiale de l’aide humanitaire. Cette année les mots viendront en aide aux communautés affectées par des crises humanitaires grâce au concept « Le Monde a besoin de plus de ____ ».

 

«Le Monde a besoin de plus d’#Humanité » a indiqué Mme Valérie Amos, la Secrétaire générale adjointe de l’ONU chargée des affaires humanitaires. « Cette année, les agences humanitaires ont la lourde tâche de venir en aide à plus de 70 millions de personnes dans le monde. Les besoins humanitaires ne cessent d’augmenter et nous devons développer de nouvelles approches pour y répondre. Nous devons constamment engager de nouveaux partenaires. Cette campagne nous en donne l’opportunité. »

 

Chaque année,  10 milliards de dollars sont dépensés pour sauver la vie de personnes prises au piège des crises humanitaires à travers le monde. Ce montant s’avère insuffisant pour répondre aux besoins des personnes qui souffrent.

 

Pour plus d'informations visitez www.worldhumanitarianday.org/fr

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Growing resilience through community gardens in Gambia

By Katie Robinson, Canadian Red Cross Society

For the first time in 15 years, communities in Gambia found themselves without food and income following poor rainfall during the 2011–2012 harvest season. Families were forced to sell their assets and livestock, or survive on charity and foraging.

 

The Gambia Red Cross Society – with assistance from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and the Canadian government – aimed to provide immediate and long-term assistance to vulnerable communities in the North Bank Division and Lower River Region.

 

Using a two-pronged approach, the Red Cross provided emergency life-saving interventions whilst also focusing on longer-term community resilience. Distributions of food, quality rice seeds and fertilizer addressed the immediate needs, whilst the longer-term resilience activities concentrated on women-run vegetable gardens. The Red Cross provided these gardens with infrastructure support, training, drought-resilient seeds, proper fencing and new concrete-lined hand-driven wells.

 

“Before the Red Cross came to support us, we were struggling to feed our families,” says Funneh Touray, who works in the Sukuta Women’s Community Garden in the Lower River Region. “Thanks to their support we are now able to grow our own food, and are no longer facing hardship.”

 

The community gardens are not only thriving, they are generating an income as crops and products like jams and juices are sold to nearby communities. This has allowed parents to send their children to school and pay for health care.

 

Touray is very proud of her community and is looking forward to expanding their garden. They currently have two hectares of fencing around the garden, but only half is currently being used. She is looking forward to the day when more seeds will be planted and there will be more crops to look after.

 

“I have seen a change in my community and I am very happy,” says Touray. “Many organizations have entered my village, but we have never received assistance like we did from the Red Cross. What the Red Cross has done, nobody will forget. We will maintain this garden and continue to work hard to make everyone who supported us proud.”

 

For more go to www.ifrc.org

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The community-led sanitation revolution in Nigeria

By Shantha Bloemen, UNICEF

BENUE STATE, Nigeria, 5 August 2013 – Women and men, just in from the fields with hoes still in their hands, and barefoot children sit in the shade under a tree. Betty Torkwase Ikyaator asks them to make her a picture of their village in a layer of sand on the ground. With pebbles and coloured paper, they place their homes, the church, the rivers, the roads and other landmarks. They don’t mark a clinic, market or primary school because they don’t have those things here in Mbanumbekem village in rural Nigeria.

 

 

The sessions that teams like Betty Torkwase Ikyaator's run use
shame, humour and enlightenment to trigger clarity among
individuals on how sanitation links to well-being and to encourage
them to decide to act collectively in making a change© UNICEF

Ms. Torkwase Ikyaator asks about their toilets. A debate erupts over just how many the community of 45 households has among them. They settle on eight. Then, a member of the eight-member water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) team from the local government authority (LGA) brings out a plate of food and asks the group if it looks tasty. Everyone agrees that the food, indeed, looks delicious.

 

The Assistant Hygiene Promotion Officer from the LGA team offers a community member a sample. Then he places the plate next to a pitcher of water and a small pile of, well, human excrement that was collected from nearby. It does not take long for the flies to start swarming, moving from the pile to the plate and back again.

 

He generously offers all the villagers a chance to sample the food. They giggle, but refuse. He offers them water from the pitcher. They giggle and refuse again. The point is made.

 

A commitment to toilets

 

Another member of the team asks some children to walk her through the village. She asks them to show her where they use the toilet. They lead her to a leafy area, near mud brick homes and a communal toilet that appears seldom used. The children point to the open area, which is enveloped by a strong stench. The children laugh, while chickens and goats amble among them, mixing their excreta with the human deposits.

 

Back with their parents, the children report where they have gone. The community leader reinforces the concern that something must be done about where all the villagers defecate. A lively discussion follows among the villagers, heavily punctuated with several solutions.

 

A committee is formed. Its volunteers agree that, over the next month, they will work to ensure that each household builds its own toilet. A record is made of each villager’s commitment to construct and use a toilet.

 

A trigger for change

 

This situation, in UNICEF vernacular, is a ‘triggering’ moment. Ms. Torkwase Ikyaator is a water, sanitation and hygiene consultant for UNICEF Nigeria. Based in Tarka LGA of Benue State, she is one of many such people fanning out across the country to help communities realize that where they defecate is a matter of life and death.

 

Through a mix of shame, humour and enlightenment, two-hour sessions like the one Betty and her team have conducted are designed to trigger clarity among individuals on how sanitation links to their well-being and to encourage them to decide for themselves to act collectively in making a change.

 

Community-led total sanitation, as this process is known, is a globally recognized concept in use across Africa to resolve the poor sanitation and hygiene practices that contribute to the illness and death of millions of children.

 

There were 15 communities reported to be open defecation free in 2008. Community-led total sanitation has come a long way since, having transformed the lives of over three million people in what are now more than 4,500 communities reported open defecation free.

 

A way of life

 

Ms. Torkwase Ikyaator and her team have triggered more than half of the 250 communities on their to-do list. She seems happy with the commitments and promises made in Mbanumbekem. She and the team from the LGA will be back to check on progress. The process is not preoccupied with the technical aspects of the toilet, but rather seeks to ensure that every family understands its value. Improvements can always be made at a later stage, as the use of the toilet and its value become better appreciated.

 

The team travel to Mbanzua community for a return visit. This community remains committed to staying open defecation free, which Ms. Torkwase Ikyaator is heartened to hear. To be certified, they need to keep their status for at least six months. “We keep on coming back to the community,” she says. “Checking in on them, giving them encouragement and supporting the process. But once they realize the benefit, especially in keeping their children healthy, it becomes part of their way of life.” Jacob Akem, a father of three, shows off his toilet, built with mud bricks and a simple plastic water container for hand-washing. He says he and his family now spend less of their income on visits to the clinic, and his children are much healthier.

 

Ms. Torkwase Ikyaator believes the simple and participatory process of community-led total sanitation is having a huge impact on the incidence of diarrhoea, one of the primary killers of children. But with more than 45 million Nigerians still defecating in the open, according to the 2011 Multiple Indicator Survey, she knows there is still much triggering to be done.

For more go to www.unicef.org

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l'INITIATIVE AGIR

Vers la résilience des populations,

Par Cyprien Fabre, ECHO

Nous vous proposons ci-après une présentation de M. Cyprien Fabre, Chef du Bureau ECHO pour l'Afrique de l'Ouest, au colloque international sur "l'agriculture, la sécurité alimentaire et nutritionnelle" de l'Association des Femmes de l'Afrique de l'Ouest.

For more go to http://ec.europa.eu/echo/policies/resilience/agir_en.htm - http://ec.europa.eu/echo/ 

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