Video: The Human Chain in the Sahel

 

By ECHO & WFP

 

The Sahel has been hit by severe droughts three times in seven years. Normally it’s every 10 years. This documentary produced by Humanitarian Aid ECHO & World Food Programme, shows the triple crises challenges faced in the Sahel and how the population was assisted.

More about ECHO
Follow ECHO on twitter
More about WFP
Follow WFP on twitter

Photo Story

Mali: Musicians raising hope to help end the humanitarian crisis

By John Bosch, Film Director Sahel Calling project in Mali (Bamako)

 

Ahmed sings on Bassekou's track, "Essakane", at Studio Bogolan, in Bamako

Every day here in Bamako is an opportunity to look, learn, and most importantly, to listen. In listening, we realize that Earth's citizens' deepest concerns and fears are shared by all individuals on the planet. There are basic needs that must be met, and a secure environment is necessary in order to try and meet them. In Mali, extreme poverty is so ubiquitous it wants to be filtered out. It feels terrible to have 200,000 CFAs in your pocket, yet unable to really help a kid with a stump leg on crutches begging at your car window.

You see these people, as in every country I've been to and in the city I live in, trying to survive on the kindness of strangers and the mercy of God. Here the scale of poverty is massive.
And yet everywhere in Bamako, you see people doing incredible work with very little means.

Our daily routine is to walk a couple minutes to the main road and hail a yellow cab, most often a beat up yet reliable old Mercedes driven by a dude -- the "taximan" -- with his name and license number written in white ink on the dashboard. It's great when you can get a car that has window handles, but at least the driver's window is always down.  Most often there is music blasting, and we've been keeping track of our drivers' diverse music of choice. [Last night, DMX and Ruff Ryderz. Days prior: Celine Dion, Salif Keita, Arabic-sounding pop music, etc]

Fishing longboats on the River Niger.

So yesterday morning we leave the house at 7am, toting our gear, en route to the main road to hail a taximan. We heading down to the riverbank to catch the morning rays, or "magic hour" in the parlance of movie-making.

On the corner of our street there's a vacant lot, and a small group of three workers were building perfectly-shaped cinderblocks with their hands and a few simple tools in the pleasant morning sun.
When we returned, they had made enough for a building foundation.

Our focus being on musicians, we are seeking out singers, songwriters, and players who find a way to work everyday, even if for nothing. They are playing music and singing songs to keep their culture's soul aloft, as music is the heartbeat of the Malian universe,
and without music, Mali will die, plain and simple. Just as importantly, they are thinking deeply about their country's situation, and responding intelligently and passionately to questions we ask regarding their deepest concerns.

Last night, Ahmed from the Tamishek band Amanar (the word meaning "north star") tells us one of his recent stories.  One day, recently, when he was away from his home in Kidal, bandits claiming to be Muslim stormed into his house demanding to know where the electric guitars were. Ahmed's sister claimed ignorance, but the intruders found the guitars and other music gear, took them out into the street, and burned them.

We're not talking about ritualistic sacrifice to a peaceful, psychedelic God here, a la Jimi Hendrix. This is brutal language of control and violence toward another person's sacred possessions and means of livelihood.

After the burning, they conveyed a message to Ahmed through his sister: return home, continue to play music, and we will teach you that you are not "using your hands to pray" to god in the correct way. We will cut off your hands. Or return, and we will show you how to be a leader of a mosque, in the correct way. But you must first do just as we tell you.

As a musician and guitarist myself, I must truly admit I have never experienced concerns as deep as these, and therefore, perhaps my original statement doesn't hold up. All of us in the world don't share all of the same concerns. Some of us face threats that only in a nightmare could our imagination conjure.

Click here to see the photos!

Interview with David Gressly, UN Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Sahel

 

By the United Nations Regional Information Center for Western Europe (UNRIC)

What does food security mean? How serious is the situation right now in the Sahel? How does the military intervention affect the humanitarian situation?

Learn more about UNRIC

Follow UNRIC on twitter

A Typical Day in the Life of a Displaced Person in Mali

By Muganzi M. Isharaza, Communications Officer, World Vision

It is 5am in a small town in central Mali. The sun, while not yet visible, has already started casting away the dark cold night. And in a tiny two-roomed house, hardly larger than twelve square meters, Miriam, age 32, awakes. She walks around the children who stir in their sleep, careful not to step on or wake them. Altogether, there are nine children squeezed in one room, while the second room acts as a pantry and “living room,” though there’s hardly any space for them to sit. With only one room to sleep in, they are still among the lucky ones: for many other internally displaced persons (IDPs), having all her children with her, in one tiny space, is actually a luxury.

“Some of the other families that fled Timbuktu had no choice but to leave their adult children there to take care of the land and property,” she says, “and now, every night they worry about whether or not their children are alive.”

Miriam fled Timbuktu with her children on January 9, but her husband, Yussuf, had insisted on staying there to take care of the family’s property; as of January 30, she had yet to hear from him and does not know whether he has survived. She’s heard of the successful recapture of Timbukutu by the Malian and French armies, but that does little to settle her mind. (Muganzi Isharaza/World Vision)

This worry has not stopped for the Touareg families like Miriam’s who fled into Central Mali from Timbuktu and other places in the North. Touaregs are light skinned Malians and have traditionally lived in the Northern part of the country. However, because the anti-Government militants in this region are often of a similar light complexion, many other Malians believe that all Touaregs support the armed opposition groups who imposed vicious laws on the fabled Northern Malian city before the French troops came.  Because of this, revenge attacks against Touaregs and even killings have been reported in several parts of the country.

Miriam prepares breakfast for her children, before waking them up at 6:30, prepares them for school and at 7, serves their breakfast and sends them off. She then sweeps the yard, tidies up the two rooms she now calls home and then heads to the market.

Interview with David Gressly, Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Sahel

 

By UNOCHA

Learn more about David Gressly

Latest updates on people displaced by the fighting in central and northern Mali, ways to provide humanitarian aid to cut- off communities in Mali, significant changes in the Sahel region since 2012, updates on the Sahel Resilience Strategy and main challenges as the Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Sahel.

Dernière mise au point sur les personnes déplacées par le conflit récent au nord du Mali, moyens alternatifs pour que l´aide humanitaire arrive aux communautés isolées au Mali, changements significatifs dans la région du Sahel depuis 2012, nouvelles sur la stratégie de la résilience au Sahel et défis principaux du Coordonnateur Humanitaire Régional pour le Sahel.

Interview in English

 Interview en français

International Medical Corps Conducts Emergency Assessment in the Town of Konna to Identify Critical Needs of Conflict-Affected Malians

By International Medical Corps

 

International Medical Corps has conducted the first rapid, multi-sectoral humanitarian assessment in the town of Konna, Mali – where a rebel takeover triggered French military airstrikes that have caused massive civilian displacement throughout the country. International Medical Corps’ Emergency Team assessed Konna's health, nutrition, water supply, sanitation and hygiene services, along with other urgent needs.

International Medical Corps’ team was allowed only four hours in Konna, which is currently under control of the Malian army. The team met with community leaders to assess the town’s current humanitarian situation and discuss its residents’ most urgent needs. All sectors of the community participated, including the mayor, women’s groups, local health associations and youth groups. International Medical Corps also visited homes in several parts of the town to see firsthand the household-level impact of the conflict.

Mali: I am bracing for the worst ....

By Mamadou Samba Bocoum,  Programme Unit Manager in Plan International (Ségou, Mali)

I called my brother today and it was hard.

I have seven brothers and sisters and Gorou, 60, is the eldest. He lives in Sévaré in Mopti Region which is close to the area where military action is taking place.

Today when I called his voice was different. He was very emotional. I have never heard him like this.  He told me he was concerned about his children and his home. They had been hearing gunshots and heavy military vehicles were just 9 km away. They’re scared but he is determined to stay at home no matter what.

I know what this ‘no matter what’ means and I am anxious. I know he will stay put and defend his house to his last breath. This is hard but I understand and respect his choice.

More than 7,500 flee new Mali offensive; refugees report food shortages 

 

By Helene Caux, Senior Regional Public Information Officer for West Africa in UNHCR

Almost 7,500 refugees have fled into neighbouring countries since French and Malian forces launched a counter-offensive against Islamic militants almost two weeks ago and the exodus is continuing.

In Mauritania, 4,208 Malian refugees have arrived since the latest fighting began on January 11. After being registered at the Fassala transit centre, they are being transported further inland to the Mbera refugee camp, which was already hosting some 55,000 people from earlier displacements.

In Niger there are now 1,300 new refugees, mainly from the Menaka and Anderamboukane areas. During the same period, Burkina Faso has received 1,829 new refugees. These are mainly ethnic Tuaregs and Songhai from the regions of Gossi, Timbuktu, Gao and Bambara Maoude.

New E-Book on Resilience

 

By UNOCHA

While discussions continue to take place among the members of the Global Alliance for Resilience Initiative (AGIR),  humanitarian actors in the Sahel at all levels share their thoughts on resilience through human stories, analysis and definitions of  this key term in 2013.

Click on the picture to read the e-book

Humanitarian situation in Mali deteriorates after latest wave of fighting

By the UN News Center

The latest round of military clashes over the weekend between the Malian army and radical Islamist groups have sparked a new wave of displacement and led to a worsening of the humanitarian situation in the North African country, the United Nations warned today.

A displaced Malian woman prepares dinner for her family in the capital, Bamako. Photo: UNHCR/H. Caux

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), more than 30,000 people fled their homes over the weekend, coinciding with the declaration of a state of emergency by the Government and the beginning of a French air operation in support of the Malian army, bringing the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) to over 200,000.

Map: Plan´s humanitarian response to Mali conflict

By Plan International

Hundreds of people - mainly children and women - have been displaced by the military offensive in Mali. This map shows Plan's emergency response, including food distribution, education, child protection, water and sanitation.

Follow Plan International on twitter

Photos:  WFP Responds to Emergency Food Needs in Mali

By WFP

Click on the photo to see full gallery

Learn more about WFP

Follow WFP on twitter

The most under-reported humanitarian disasters of 2012

By David Bull, Executive Director UNICEF UK

Every year, humanitarian disasters take a devastating toll on the lives and futures of millions of children around the world, and 2012 was no exception. The numbers of children affected are staggering, so much that it is hard to comprehend why so many of these disasters rarely make the headlines.

UNICEF began the year having issued a stark warning in December 2011 that more than one million children would suffer from severe, life-threatening malnutrition in the Sahel region of West Africa and would need specialist treatment. This nutrition crisis, caused by a combination of drought and high food prices, would require an unprecedented response by governments, UNICEF and other UN agencies, and humanitarian organisations if we were to avert a catastrophe.

It was not a famine, but we were talking about a huge number of very young children at risk of starvation, and the lack of media interest in this crisis was both surprising and incredibly frustrating. When fighting escalated in Mali (one of the nine affected countries in the Sahel region), the number of people needing emergency assistance increased not just in Mali, but also in neighbouring countries that were hosting refugees. The conflict and the political crisis sparked some media interest, but once again, there were hardly any reports of the situation of people being forced to flee their homes, or of the worsening nutrition crisis.

Mali: Boats Take Food To Families Fleeing Fighting

 

By WFP

 

 Click on the picture to watch the video

 

Conflict in the north has forced thousands of families to flee their homes, uprooting half a million people. It's placing added pressure on vulnerable host communities who have not yet recovered from the Sahel drought. The conflict and population movement also complicates matters for agencies like WFP providing humanitarian assistance. WFP is sailing boats up the River Niger in order to bring food to families affected by fighting.

Minimum Standards for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action 

By the Education Cluster Unit

Exploitation, violence, separation and sexual abuse are but a few of the hardships children suffer in emergency situations. In 2010 the members of the global Child Protection Working Group agreed on the need for child protection standards in humanitarian settings.

The Minimum Standards for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action were developed between January 2011 and September 2012. The process of drafting the Minimum Standards involved over 400 individuals from 30 agencies in over 40 countries, including child protection practitioners, humanitarian actors from other sectors, academics and policy makers.

Watch the video:

More information

Pictures: UN Special envoy for the Sahel, Romano Prodi, and Regional Humanitarian Coordinator, David Gressly, discussing humanitarian and development challenges in the Sahel region with Humanitarian Coordinators

 On Monday, the United Nations Special Envoy for the Sahel, Mr. Romano Prodi, attended a retreat of United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinators in the countries of the Sahel, in Dakar.

The meeting was organized by Mr. David Gressly, the United Nations Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Sahel.  The discussions focused on the humanitarian and development challenges in the Sahel region, existing mechanisms to address them and ways by which they could be reinforced.

Special Envoy for the Sahel, Romano Prodi and Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Sahel, David Gressly. CREDIT: Laurence Gérard/UNOWA

See more photos

Resilience in simple terms/ La résilience en termes simples

Breaking the myth of growth as a panacea

Development actors to identify, protect and build resilience of the poorest people in the Sahel 

By Cyprien Fabre, Head of Regional Support Office West Africa, ECHO (Directorate General Humanitarian Aids and Civil protection)

 Since the 2005 crisis in Niger, the humanitarian community has focused its efforts on the widespread problem of malnutrition. Acute malnutrition started to be measured regularly uncovering appalling malnutrition rates in Niger and, it quickly appeared, throughout the Sahel.

Malnutrition management was steadily improved, in spite of the constraints faced by national health systems. With some time and effort, tackling malnutrition is steadily becoming a higher priority for governments in the region.

It nevertheless also appeared that those malnutrition rates remained high even in ‘good’ agricultural years, and even in areas with substantial agricultural production. In the Sahel it seems there is no direct connection between agricultural production and malnutrition. And yet, the majority of development projects in recent decades have supported national policies focused on agricultural production with an emphasis on food self-sufficiency and export sectors.

But recent studies of the household economy in the Sahel have contradicted the cliché of rural environments where levels of wealth are homogenous.
READ MORE

Video: David Gressly shares updates on the Sahel crisis at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)

The Sahel region, which spans across nine African countries, is estimated to have more than 18 million people facing food insecurity due to the combination of drought, political instability, and high food prices. Although international organizations and governments acted on the early warning signs of food insecurity earlier in 2011, an emergency response is still vital, but long-term, structured, development efforts are also essential.

David Gressly, the UN Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Sahel, shares updates on the crisis and the humanitarian relief efforts the United Nations currently has underway. Ms. Johanna Nesseth Tuttle, Director of the Global Food Security Project, moderates the discussion.

Watch David Gressly´s video

Sahel locust threat: millions of dollars can be saved

...if there is good early warning followed by early response to locust threats before they become completely out of hand.

by Keith Cressman

Senior Locust Forecasting Officer,

FAO, Rome

This year the Sahel is facing the most serious Desert Locust threat since the last plague in 2003-05. More than 50 million people could be affected in Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger.

The threat originated further north along the Libyan/Algerian border at the beginning of the year. Normally, both countries can easily manage locust infestations in their territories. However, this year was different. The infestations occurred in a border area that was insecure. Although both countries managed to undertake survey and control operations during the spring, they could not stop the formation of hopper bands and adult swarms. When the vegetation in both countries started to dry out in May, the swarms moved south to greener pastures.

Video: The Sahel's Deepening Crisis and Its Humanitarian Consequences

David Gressly, Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Sahel, discussed on 01/10/2012 in the NY International Peace Institute the current and future challenges facing the Sahel countries linked to chronic, structural food and nutrition insecurity, resulting in the need for a large-scale humanitarian response.

Watch David Gressly´s address at the IPI