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Humanitarian Action for Children 2016 - Sahel (Burkina Faso, the Gambia, Mauritania, Senegal)

Countries
Burkina Faso
+ 3 more
Sources
UNICEF
Publication date
Origin
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Total affected population: 4,829,000
Total affected children (under 18): 1.14 million
Total people to be reached in 2016: 1,266,300
Total children to be reached in 2016: 248,575

2016 programme targets

Burkina Faso

  • 152,127 children under 5 years with SAM admitted into therapeutic feeding programmes
  • 120,000 people, including 50,000 children, accessed safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene
  • 11,000 emergency-affected children accessed quality formal and non-formal education
  • 21,000 children provided with safe access to community spaces for socialization, play and learning

The Gambia

  • 6,251 children under 5 years with SAM admitted into therapeutic feeding programmes
  • 78,000 people accessed safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene
  • 3,500 emergency-affected children accessed quality formal and non-formal education
  • 62,500 children under 5 years immunized against measles

Mauritania

  • 21,376 children under 5 years with SAM admitted into therapeutic feeding programmes
  • 16,450 mother/caregiver-child pairs received WASH kits as per WASH-in-nutrition interventions
  • 13,300 emergency-affected children accessed quality formal and non-formal education
  • 18,15 children accessed care services, including psychosocial support

Senegal

  • 68,821 children under 5 years with SAM admitted into therapeutic feeding programmes
  • 70,000 people accessed safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene

Sahel

The Sahel sub-region is characterized by cyclical drought conditions, chronic food insecurity and alarming levels of malnutrition. Existing vulnerabilities, such as poverty and lack of access to basic social services, persist and are exacerbated during additional shocks, including floods, epidemic outbreaks, conflict and displacement. Socioeconomic factors, such as rising food prices, also deepen vulnerability. In 2016, an estimated 23.5 million people will be affected by food insecurity in the sub-region, and more than 5.8 million children will suffer from acute malnutrition (moderate and severe).7 The protracted humanitarian situation in the Sahel means that families are facing the daily erosion of coping capacities and resorting to negative strategies, such as taking on too much debt, eating seed stocks and removing children from school. In turn, these strategies leave families even less able to cope with the next shock and more likely to continue to need humanitarian assistance in the future. Building the capacity of households across the Sahel to deal with and recover from shocks is a central element of the humanitarian strategy.8 The UNICEF humanitarian strategy and the 2015 results for Burkina Faso, the Gambia, Mauritania and Senegal are presented below, with separate appeals available for the complex situations in Cameroon, Chad, Mali, the Niger and Nigeria.

Humanitarian strategy

In line with the 2014–2016 Sahel Strategic Response Plan (which brings together humanitarian and resilience interventions), the UNICEF humanitarian strategy aims to reinforce emergency preparedness and response, including by supporting national and local authorities and civil society to better respond to slow onset or sudden disasters and thereby prevent and/or mitigate their impact. UNICEF will scale up ongoing integrated management of acute malnutrition, focusing on life-saving treatment of severe acute malnutrition (SAM), as well as the prevention of malnutrition through infant and young child feeding and the promotion of essential family practices. Working with partners, UNICEF will improve access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) for crisis- affected populations. As part of epidemic preparedness and response, UNICEF will support immunization campaigns targeting children to help mitigate or cope with ensuing epidemics, including through the integrated management of childhood illnesses. Access to education will be improved and protective environments will be supported for crisis-affected children by reinforcing systems and community-based interventions to provide care and support. UNICEF will support social protection mechanisms to reinforce the resilience of families and communities affected by crises, including refugees (for example in the Gambia).

Results from 2015

As of 31 October 2015, UNICEF had received 23 per cent (US$14.2 million) of its total 2015 humanitarian funding requirements for Burkina Faso, the Gambia, Mauritania and Senegal, in addition to US$10.7 million carried forward from 2014. In Burkina Faso, the Gambia, Mauritania and Senegal, 114,000 children were admitted for SAM treatment through the support of UNICEF and partners, including governments and non-governmental organizations. This represents a portion of the more than 1 million children reached across nine countries in the Sahel as of the end November 2015.6 In the area of child protection, UNICEF provided nearly 8,800 children with access to safe spaces for play, psychosocial support and learning. Although UNICEF was unable to meet its child protection target in Burkina Faso due to funding shortfalls, the targets were exceeded in Mauritania due to enhanced resource mobilization. In Burkina Faso, more than 6.2 million children received micronutrient supplements and in Senegal, over 1.8 million children received vitamin A supplementation with UNICEF support. In Burkina Faso, the Gambia, Mauritania and Senegal, some 276,000 crisis-affected people gained access to safe water and more than 18,000 children gained access to education. Although WASH and education targets were not met in Burkina Faso, the Gambia, Mauritania and Senegal due to limited funding, UNICEF remains committed to reinforcing fundraising and partnerships to support education interventions.