Ethiopia Weekly Humanitarian Bulletin, 15 May 2017
Key Issues
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Government and partners will soon begin the 2017 mid-year needs assessment
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The assessment will gauge the level of food and non-food needs in spring (belg-guganna-sugum) rains-receiving areas across 177 targeted woredas.
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Scaled-up response critical to curb the spread of AWD outbreak within Somali and other at-risk regions
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World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day Celebrated with a call to support humanitarian action
Following poor performing spring rains, the number of people requiring humanitarian assistance has increased from 5.6 million to 7.78 million in the first quarter of the year, and is expected to heighten further in the second half of the year. Increased funding is needed urgently, in particular to address immediate requirements for clean drinking water, much of which is being delivered long distances by truck as regular wells have dried up.
Government and partners to commence the 2017 mid-year needs assessment from 22 May
The 2017 multi-sector and multi-agency mid-year needs assessment will be conducted from 22 May to 15 June in Afar, Somali and Borena, Guji and West Guji zones of Oromia regions; and from 1 to 15 June in other parts of the country. The assessment will gauge the level of food and nonfood needs in spring (belg-gu-ganna-sugum) rains-receiving areas across 177 targeted woredas.
Representatives from Government, UN, NGOs and donors will take part in the three-week assessment. The National Disaster Risk Management Commission (NDRMC) will organize a small group briefing on 19 May for the team that goes out on 22 May, and a large group briefing will be given on 29 May for the second team.
The assessment results will inform the review of the 2017 Humanitarian Requirements Document (HRD) for the second half of the year.
Humanitarian requirements have already increased with at least 2.2 million people needing food assistance, in addition to the 5.6 million relief food beneficiaries identified at the beginning of the year.
The release of the mid-year review is tentatively planned for 4 July. The HRD and its release aims to facilitate resource mobilization and guide operational partners across sectors.
Scaled-up response critical to curb the spread of AWD outbreak beyond Somali region
Somali is the worst affected region by the current outbreak of Acute Watery Diarrhoae (AWD), accounting for 91 per cent of the reported cases. In Somali region, the Federal Ministry of Health and the Regional Health Bureau are supported by international partners in the implementation of a coordinated, multi-sector (health, WaSH, nutrition) response to the outbreak. However, there is a growing realization of the need to expand AWD prevention and response operations within Somali and other at-risk regions. Government and its partners have prepared a 90-days (April – June)
National Health and Nutrition Emergencies Preparedness and Response Plan. These include scaled-up partners’ presence, supplies for the management of AWD, logistics and surveillance staff.
Communities in the new drought belt continue to bear the brunt of severe water shortages, population displacement, food insecurity, livestock deaths and associated rising levels of Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) and outbreaks of epidemic-prone diseases like Acute Watery Diarrhoea and measles.
World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day celebrated with a call to support humanitarian action The World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day was celebrated on 08 May, with a motto ‘Everywhere for Everyone’. At the event, the president of the Ethiopian Red Cross Society (ERCS), Dr. Ahmed Reja, urged all stakeholders; organizations, associations and individuals alike, to support humanitarian action. “The ERCS is currently providing supplementary food to 94,000 moderately malnourished children under the age of 5 and to pregnant and lactating mothers and distributing water to some 180,000 people affected by the current drought in Somali, Oromia and SNNP regions,” said Dr. Ahmed. The President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, H.E. Dr. Mulatu Teshome commended the Society for its exemplary work on local resource mobilization.
For further information, contact: ocha-eth@un.org