ReliefWeb

SITUATION IN NUMBERS

31 March 2017

2,072,000
children out of
3,700,000
people affected (OCHA HNO 2017)

302,000
children out of
422,000
people to be reached in 2017
(UNICEF HAC 2017)

45,766
Internally displaced people
(DNDS/OIM March 2017)

UNICEF Appeal 2017*
US$ 35 million

REPORTING PERIOD: January – March 2017

Highlights

• Humanitarian access remained a major concern during the first quarter of 2017 in the Northern Regions and some parts of Mopti and Segou. Despite the signature of the peace agreement in 2015, renewed violence undermines the provision of humanitarian aid.

• 45 boreholes equipped with hand pumps and one solar pumping system were installed in the regions of Mopti and Gao providing access to safe water to 18 800 beneficiaries.

• During the cantonment process related to DDR, 10 children were identified and demobilized by armed groups and were directly released and reunified with their families. In Gao, a care center for children demobilized was put in place and equipped, families at community level were also identified and trained to care for those children.

• 507 schools in the North of Mali remain closed due to security concerns. During the first three months of 2017, UNICEF provided support to municipalities in community mobilization, advocacy with school management committees and community leaders, and implemented peacebuilding activities.

• Despite the urgency of addressing severe acute malnutrition and a vigorous advocacy effort from UNICEF Mali, very little funding has been secured for 2017. Nevertheless, UNICEF supported the Government in providing life-saving malnutrition treatment to 10,731 children affected by SAM in the first quarter of 2017.

Situation Overview & Humanitarian Needs

Consequences of the security crisis that erupted in 2012 continue to be an obstacle for the access of populations to basic social services and the access of humanitarian organizations in crisis affected areas. Despite the efforts made by the Government of Mali and its partners, humanitarian needs have increased in many sectors. The number of people in need is estimated at 3.7 million in 2017, against 2.5 million in 2016. Among them, 3.53 million are facing food insecurity.
Access to populations in the north remains a major challenge due to frequent attacks against the national army, MINUSMA forces and humanitarian organizations. According to OCHA1, attacks on humanitarian personnel, property and infrastructure constituted 68% of the access incidents since January 2017. In addition, since 2016, ethnic clashes have been registered in the centre of Mali (Segou and Mopti regions), leading to a further degradation of the humanitarian situation in this part of the country.
As of March 2017, 45,766 internally displaced persons (IDPs) were registered in Mali (source: DNDS/OIM), of which 57% are women and 53% children. The nutrition situation remains of serious concern. In 2017, 142,000 under-five children are expected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition (SAM) in 2017, and about 21,300 children (or nearly 15%) are expected to also develop medical complications. UNICEF and partners aim to ensure quality treatment for at least 107,000 children, mainly through the provision and distribution of Ready to Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF). The number of people in need of WASH are estimated at 1.2 million, while 1.4 million of people are expected to not have access to health care, mainly in the Kidal region where 69% of health centers are non-functional. As of March 2017, almost one third of primary schools (507 out of 1,610) in 66 municipalities of Gao, Kidal, Timbuktu, Mopti and Segou affected by the security crisis remain closed, resulting in an estimate of 100,000 children out-of-school. Moreover, 9 schools (5 in Gao and 4 in Timbuktu) are occupied by armed groups. Recruiting and deploying teachers is a major challenge: it is estimated that 1,634 teachers are missing in crisis-affected areas, and in particular in Kidal region, where 65% of teachers have a voluntary status.Moreover, the country is yearly exposed to natural disasters including floods and epidemics. The number of people at risk of floods is estimated at 50,000 and 15,000 are at risk of epidemics.
Humanitarian actors continued to play a critical role in supporting life-saving interventions, including by re-establishing basic social services and reinforcing social cohesion through peacebuilding at community level. Capacity building of communities to respond to and reinforce their resilience against crises, including natural hazards and conflict, remains a priority for the humanitarian community, including UNICEF.