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WFP Emergency Report No. 50 of 2003

Countries
Afghanistan
+ 24 more
Sources
WFP
Publication date


This report includes:
A) Middle East and Central Asia: (1) Palestinian Territories, (2) Iraq, (3) Iran, (4) Afghanistan

B) East and Central Africa: (1) DR Congo, (2) Burundi, (3) Rwanda, (4) Tanzania, (5) Uganda, (6) Sudan, (7) Eritrea, (8) Ethiopia

C) West Africa: (1) Guinea Bissau, (2) Liberia, (3) Côte d'Ivoire

D) Southern Africa: (1) Regional, (2) Namibia, (3) Angola, (4) Zambia, (5) Zimbabwe, (6) Malawi, (7) Tanzania, (8) Mozambique, (9) Swaziland, (10) Lesotho, (11) Madagascar

E) Asia: (1) DPR Korea

F) Latin America and the Caribbean: (1) Colombia, (2) Honduras, (3) Guatemala, (4) Dominican Republic

G) Eastern Europe and the Caucasus: (1) Russian Federation

From David Morton, Director of the Transport, Preparedness and Response Division (OTP); available on the Internet on the WFP Home Page (www.wfp.org), or by e-mail from Carlo.Scaramella@wfp.org, Chief of the Emergency Preparedness and Response Unit (OEP).

For information on resources, donors are requested to contact Valerie.Sequeira@wfp.org at WFP Rome, telephone +39 06 6513 2009. Media queries should be directed to Brenda.Barton@wfp.org, telephone +39 06 6513 2602. The address of WFP is Via Cesare Giulio Viola 68, Parco dei Medici, 00148 Rome, Italy.

A) Middle East and Central Asia: (1) Palestinian Territories, (2) Iraq, (3) Iran, (4) Afghanistan

1) Palestinian Territories

(a) The failure of the ceasefire agreement in Cairo between the heads of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other factions, along with Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia is likely to cause more political turmoil and stricter Israeli closure policy. In fact, many towns and villages in the northern part of the West Bank have witnessed continuous incursions and curfews. Other towns and villages are facing strict closure, including internal ones. The construction of the Separation Wall continues the encroachment over vast areas of land. In Salfeet governorate, some 200 olive trees have been uprooted as a result and many farmers have been prevented from accessing their lands.

(b) In November, WFP and implementing partners including ICRC distributed some 4903 tons of wheat flour, sugar and oil to some 254,766 beneficiaries in the West Bank and Gaza Strip through general distribution, food for work, food for training, institutional feeding and supplementary feeding activities. The food for work programme in the West Bank under EMOP 10190.1, including those activities under the Separation Wall project funded by ECHO, has continued throughout November. The food for work programme involving the olive harvest was completed this month. Aside from the ongoing food for work and food for training activities such as terracing, land reclamation and rural access road rehabilitation, WFP will launch new activities including urban agriculture, bee keeping, food processing and replanting uprooted olive trees. Distributions to the hardship beneficiaries, including hardship social cases and supplementary and institutional feeding, have been implemented in full both in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

(c) Starting in January 2004, WFP will cover the needs of beneficiaries in 10 urban West Bank centres with the Ministry of Social Affairs (MSA); and in the rural West Bank with the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees (PARC); and will implement a limited food for work/food for training pilot project with the Ministry of Agriculture. In Gaza, Centro Regionale di Intervento per la Cooperazione (CRIC), an Italian NGO with whom WFP has signed a Letter of Understanding (LoU), has started the selection process for 8,000 Bedouins in need of food aid. In addition, WFP has signed a LoU with the Ministry of Agriculture and Directory of Fisheries to assist 8400 beneficiaries in Gaza.

(d) A custom strike delayed shipments to Ashdod, preventing delivery of wheat flour to implementing partners, except for to the hardship distribution in Gaza.

2) Iraq

(a) Note: A consolidated update will be included in an upcoming WFP Emergency Report.

3) Iran

(a) Iran continues to be in Security Phase II except for Sistan-Baluchistan province, which is in Security Phase III, due to criminal activity including drug trafficking and smuggling. The kidnapping of 3 western tourists last week in the province urges additional security measures for international staff.

(b) The first organized UNHCR-assisted repatriation of 69 Iraqi refugees from Ashrafi Camp took place on 19 November 2003, and a second group of 210 refugees returned on 08 December from the same camp. During October and November, some 16,000 Iraqi refugees returned spontaneously from Iraqi Arab camps.

(c) Since the first repatriation of Afghan refugees under PRRO 10213 'Food assistance and support to education of Afghan and Iraqi refugees' began on 09 April 2002, some 635,924 refugees have repatriated to Afghanistan through Dogharoun and Milak. Of these, 399,604 repatriated with assistance from UNHCR and WFP, while 236,320 returned to Afghanistan spontaneously. From 27 November to 08 December, some 1493 Afghans returned with UNHCR assistance and around 8209 returned spontaneously, all from outside the refugee camps.

(d) From 27 November to 10 December, WFP assisted a total of 61,245 beneficiaries. In Zahedan, WFP and implementing partners MOE/LMO, IRCS and Global Partners distributed some 125 tons of wheat flour, pulses, vegetable oil, rice and sugar to 4,540 beneficiaries through literacy and skills training classes, food for girls education, teachers incentives and orphans feeding activities.

(e) The joint WFP-UNHCR Monitoring Mission to the 29 refugee camps ended on 04 December. The joint mission established that camp populations have dropped from 68,528 WFP beneficiaries in July to 50,587 beneficiaries in December, due to the spontaneous repatriation of Iraqi refugees from Iraqi Arab camps, which has caused a decrease in overall camp population of more than 26 percent, while the Iraqi Arab camp population itself has decreased by 50 percent. The repatriation of Iraqi Arabs is expected to continue. A Household Food Economy Survey began on 04 December to help improve the targeting of vulnerable refugees and identify new beneficiaries. Some 25 enumerators have been trained and have been deployed to conduct interviews in 12 camps.

(f) Given current levels of resource mobilization and forecasted repatriation trends, a shortfall of 18 tons of sugar is anticipated in May 2004, which will affect assistance to beneficiaries under the recovery component of the PRRO.

4) Afghanistan

(a) In the north, withdrawal of heavy weapons to two cantonment sites continues. UN field missions to Chitonsal district in Balkh province, and Sangcharak and Kohistanat districts in Saripul province were suspended. In the south, security incidents targeting the aid community continued, including attacks on an UNHCR field unit in Nimroz province and a NGO office in Hilmand province, and kidnapping of two Indian contractors in Zabul province. UN field missions in southern, southeastern and eastern provinces remain suspended. In the west, UN field missions to Bakwa district in Farah province and on the highway between Shindand and Dilaram were suspended following the ambush on eight vehicles belonging to the Government Statistics Department that killed one and wounded four. Movement in Khaki Jabbar district of Kabul province was temporarily restricted after the kidnapping of two Turkish nationals and one Afghan national. On 04 December, a rocket impacted near the American embassy in Kabul.

(b) From 04 to 10 December, WFP assisted 689,572 beneficiaries with 2,417 tons of food through food for work, food for education, relief and resettlement of IDP's and refugees, urban and rural vulnerable and supplementary and institutional feeding activities in Fayz Abad, Mazari Sharif, Kabul, Kandahar and Hirat. Winter pre-positioning of food is 93 percent complete in areas in the north, northeast and central highlands, expected to become inaccessible during the winter. Heavy snowfall in the central highlands has delayed some monitoring visits.

(c) In Fayz Abad, WFP trained seven staff Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) staff, including one woman, in issues pertaining food security and vulnerability, monitoring and evaluation, gender sensitive targeting, and preparation of project proposals and budgets. During a three-day warehouse management workshop in Kunduz and Mazari Sharif, government counterparts, including the Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Education (MoE), Ministry of Health, Ministry of Planning, MRRD and Ministry of Women's Affairs, were trained in logistics practices. On 07 December, WFP and MRRD met to improve monitoring of food assistance projects in Kunar and Laghman provinces, where insecurity restricts UN movement and agreed on MRRD's larger involvement in monitoring. WFP and the Ministry of Education held a food-for-education review meeting in Kandahar to improve data on registered beneficiaries.

B) East and Central Africa: (1) DR Congo, (2) Burundi, (3) Rwanda, (4) Tanzania, (5) Uganda, (6) Sudan, (7) Eritrea, (8) Ethiopia

1) DR Congo

(a) President Kabila informed Parliament that agriculture, poverty reduction and the setting up of a new democratic order was among the government's top priorities.

(b) The security situation remained volatile in eastern DR Congo. Despite efforts being made to set up a united/integrated national army, various militia factions in North Katanga and North and South Kivu are reluctant to enter the process. Some militia have refused to surrender their weapons to MONUC and continue to terrorize local populations, extorting food and other goods. Looting was reported in Rutshuru and Masisi in the North Kivu province and several cases of harassment and abduction of women were reported near the Virunga Park. MONUC helped to free three civilian prisoners and some 34 women who were being held as sexual slaves by militiamen in the embattled northeastern district of Ituri.

(c) From 01 to 07 December, WFP provided 964 tons of food to 99,233 beneficiaries in Ituri district, North Kivu, South Kivu, North Katanga, Bas-Congo and Kinshasa, including IDPs, returnees and malnourished children. In eastern DR Congo, most of the dispatches were made on the basis of reduced rations due to low food availability and priority was given to therapeutic feeding centres. In Kinshasa, food distributions resumed, following the appraisal of implementing partners' performance in food and beneficiary management.

2) Burundi

(a) The security situation remained volatile in some areas. Regular attacks on military posts and reprisal fighting were reported in different sectors of Bujumbura Rural and in the outskirts of Bujumbura.

(b) During the week, WFP provided 1,436 tons of food to 130,868 beneficiaries trough its various programmes. Household Food Economy Assessment teams carried out food security assessments in Bujumbura Rural and Bubanza provinces. They also conducted monthly food security assessment missions in Muyinga, Kayanza, Ruyigi and Cankuzo provinces.

(c) A contribution of 23,900 tons of cereals, pulses, vegetable oil and corn-soya blend was confirmed.

3) Rwanda

(a) The food security situation in Bugesera region and parts of Umutara and Kibungo provinces remains precarious. A recent joint assessment by WFP and FEWSNET in Bugesera concluded that the current harvest season, expected in January 2004, is likely to fail following erratic rainfall during October and early November and a prolonged dry spell. The most affected areas are Murama, Muyenzi and Mayange sectors in Nyamata district and Mbyo, Nkanga, Mwendo, Rilima, Karera, Gashora, Rwinume, Rweru and Musovu sectors of Gashora district in Bugesera region. The most drought affected areas in Kibungo and Umutara provinces are Cyarubare, Nyarubuye and Mirenge districts. The Government and WFP met on a possible government request for emergency food assistance for 20,000 families in Gashora district in Bugesera.

(b) In Bugesera region, WFP assistance continues through the implementation of the school-feeding programme in 51 primary schools, assistance to 6 nutrition centres, and support to HIV/AIDS affected households and food for work activities targeting some 59,350 people in the region.

4) Tanzania

(a) Note: Please see under Southern Africa.

5) Uganda

(a) At least 12 people were reported killed in the northern sub-region of Lango during the past week in clashes involving Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) rebels. In a related incident, 16 children were freed from captivity. There were reports of increased LRA rebel activity in Kaberamaido district in the eastern Teso sub-region. On 06 December, a WFP convoy distributing relief food to IDPs in Pabbo camp in Gulu district was prevented from returning to Gulu town due to rebel activity in the area and had to remain half a day in Pabbo military barracks.

(b) WFP continued to provide food assistance to over 1.2 million IDPs, 154,000 refugees, 300,000 displaced or conflict-affected school children and 100,000 other vulnerable people under PRRO 10121.0. From 01 to 06 December, WFP distributed 4,176 tons of food to 300,828 people in the Acholi and Lango sub-regions, including IDPs in two camps in Gulu, four camps in Kitgum, three camps in Pader, three camps in Lira, and two refugee settlements in Arua, in addition to feeding centres and primary schools in conflict-affected areas. WFP continued to assist over 100,000 people displaced in Soroti district and 145,728 displaced people in Kaberamaido district. In Kumi district, most of the 18,315 people who were displaced have returned to their homes. Distributions in Soroti municipality were completed on 06 December 2003 and will resume after a verification exercise.

(c) WFP is currently distributing 30/60-days rations in Gulu (depending on the distance from the District capital town) and 60-days rations in Kitgum and Pader Districts to ensure that all IDPs will have food during the Christmas period.

6) Sudan

(a) The humanitarian situation in Darfur continues to worsen. Following the expiry of the 30-day cease-fire on 03 December, wide-scale conflict has been reported both in North and West Darfur, while militia activity and banditry continued in parts of South Darfur. It was reported that a splinter group of SPLA, called the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), opposes the ongoing Government-SPLA peace negotiations and is now spearheading the conflict with the Government. As of 10 December, movement of UN personnel beyond city limits of El Fasher/El Geneina was restricted and UN has relocated its staff in El Geneina in West Darfur to Nyala in South Darfur due to insecurity.

(b) Some 741,120 persons have been identified as affected/displaced, as a result of the conflict, and the number may increase to 1.2 million persons. Despite access problems seriously affecting the delivery of food aid, WFP has delivered 5,214 tons of food to war-affected people over the past three months, and is currently considering airdropping assistance in the region.

7) Eritrea

(a) Harvest has been completed in Debub, but is still ongoing in Gash Barka. Farmers, especially in Gash Barka, report that their crop yield is higher than last year, but only enough to feed their families for a few months. Similar messages come from farmers in the other main grain-producing region of the country, including Zoba Debub, which also expect to run out of food in a few months. Pests are partly blamed for the low yields, but the main problem has been erratic rains with drought spells at a critical time in the planting cycle. In Gash Barka, where rains were better, water is not yet a problem. In Debub however, most of the dams have already dried out so that irrigated agriculture and horticulture will be less than expected.

(b) In the Northern Red Sea region, an area where the main rain falls during the winter, there are reports of heavy rain and floods. The rain pattern however remains irregular and a number of rivers are still dry, forcing people to migrate with their livestock to parts of the country where rainfall is better. Some children are dropping out of school to follow and help tend their herds. With the rains in Northern Red Sea, planting of maize is ongoing, though in some areas farmers face problems with shortage of draught animals and tractors to plough their fields. Animal fodder generally does not seem to be a problem yet, nor is water for livestock. This however is expected to change within a few months as grazing land and crop residues are expected to last only a few more months.

(c) In a number of markets in Gash Barka a serious drop in the price of wheat was noticed, partly attributed to the continued supply of food aid at a time when the harvest is ongoing. This illustrates the dilemma faced by food aid agencies in areas experiencing high levels of malnutrition where parts of the population are extremely poor and remain completely dependent on free food handouts, even at harvest time. This, however, strengthens the case for improved targeting of beneficiaries.

(d) The Ministry of Health, WFP, UNICEF and CRS are jointly carrying out surveys in the regions of Debub and Gash Barka. This is the first implementation of the National Nutrition Surveillance System, for which WFP provided technical assistance. The first results with updated malnutrition rates for these regions are expected to be available by mid next week.

(e) Overall pledges for EMOP 10261.0 now stand at 99,329 tons, corresponding to approximately 76 percent of the total requirement. A total of 48,575 tons, representing only 46 percent of the overall requirement, has been resourced for PRRO 10192.0. Additional resources for both operations are critical to avoid pipeline breaks and worsening malnutrition in Eritrea.

8) Ethiopia

(a) The joint "2004 Humanitarian Appeal for Ethiopia " was launched on 10 December, based on comprehensive, countrywide assessments of food, nutrition, health, water and sanitation, as well as specific requirements related to education, HIV/AIDS, gender and child protection, as a result of joint efforts by the Government of Ethiopia, donors, UN agencies and NGOs. The overall humanitarian needs for 2004 are reduced significantly from 2003 due to better rains and harvest prospects. Domestic food supply prospects for 2004 are relatively good due to a near-normal 'meher' season (June-September) in most parts of the country. In 2004, some 7.2 million people will need food aid to meet minimum food requirements, a 45 percent reduction from the 13.2 million people in 2003.

(b) The population in need of assistance is a reflection of underlying structural problems, coupled with localized shocks from climate, pests, malaria epidemics and other disease outbreaks, and the continuing impact of the unfavourable terms for coffee trade. In some areas erratic rains have affected long cycle crops of maize and sorghum, particularly in lowland areas, and the situation in pastoral areas of Somali Region, lowland Bale in Oromiya Region and South Omo in Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region is alarming.

(c) Relief food requirements are estimated to be 964,687 tons, valued at around USD 400 million, comprising 761,173 tons of cereals, 104,562 tons of fortified blended food, 76,117 tons of pulses and 22,835 tons of vegetable oil. Part of these requirements could be met with cash provided directly to beneficiaries as "cash-for-relief" or "cash-for-work". General rations (in kg/person/month) comprise 15 kg cereals, 1.5 kg pulses and 0.45 kg vegetable oil, equivalent to around 2000 kcal per person per day. Micronutrient-fortified blended food for supplementary rations will continue to be targeted to particularly vulnerable groups, including children under 5, pregnant women and nursing mothers and the sick and elderly, in severely affected districts. Iodized salt will be targeted to beneficiary populations with a high risk of goitre and requirements for this pilot initiative are estimated at 1,300 tons of salt, to be distributed as part of general rations. The Appeal seeks USD 85 million in non-food assistance.

(d) A major challenge for humanitarian efforts in 2004 will be to link medium and longer-term initiatives that address food and livelihood insecurity. Activities under the "New Coalition for Food Security" will begin implementation in 2004. These aim at improving availability and access to food, promoting preventative and curative health services and providing safety nets for about 5 million food insecure people.

C) West Africa: (1) Guinea Bissau, (2) Liberia, (3) Côte d'Ivoire

1) Guinea Bissau

(a) The political situation remains calm despite the protracted acute shortage of potable water and electricity and the limited delivery of social and health services due to the economic stagnation suffered by the country.

(b) A joint crop and food assessment mission involving the Ministry Agriculture, WFP and FAO is being carried out countrywide mainly to evaluate the effects of floods on rice fields and the impact of pest infestations on maize, millet and sorghum in the regions of Bafatá, Gabu and Oio in July this year. In addition, the mission is assessing the status of major crops and evaluating the scope of the country's food shortage by estimating total food availability in all regions. The mission also addresses the emergency food security situation including the number of people in need of emergency food assistance, their geographic distribution and will determine the volume and composition of food aid requirements.

(c) From 01 to 30 November, WFP provided some 43,157 beneficiaries, including 18,380 women, with 266 tons of food. The school-feeding programme was hampered by ongoing teachers' strikes in most public schools.

2) Liberia

(a) The launching of the Disarmament, Demobilization, Rehabilitation and Reintegration (DDRR) programme by UNMIL on Sunday 07 December with the opening of the first cantonment site at Schieffelin camp, has been marked by violent protests by ex-combatants from the former government troops. In light of the deteriorating security situation, WFP has suspended all food distributions and missions until further notice. On 08 and 09 December, WFP delivered 57 tons of food to UNMIL for a targeted caseload of 12,115 people. Given the prevailing security conditions at the Scheiffelin site, the peacekeepers will provide one-day food rations to ex-combatants willing to release their weapons. It is anticipated that the former fighters will be receiving wet rations when construction of the camp's kitchens is completed.

(b) From 03 to 09 December, WFP provided 1,250 tons of food to 80,000 IDPs and ex-combatants and their dependants.

3) Côte d'Ivoire

(a) Following a decrease in moderate and severe malnutrition rates in the Guiglo area, WFP and implementing partners MSF and ACF are concentrating their efforts around Toulepleu, but will continue to monitor the situation around Guiglo. MSF-Holland is also reporting decreasing malnutrition rates in the Man region of Bin Houye and Zouan-Houane.

(b) From 02 to 08 December, 370 tons of food was distributed to some 31,000 beneficiaries under the PRRO. Post-Distribution Monitoring was carried out in IDP transit camps in Nicla, housing IDPs from Toulepleu and Blolequin. Some 65 percent of the surveyed households were headed by women and some 77 percent of households reported eating three meals per day. In general, coping mechanisms were reported to be weak among IDPs, as WFP is the sole source of food aid for the majority, even if some IDPs find daily work outside the camps.

D) Southern Africa: (1) Regional, (2) Namibia, (3) Angola, (4) Zambia, (5) Zimbabwe, (6) Malawi, (7) Tanzania, (8) Mozambique, (9) Swaziland, (10) Lesotho, (11) Madagascar

1) Regional

(a) WFP's operations in southern Africa continue to face pipeline disruptions in 2004. As of 11 December, projections indicate critical cereal shortfalls beginning in January, and continuing through until the programmes closure in June. From March onwards, pipeline projections also show severe shortfalls in pulses, vegetable oil and corn-soya-blend. Additional donations are urgently required in order to prevent continuous disruptions in food distributions that will affect approximately 6.5 million people at a crucial time before the April - May harvest.

(b) During the second half of the agricultural season, January to March 2004, the Southern African Regional Climatic Outlook Forum (SARCOF) has predicted a high probability of normal rainfall for most of southern Africa, including Madagascar, with normal to below rainfall for north-western Zimbabwe, southern Namibia and western South Africa. Compared to last year, the forecast implies a normal agricultural season for most of the current EMOP countries. However, SARCOF cautions that heavy rainfall and exceptionally dry conditions could occur in some areas. Many countries in southern Africa have a unimodal rainy season, which begins in September for Mozambique and Swaziland and ends in April. Small-scale farmers are only able to plant their crops after the onset of rains. To date the region has received rainfall of varying magnitude. A recent update of the season shows delayed onset of rains for South Africa and Lesotho while Namibia, Tanzania, and Mozambique had been dry during the first ten days of November. Dry conditions in the maize triangle of South Africa are a source of major concern for the entire region as it is the main supplier of cereal for the region. Since 1 December, SAFEX prices for maize have shown an increase of over 16 percent as the market reacts to seasonal dry conditions that are delaying planting.

(c) Since January 2002, WFP has purchased nearly 800,000 tons of food in southern Africa at a value of approximately USD 154 million. Of this amount approximately 519,000 tons of maize was purchased from South Africa. The November 2003 procurement of 63,007 tons of maize was the highest ever achieved.

2) Namibia

(a) In response to a Government appeal for food and non-food assistance for this year's drought-affected areas, WFP and other Regional Inter-Agency Coordination Support Office (RIACSO) agencies travelled to Namibia to hold discussions with UN Country Teams, the Government and the Donor Community. Following these meetings, an inter-agency assessment mission consisting of WFP, UNICEF and WHO was undertaken from 05 to 14 December, in the northern part of the country to determine the needs and scope of possible UN assistance. Recent assessment data suggests that Namibia has one of the highest acute malnutrition rates in southern Africa and further investigation as to the causes and subsequent remedial actions is necessary. An additional cause of alarm is the high HIV/AIDS prevalence rate and related increase in the number of orphans.

3) Angola

(a) While a normal to above-normal rainfall is expected for Angola, the southern part of the country has to date received below average rainfall. The delayed onset of rains is likely to have a negative impact on the planting of cereal crops, particularly in the south. It is expected that the northern parts of Angola, which normally grow cassava and receive fairly good rains, will have a satisfactory harvest.

(b) Rapidly rising food prices together with poor market systems, make it difficult for the rural population to have physical access to food even in areas of relatively high cereal production. The returnee population is among the worst of the food insecure households.

4) Zambia

(a) From 02 to 08 December, WFP distributed 732 tons of food in collaboration with implementing partners. According to the Food Reserve Agency (FRA), the supply of maize is generally good in the urban areas, but WFP field reports confirm that more and more hunger pockets are emerging in rural areas. A recent WFP monitoring assessment showed that one in two households in the southern part of the country have run out of cereal stocks.

5) Zimbabwe

(a) The food security situation in the country continues to deteriorate with many rural families now resorting to one meal a day and relying on wild vegetables. A Vulnerability Assessment Committee mission conducted in November shows that approximately 65 percent of the population (seven million people) are unable to meet their food needs. Currently WFP has commodity resources for three million people, which means that four million people will go hungry unless immediate solutions are found. The Grain Marketing Board (GMB) pipeline continues to be either erratic or non-existent in some districts. In those districts where the GMB is supplying grain, the prices are variable and beyond the means of most people. Most parts of the country did not receive adequate rains by the first week of December. The planting season is almost midway but the shortage of seed, fertilizers and adequate rains is threatening next season's harvest. The situation has been exacerbated by the cost of farming inputs that are now beyond the reach of many ordinary Zimbabweans.

(b) The cholera outbreak in Kariba District in Mashonaland Province continues. While WFP staff working in the province are taking all precautionary measures to avoid infection, food distributions have resumed under the supervision of the Ministry of Health. Distributions were delayed in three wards following the cholera outbreak.

(c) December distributions are underway and a total of 3,900 tons was distributed to 400,000 beneficiaries during the first week of December. Finalized data from the November cycle of distributions show that 34,088 tons of food was distributed to 2,832,469 beneficiaries in 42 out of 57 districts.

6) Malawi

(a) While pre-season rains have been delayed in many parts of the country, rains in the southern region have forced several transporters to abandon routes due to poor road conditions.

(b) From 04 to 10 December, WFP and implementing partners distributed 1,937 tons of food to vulnerable beneficiaries.

7) Tanzania

(a) WFP EMOP 10313.0 was launched on 01 December in response to the current drought and is currently 53 percent funded. In order to ensure the rapid regional procurement of maize for the operation, WFP's Immediate Response Account (IRA) provided a loan of USD 4.5 million. WFP and the Government have prioritised the allocation of an initial two-month distribution of available food to the most vulnerable households in the drought-affected regions of Singida, Dodoma, Shinyanga, Mwanza and Tabora. Rainfall in the drought-affected areas continues to be poor and erratic, which is further exacerbating an already deteriorating food security situation.

8) Mozambique

(a) Substantial rainfall was registered on the coast of Sofala and Inhambane Provinces during the first week of December. However, parts of Gaza, Maputo and Tete Provinces continue to experience erratic and/or below normal rainfall. Regular monitoring of the season will be required for southern Mozambique, which has had three poor agricultural seasons.

(b) In November, WFP implementing partners distributed more than 7,500 tons of food to 455,000 people through food for work, vulnerable group feeding and school feeding activities. From 02 to 08 December, WFP dispatched over 3,088 tons of food to implementing partners.

9) Swaziland

(a) The Lowveld continues to face dry conditions and earth dams remain dry, sparking fears of increased livestock deaths due to a lack of water. The delayed onset of rainfall is a major concern for the 2003/04 agricultural season.

(b) From 02 to 08 December, WFP distributed food to 15,580 beneficiaries in collaboration with implementing partners.

10) Lesotho

(a) Lesotho has suffered a winter drought, which resulted in crop failure and increased food needs, particularly in the southern part of the country. To date, Lesotho has received very little rainfall and the next dekad will be critical for planting crops. The Crop and Food Assessment Mission in May estimated that 270,000 people were in need of food assistance estimated at 33,000 tons. A follow-up assessment has shown much higher food needs, ranging between 33,000 to 67,000 tons.

(b) From 03 to 09 December, WFP assisted 30,244 beneficiaries.

11) Madagascar

(a) WFP is closely monitoring the effects of tropical storm 'CELA' that hit northern Madagascar on 09 December. The affected area includes the cities of Maroantsetra, Andapa, Ambilobe, Ambanja, Antalaha, Sambava, Vohemar, and Diego Suarez. The Government has issued storm warnings and no serious damages have been reported to date.

E) Asia: (1) DPR Korea

1) DPR Korea

(a) The DPR Korea Emergency Operation for 2004, EMOP 10141.2, has now been signed by WFP and FAO. The project, valued at USD 171 million, envisages a distribution target of 485,000 tons of food, including 400,000 tons of cereals, for 6.5 million beneficiaries. Some 75 percent is earmarked for children in nurseries, kindergartens, primary schools, orphanages and hospitals, pregnant and nursing women and elderly people. The project also seeks to address the needs of the increasingly vulnerable urban Public Distribution System (PDS)-dependent households. A European Union Troika mission visited the country to discuss political and other issues with the government. The 10-member delegation also met with members of the humanitarian community and visited field projects.

(b) Cereal shortfalls are already affecting 2.2 million beneficiaries, including young children and pregnant and nursing women. Distribution to food for work participants, typically urban factory workers, has been delayed. The shortfall for December totals some 40,000 tons and no recent pledges have been made for the beginning of 2004. Only 8,000 tons of wheat bought with multilateral funds and a contribution of 40,000 tons of wheat are expected at the start of the year for distribution to West Coast beneficiaries. Beneficiaries on the East Coast will be left without cereal rations from January 2004. Pipeline shortfalls of 184,000 tons are projected for December through May. Cereal shortfalls, estimated at 156,000 tons, will from May 2004 affect all 3.8 million WFP vulnerable group-feeding beneficiaries, countrywide. Local food production factories on the east will stop functioning in April due to lack of wheat flour, and food for work projects for the spring season will have to be suspended unless new pledges are immediately confirmed.

F) Latin America and the Caribbean: (1) Colombia, (2) Honduras, (3) Guatemala, (4) Dominican Republic

1) Colombia

(a) Clashes between government forces and illegal armed groups continued in various municipalities of Antioquia. Thirteen civilians were reportedly killed during an attack by alleged armed groups in the municipality of Barbacoas in the department of Nariño on 04 December. Two rebels died and two soldiers were wounded in clashes between government forces and illegal armed groups in Choco. A group of 160 Colombian paramilitary fighters handed over their weapons on 07 December, becoming the second faction of outlawed right-wing militias to do so in less than two weeks. New displacements were reported in the department of Antioquia, where at least 50 people were forced to move out of rural areas in the municipalities of Sonson and San Francisco, allegedly due threats from rebel groups.

(b) Rainstorms battered Colombia for the entire month of November and are expected to continue until mid December. Several roads in different departments were damaged and various cities are cut off due to landslides on roads. Flooding and mudslides from heavy rainstorms in different parts of Colombia have left at least six people dead and 14 missing. Rivers overflowed in southwest Colombia and mudslides completely covered a tourist site where at least one person died and two others are reported missing. Torrential rains caused havoc in poor neighbourhoods in Cartagena, where many families had to take refuge in neighbouring schools and community centres, using WFP pre-school and school food rations from PRRO 10158.

(c) Pre-school, primary school and food for work/food for training distributions continued under PRRO 10158. The Colombian Truck Drivers' Association called off its 6-day-old strike on 06 December after reaching an agreement with the Transport Ministry to temporarily freeze diesel prices. As of 05 December, the strike had affected the distribution of almost 100,000 tons of cargo and blocked distribution of about 200,000 bags of foodstuff, including rice, corn, and coffee.

(d) A special award from a national Colombian newspaper entitled "The Colombian who makes a difference" was issued to Samuel Pardo, a WFP beneficiary, who runs a small school in a poor area of Bogota, for his work with displaced children.

2) Honduras

(a) The Permanent Commission of Contingencies (COPECO) has presented its most recent report on victims and damages caused by the heavy rains in the Atlantic coast, listing 4 deaths, 380 evacuated, and 3,020 displaced, 7,078 people left isolated by the storm, 108 houses flooded and partially damaged, 10 houses destroyed, 28 vital infrastructures damaged, one school destroyed and one damaged and two sewage systems, eight power systems and 33 potable water systems damaged. In the agriculture sector, some 6,310 hectares of land were totally flooded. The hardest hit municipalities are La Ceiba, Arizona, La Masica, El Porvenir, San Francisco, and Esparta in the department of Atlantida in the northern region of Honduras.

(b) WFP provided relief assistance to 3,020 people affected by the heavy rains on the Atlantic coast.

3) Guatemala

(a) Crime and violence continues, particularly in the capital. Nine people were shot dead in different parts of the capital city and numerous robberies, assaults, and so-called "express kidnappings" occurred.

(b) The World Bank presented its annual Guatemala poverty report. Guatemala is the third poorest country in Latin America and the Caribbean, following Bolivia and Haiti. Although the country reaches middle level in terms of income, other social and inequality indicators place it among the poorest in the region.

(c) The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) formally established an office in Guatemala to monitor and observe the overall human rights situation in the country, as well as provide technical assistance to promote and protect human rights, in anticipation of the withdrawal of the UN Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA) in December 2004.

(d) The director of the HIV/AIDS National Prevention and Control Program of the Ministry of Health informed that the number of reported HIV/AIDS cases in Guatemala has increased to nearly 6,000, while UNAIDS and WHO estimate that the number of people living with HIV/AIDS in Guatemala surpasses 70,000.

(e) The two presidential candidates and more than 300 municipal mayors accepted UNICEF's proposal of Basic National Commitments with Guatemalan Children and Youth for 2004-2007, including the reduction of chronic malnutrition among children under three through the provision of a nutritional blend for 600,000 undernourished children, as well as the implementation of a food emergency policy in areas affected by the coffee crisis, which would allow the distribution of food assistance to 60,000 children in 30,000 rural families in risk of malnutrition.

(f) A cold front caused a sharp decrease of temperatures resulting in the death of at least two homeless people and the National Coordinating Committee for Disaster Reduction (CONRED) is implementing its "Cold Plan" to prevent and assist cases of hypothermia.

4) Dominican Republic

(a) Tropical Storm 'Odette' passed through the central region of the Dominican Republic on 06 December, leaving 4 persons dead, 11 persons injured and infrastructure damaged. Plantain crops were significantly damaged in the Barahona area, and several communities, including Jaquimeyes, Tamayo and Palo Alto, were flooded by swelling rivers. The last report from the National Emergency Commission confirmed a total of 4,759 persons affected, including 3,600 evacuated, 1,087 accommodated in shelters and 72 rescued. On 07 December, the National Emergency Commission declared the national emergency over and there has been no request for food aid. An evaluation will be carried out in January to determine the full extent of losses and any eventual needs.

(b) WFP continues to provide emergency assistance in collaboration with the Federation of the Red Cross, World Vision and two local NGOs, distributing emergency food rations over the next two months to families affected by floods in the area of Montecristi.

G) Eastern Europe and the Caucasus: (1) Russian Federation

1) Russian Federation

(a) The security situation in the North Caucasus region further deteriorated during the week. A suicide attack on a commuter train near Chechnya on 05 December caused 42 fatalities. A land-mine explosion destroyed a bus parked near the entrance to the IDP tent camp at Satsita. The explosion follows a similar incident outside Satsita camp on 10 November.

(b) As of 03 December there were some 69,758 Chechen IDPs living in Ingushetia: 7,884 in camps, 23,699 in spontaneous settlements and 38,175 in private accommodation. From 01 to 07 December, 349 Chechen IDPs returned from Ingushetia to Chechnya.

(c) From 01 to 07 December, some 87,000 vulnerable persons received 780 tons of food aid through WFP relief distribution; WFP implementing partners distributed some 340 tons of food to 29,000 Chechen IDPs in Ingushetia and 440 tons of food to 58,000 'very poor' and 'poor' household members in Grozny city, Grozny Rural, Achkhoi-Martan and Sunzha districts of Chechnya. Some 68,000 children from 260 primary and pre-schools in ten districts in Chechnya are receiving daily hot meals through the school feeding programme. In 2004 WFP plans to expand this activity to include schools in Kurchaloy district with approximately 10,000 children.

Note: All tonnage figures in this report refer to metric tons.

(End WFP Emergency Report No 50).