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Humanitarian Action for Children 2019 - 2021 - Niger

Países
Níger
+ 2
Fuentes
UNICEF
Fecha de publicación
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Snapshot
Total people in need: 2.3 million
Total children (<18) in need: 1.26 million
Total people to be reached: 880,200
Total children to be reached: 640,000

The Niger faces acute and chronic humanitarian crises that are unlikely to improve in the coming years. In 2019, 50 per cent of people in need in the Niger will be located in the three regions affected by population movement—Diffa, Tahoua and Tillabéry. While fewer people (nearly 25,000) are expected to be displaced in Diffa Region than in previous years, the fragile security and humanitarian situations at the borders with Burkina Faso and Mali (Tillabéry and Tahoua regions) are expected to worsen. An estimated 100,000 additional people may be displaced in 2019, adding to the 48,000 already displaced. Across the country, 2.3 million people, including 1.3 million children, will require humanitarian assistance in 2019. Over 380,000 children are at risk of severe acute malnutrition (SAM), 99,000 children are at risk due to flooding and 600,000 children are at risk due to epidemics such as measles, cholera and meningitis. Needs will be acute in the regions bordering Burkina Faso and Mali, where vulnerabilities were high prior to the emergency and have been heightened by crisis and population movement. While a civil-military coordination mechanism was created in 2018, major physical and security constraints continue to impede humanitarian access in Tillabéry and Tahoua.

Humanitarian strategy

In 2019, UNICEF will respond to both chronic and acute crises in the Niger. The linkages between humanitarian action and development programming will be strengthened and operationalized, particularly in the Diffa region, and emergency capacity to respond to acute crises will be improved through the strengthened Rapid Response Mechanism. In Tahoua and Tillabéry regions, strategic partnerships and innovative community-based approaches will help UNICEF and partners overcome access challenges and reach vulnerable populations with multi-sectoral support. UNICEF will continue to strengthen national health and nutrition systems to deliver services in emergencies, including SAM prevention and treatment, measles and polio vaccination and free health care for children under 5 years. UNICEF will prioritize increasing access to quality school services for children affected by crises and building the resilience of schools. Conflict-affected children will receive comprehensive child protection services. The cholera prevention package will be strengthened and access to safe water will include both immediate and durable solutions. UNICEF will maintain its preparedness capacity through contingency stocks, partnerships and human and financial resources; and a cash transfer strategy will be developed and implemented. Efforts will also focus on strengthening coordination and leveraging resources for prevention and risk mitigation.

Results from 2018

As of 31 October 2018, UNICEF had US$27.7 million available against the US$42.7 million appeal (65 per cent funded). In education, limited funding, delays in salary payment for contract teachers (84 per cent of all teachers in the Diffa region) and difficulties faced by the Regional Directorate for Primary Education in upgrading existing temporary learning spaces, all contributed to low school enrollment. In child protection, while 70 per cent of funding was available and used to maintain child-friendly spaces in Diffa, there were fewer new admissions than anticipated due to decreasing population movements. In the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) response, the provision of sustainable access to drinking water in Kidjandi for 17,000 people made it possible to end the costly water trucking operation after nearly two years. In health, the measles target was over-achieved, due to higher investments in operational costs instead of costly medicines. The Rapid Response Mechanism assisted 82 per cent of people displaced due to the Mali crisis, demonstrating its comparative value in the response to population movements.