ReliefWeb

HIGHLIGHTS

• The World Food Programme (WFP) and its partners strengthen communities’ resilience

• Integrated projects that deliver results

• Water management is the backbone of development

• Humanitarian aid alone is no longer enough

• The thorny issue of gender and population dynamics

FEATURE

The work that WFP and its partners are undertaking with communities

A joint mission, organized by the World Food Programme (WFP), in collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), visited four provinces in central and eastern Chad (Guéra, Batha, Ouaddaï and Wadi-Fira) from 31 August to 3 September 2021. The objective of this mission was to observe the impact of the activities carried out by various partners - WFP, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and state services - on vulnerable communities.

"Instead of giving someone a fish every day, it is better to teach them to fish”. This reminder from Dieudonné Bamouni, OCHA's Head of Office, during the mission's meeting with the Governor of Guéra on 31 August in Mongo, sums up the United Nations' wish to see vulnerable communities take ownership of the initiatives put in place for their benefit by humanitarian organizations. This is especially true as humanitarian crises are multiplying around the world, making it difficult for donors to support all affected populations.

"The situation in Chad is unique in the world. There is a fair amount of rain that falls every year, but there are no dams or dikes, in short, no water management. We need to find solutions other than assisting affected populations all the time. They need guidance," pleads Sougour Mahamat Galma, Governor of the Guéra province.

This is precisely what the WFP office in Chad is doing through its program to support community resilience in the Sahel. This program includes several projects that enable communities, affected by a multitude of vulnerabilities, to recover. Most of these projects are integrated, making it possible to meet several needs at the same time. This is the case of the school garden and the community field, implemented in several localities including Chawir in the Guéra province and Brégué-Biguit in the Batha province.