OCHA Situation Report No. 08
Cote d'Ivoire
March 29th - April 11th 2003


Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)

OVERVIEW

No cabinet meeting of the National Reconciliation Government was held on
Thursday 10 April.  "New Forces" ministers (MPCI, MPIGO, MJP) attended the
previous week's meeting in Yamoussoukro for the first time, but have yet
to formally take up their duties. They hold 9 of 41 cabinet positions in
the new reconciliation government.  Members of the main opposition party,
RDR, who returned to Abidjan four weeks ago to take up cabinet posts, so
far occupy entire floors in a hotel under extremely tight security, rather
than living in their homes.

While the UN and NGOs step up humanitarian aid interventions in the north,
the west of Cote d'Ivoire remains highly volatile. Fighting between
Government and rebel forces continues to erupt, civilians' lives remain at
risk, and humanitarian workers cannot operate in safety.


POLITICAL / MILITARY CONTEXT

National

Clashes occurred between Government and rebel forces in the western town
of Bin-Houye on the weekend of 5-6 April, culminating in helicopter
attacks by the Government on the town.  On Tuesday 8 April the Government
attacked the MPIGO stronghold of Danane, further north, with helicopters.
It is not clear how many civilians were killed. On Wednesday the
International Monitoring Committee of the Marcoussis peace accord visited
Danane to view first hand the situation there.  Following the attacks, the
Forces Nouvelles have signaled that they will not participate in cabinet
meetings if they continue to come under fire. National dailies and State
Television reported that MPCI forces attacked the northeastern town of
Koutouba, between Bouna and Bondoukou, on Wednesday 9 April. MPCI forces
also reportedly attacked ECOMICI positions in the town of Bediala on
Wednesday 2 April, and subsequently came under fire from the regular army.  
Two incidents of violence involving "rebels" and resulting in the deaths
of 5 civilians in northeastern and southwestern Cote d'Ivoire, were also
reported by Lt. Colonel Aka N'Goran of the Ivorian armed forces in a
statement dated 2 April.

The International Monitoring Committee for the Linas-Marcoussis Agreement
issued a statement on 7 April calling on all parties: to respect the
ceasefire; to cease all armed attacks immediately; to respect the human
rights and safety of civilians; and calling on the Ivorian Government to
ground helicopter gunships in Abidjan.

UNSG Kofi Annan, in his recently released report on Cote d'Ivoire, has
proposed the creation of a UN Mission in Cote d'Ivoire (MINUCI), to be
headed by his Special Representative Albert Tevoedjre, that will devise
ways in which to address the Ivorian crisis, including its worsening
humanitarian consequences. The UNSG's report will be discussed at the UN
Security Council meeting scheduled for 15 April.

UNSG Humanitarian Envoy for the Crisis in Cote d'Ivoire, Carolyn McAskie
will be returning to Abidjan for a follow-up mission from 22 - 29 April.
She will chair a regional meeting and attend the CAP Launch for Cote
d'Ivoire and the Sub-region 2003.

The ECOWAS peacekeeping force ECOMICI has decided to enlarge its force
from some 1,100 to 3,200.  Donors have been approached to fund the
deployment.


Security

The Abidjan offices of the Mouvement Ivoirien de Droits de l'Homme,
[Ivorian Movement for Human Rights - unofficial translation], were
ransacked on the morning of Saturday 6 April by two armed men who
reportedly left with sensitive documents.  This episode has raised
concerns about the security environment in which investigations into
alleged human rights abuses committed since the crisis began on 19
September 2002 may be undertaken.

Hundreds of youth blocked a highway leading into Abidjan on Tuesday 8
April in protest of the participation of "New Forces" ministers in the
government, reportedly throwing stones at French peacekeepers.


Developments in Liberia

A new rebel group in Liberia identifying itself as MODEL (Movement for
Democracy in Liberia) has reportedly taken control of a large swathe of
land in eastern Liberia.  The presence of this group and ensuing fighting
with Government forces has left the tens of thousands of IDPs, refugees
and transiting third country nationals without aid, and is pushing many of
them back into western Cote d'Ivoire.  As of 4 April, over half of the 200
humanitarian workers who lost contact with their respective offices during
heavy fighting around the eastern town of Zwedru on 27 March remained
unaccounted for.  Due to increased activity of LURD rebels in other parts
of Liberia, including attacks just 19 kilometers outside of Monrovia on an
IDP camp, 11 of 15 counties in Liberia are currently inaccessible to
providers of emergency humanitarian aid.  A joint statement issued by the
UN, USA and the EC urged the Government of Liberia and the warring
factions to participate in the peace process and to grant humanitarian
organizations access to safe corridors for the delivery of badly needed
aid.

An ECOWAS verification mission is in Liberia's capital from 8 - 14 April,
to verify Liberia's compliance with UN Security Council resolutions.



HUMANITARIAN SITUATION & RESPONSE

Protection of Children

During a meeting with the Prime Minister, Seydou Diarra, UNICEF Resident
Representative Georgette Aithnard voiced the Fund's preoccupation about
the unknown but growing numbers of child soldiers involved in the
conflict.

Save the Children UK is tracking IDP children that have been separated
from their families while fleeing violence, children who are at risk of
separation and exploitation, and child soldiers, in an ongoing effort to
reunite them with their families and provide protection to them, in
cooperation with humanitarian partners and UN agencies. The situation is
particularly acute in the west, and resources to help these children are
limited.

Significant progress has been reported in the Ministry of Education's
UNICEF-supported "Back to School" initiative, launched on 13 February.  
To date, 63,000 displaced school children in the south are in school -
23,000 more than had been planned for.  However, thousands are still out
of school, especially in the north and west.

On Sunday 30 March, nearly 2,000 schoolchildren participated in the launch
of a UNICEF-supported HIV/AIDS awareness campaign in Bouake, led by the
NGO Moulikat - named after a local girl who recently died of AIDS, and who
bravely spoke openly about her condition.  The campaign will touch some
50,000 students in the city through peer-education exercises.  Moulikat,
with UNICEF support, also provides care for 7,500 orphans and vulnerable
children in the city.  During the launch a spokesperson of the local
authorities declared that all child soldiers would be demobilized and
returned to school. UNAIDS reports that in 2000 there were already 600,000
AIDS orphans in Cote d'Ivoire.


North

WFP reports that as the "lean season" sets in for agricultural areas, lack
of food and access to cash to buy food will create difficulties for many
poor families.  They are working with the local Islamic league to register
vulnerable families in the surrounding areas of Korhogo, and is already
assisting 5,846 people, of which 70% are women, with food aid in the area.
WFP distributed food to 19,186 beneficiaries in Bouake between 3 and 9
April.  WFP also feeds refugees in Nicla camp in Guiglo as well as
refugees in transit centers in Abidjan, and is distributing food to IDPs
mostly in central Cote d'Ivoire. After seven months of isolation due to
fighting, a UNICEF convoy delivered medical supplies and relief food for
children in the severely stricken northeastern district of Bouna, 600 km
northeast of Abidjan.  A Ghanaian detachment of ECOMICI escorted the
convoy.


West

The UN inter-agency office in Man has been established.  However, due to
security concerns it cannot yet be staffed on a permanent basis.
MSF-Holland reports that it has begun a measles vaccination campaign for
children, and a mobile clinic for villages surrounding Man. Tens of
thousands of IDPs and other vulnerable populations remain out of the reach
of humanitarian organizations in the west.  IDPs continue to arrive in
Duekoue and Guiglo.  Efforts are underway in Guiglo to improve the
humanitarian aid structures available to the IDPs, including the planning
of a new transit center to host some 2,500 IDPs.


Southwest

It is foreseen that large numbers of IDPs will enter southwestern Cote
d'Ivoire fleeing the instability and lack of assistance and food for
displaced, refugee and third country populations in eastern Liberia.
UNHCR, IOM and WFP are preparing for a possible surge in border crossings.



RESOURCE MOBILISATION

Funding Crisis in Liberia - To date, donors have provided just 2 percent
of the US$42.6 million in funding required under the 2003 UN consolidated
Inter-Agency Appeal for Liberia. UN humanitarian agencies in Liberia urge
donors to enable them to assist vulnerable Liberians, Ivorian refugees and
third country nationals by providing urgently needed funding as soon as
possible.

Cote d'Ivoire and the Sub-region - The CAP 2003 Launch is scheduled for 29
April.

The latest financial tracking tables can be viewed on-line at any time at
www.reliefweb.int/fts

Information sources include the Integrated Regional Information Network
(IRIN). With the exception of public UN sources, reproduction or
redistribution of the above text, in whole, part or in any form, requires
the prior consent of the original source. This situation report is posted
on www.reliefweb.int, an information resource for humanitarian crises.

For further information, please do not hesitate to contact:

Ms. Besida Tonwe, Head of Office  tel. +225-2240-5175
Mr. Jeff Brez, Information Officer   tel. +225-2240-5174  e-mail:
jeff@ocha.ci


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