OCHA Situation Report
Guinea Bissau
17 May 2006


Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

Overall political context

Guinea Bissau is classified as least developed, low-income food-deficit
country (LDC/LIFDC) of 1.4 million people (1991 census). According to
the 2004 National Millennium Development Goal Report, approximately 80
percent of the population lives on less than US$2 per day with 16
percent existing in extreme poverty on less than US$1 per day.

There is high food insecurity in country, both in rural and in urban
areas. Only 36 percent of the total available arable land is being
cultivated due to lack of agricultural inputs, expertise and
insufficient or damaged drainage and irrigation systems. A recent
vulnerability assessment and mapping (VAM) study carried out by WFP
found 34% of households very vulnerable to food insecurity and
additional 28% vulnerable to food insecurity.

The Economic Community of the West African States (ECOWAS) sent on May
01 a mission of inquiry to Guinea-Bissau, in the scope of the program of
Prevention and Conflict resolution. The mission that fits within the
mechanism for the prevention, monitoring and conflict resolution,
maintenance of the peace and security in the region has, as objective to
conduct a survey of the needs of the country and to see the support that
ECOWAS can offer to Guinea-Bissau.

The Government launched an appeal for aid to fight the food insecurity
in the regions of Tombali and Quinara, considered the agricultural
center of the country. According to various sources in Tombali, the
affected regions, that hold forests and numerous rivers, produces about
50 percent of the national production of rice and fruit. In normal time,
Guinea-Bissau already must import 80,000 of the 140,000 tons of rice
that is consumed.

Humanitarian situation

Humanitarian crisis in the north

On March 15, 2006 armed confrontations started near the city of Sao
Domingo's on the north-western border between Guinea Bissau and Senegal.
The conflict opposed a faction of the MFDC (Mouvement des forces
democratiques de la Casamance) and the Armed Forces of Guinea-Bissau.
According to the Bissau national authorities, the military operation was
intended to expel the rebels from a base in Guinea Bissau territory.

The armed conflict has provoked a humanitarian crisis, which has
continued despite the end of the military operation. More than 10.000
persons, 80% of whom are women and children, have fled their homes in
Sao Domingo's and neighboring villages, moving south toward the interior
of Guinea-Bissau or north across the border into Senegal. The majority
of IDPs in Guinea-Bissau are accommodated with local communities. In
addition to the difficulties faced by IDPs, approximately 20,000 local
residents in the northwestern areas of Susana and Varela were cut off
the main supply lines for food, medicines, basic non-food items and
experience-interrupted access to health care.

With the announcement of the end of the military operation, IDPs started
to return toward their communities of origin. However, the conditions in
their villages are not conducive to their definite return, mainly due to
the fact that houses are destroyed, property was sacked, and the
population is not able to return to the field due to mine risks.

The issue of mines represents a grave threat also to the economic
performance of the country, as the cashew season is well underway and
many areas in the northern regions are not being harvested due to mine
contamination.

Fourteen villages out of twenty-eight along the border have been
destroyed, burnt or looted. All in all, the caseload of IDP's requiring
assistance remains more or less the same. There are currently about
10,000 IDP's and they still require emergency assistance: protection,
food, shelter, water & sanitation and health care. They remain
concentrated in urban areas and villages, specifically Sao Domingo's,
Ingore, Cacheu, Bula and Bissau. They are accommodated by host-families.
Most IDP's will not have access to their land to cultivate food crops
during the upcoming rainy season (June-October), either due to the loss
of seeds and tools or by fear of landmines. We expect that conditions
for the return of IDP's will not be met until the end of the rainy
season in October 2006. The local population was already facing food
insecurity before the conflict. Today, they have to feed extra members
in their families and they are facing the start of the lean season.

United Nations Humanitarian Coordination response

Since the beginning of the crisis, UN agencies undertook rapid field
assessment missions to confirm the needs of IDP's and affected resident
populations and the situation with regard to security and protection.

The UNCT counted on the prompt support of OCHA to strengthen the
coordination of humanitarian partners and response, and assistance in
the preparation of resource mobilization requests from the onset of the
crisis. An emergency commission was later created by the Government to
coordinate humanitarian assistance.

The UN System has provided assistance from existing contingency and
regular resources. WFP distributed 103 MT of food (rice, vegetable oil,
sugar and CSB) to different localities, as well as non-food items such
as spoons, pots and pans. UNICEF distributed soap, salt, water basins,
sheeting, mosquito nets, solar pump, calcium hypochlorite, ORS and
emergency rations for malnourished children (BP5), and water to affected
regions with a truck made available by UNHCR. UNFPA has made available
essential medicines, including for reproductive health care in hospitals
in the affected areas. Through coordination of the Health cluster, WHO
is providing advice to the Ministry of Health with respect to
identifying needs and strengthening surveillance, detection and response
capacity.

Plan International has ensured fuel availability to cover basic needs in
affected regions, with support from Enterprise Works and the
UNDP/UNFPA/WFP/WHO Staff Association. The UNCT has been working closely
with UNHCR Regional Office in Senegal to closely monitor the shelter
situation and ensure prompt response if necessary.

Nutrition and Food security

Food insecurity in south: Quinara e Tombali

The nutritional situation is worrisome, acute malnutrition and child
mortality rates are particularly high in rural areas, especially during
the May to September lean season. 32% of children under-five years of
age are chronically malnourished and 5.4% suffer from acute malnutrition
that indicates both serious structural and immediate/cyclical nutrition
problems. Poor households do not have proper access to a balanced food
basket and the coverage of basic health services is very low.

A food crisis situation which has recently been declared by the
authorities in the south-eastern regions of Tombali (71,065 inhabitants)
and Quinara (42,960 inhabitants) (where irrigation systems failure
resulting from improper maintenance has led to the contamination of rice
fields by salty water). The labour requirements of a cash crop activity,
such as harvesting cashew nuts, and the current agricultural /
economical priorities of the national authorities, may prevent farmers
from allocating sufficient time and resources to cultivating food crop,
despite their present impoverishment and their need to improve their
food security. Farmers who prioritized cultivating the national cash
crop, the cashew nuts, neglected other food crops, like rice and the
maintenance of irrigation dikes, resulting in the contamination of their
rice fields with salty water. According to Joseph Coli, engineer
agronomist in Tombali, the affected regions, that hold forests and
numerous rivers, produces about 50 percent of the national production of
rice and fruit. In normal time, the Guinea-Bissau already must import
80,000 of the 140,000 tons of rice that it consumes.

The Guinea-Bissau government has drawn up a program to fight severe food
shortages in the country's southern rice-growing region and is seeking
international financial assistance to implement the initiative that aims
to aid over 130,000 people. This program was budgeted at USD 2.35
million and targets over 130,000 people affected by salination of
rice-paddy irrigation channels, drought, pests and crop diseases and
destruction of traditional lands of culture.

Half of the land under cultivation in Guinea's southern rice- bowl
region has been blighted. The risk of rural food insecurity is more
acute in the regions of Quinara, Tombali and the Bijagos Islands, which
have a combined population of 250,000 in a country with 1.5 million
inhabitants. According to the assistance program, apart from food
support, it is envisaged the reconstruction of the levees, the repair of
drainage canals, constitution of security food stocks, rebuilding of
irrigation channels, using "Food for Work" schemes WFP support and the
provision of agricultural seeds with FAO support.

A UN inter-agencies field mission left Bissau to the southern region on
May 11 to assess the seriousness of the situation on the ground.

WFP will conduct a nutrition baseline survey at the end of May in the
regions of Oio, Bafata Gabu, Cacheu and Tombali. The regions of Oio,
Bafata and Gabu have the highest vulnerability to food insecurity and
highest acute malnutrition rates in the country.

WFP's Post-Conflict Relief and Rehabilitation Operation (2006-2007) is
short of U$ 10 million.  Given the lead-time of 4 months to have food
delivered in Guinea Bissau, new contributions need to be confirmed as
soon as possible.

Health

Influenza

WHO is coordinating the UNCT preparedness efforts for a possible Human
Influenza pandemic. In this sense, a Human Influenza UN Contingency Plan
is currently under preparation. WHO Representative was appointed by the
UNCT as Pandemic Preparedness Focal point (PPFP). OCHA Humanitarian
National Officer was appointed by the UN Resident Coordinator as the
coordination focal point for this "dossier".

National measles campaign

WHO and UNICEF are supporting the Ministry of Health to undertake a
national measles campaign as well as supplement on Vitamin A and
deworming which will take place from 15-29 May with support from
national partners. It's the first campaign of its type in Guinea Bissau,
and intends to vaccinate all children between 6 months and 14 years old.

In response to a yellow fever epidemic in Republic of Guinea, WHO
supported last April a yellow fever vaccination campaign in the border
region of Gabu for children under 5 years old.

UN agencies intend to support the national authorities in strengthening
surveillance, especially for measles and yellow fever. A nationwide
mosquito net impregnation campaign will take place in June. WHO will
continue with distribution of impregnated mosquito nets and medicines
for treatment of pregnant women in health centers in 7 regions.

An integrated vaccination campaign against measles targeting all
children from 6 months to 14 years, estimated at 500.000 USD, is about
to start.

The minister of the Health affirmed on May 9 that the tax of
infant-youthful mortality to the measles is one of the highest in the
world, remembering that, in 2004, 6,526 cases and 134 deaths.
Guinea-Bissau is one of the countries with highest tax of
infant-youthful mortality due to the measles. 205 children out of
thousand born alive die before the age of five. A great part of these
deaths are due to measles.

Security

There is no change in the security phase or the command codes. We are
still in phase II and code white countrywide, with limitations of
mission in the north. The road to Susana/Varela is still closed for UN
and ICRC operations. The ICRC has field staff based in Varela.

Movement of population

We assume that special attention should be given to Cacheu and Sao
Domingo's because the IDP's will return by the same way they left and
based on the information collect on the field they will not go back
directly to their homeland they will remain in Cacheu or Sao Domingo's
where they have better conditions to survive and they will try to check
their villages before the definitive resettlement.

|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|
| Localities             | Beneficiaries | Source of information  |
|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|
| Cacheu                 |          1250 | NRC/ICRC               |
|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|
| Canchungo              |           198 | NRC                    |
|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|
| Bissau                 |          1800 | Student Associations   |
|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|
| Bissora                |           103 | NRC                    |
|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|
| Bula                   |           500 | Catholic Mission/Local |
|                        |               | Authorities            |
|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|
| Sao Domingo's          |          3512 | NRC/ICRC               |
|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|
| Ingore                 |           671 | Catholic Mission/      |
|                        |               | NRC/ICRC               |
|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|
| Susana/Varela/Colagere |           800 | Catholic Mission       |
|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|
| Dengue                 |           305 | NRC/ICRC               |
|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|
| Total                  |          9139 |                        |
|------------------------+---------------+------------------------|


Coordination

An inter-agency field mission lead by OCHA to assess the IDP's
humanitarian situation took place on May 4. WFP, FAO, UNICEF, WHO, the
National Commission for the Refugees and UNHCR/ADRA participated in the
mission to Cacheu, Canchungo and Bula.

On May 5 another inter-agency field mission lead by OCHA to assess the
IDP's humanitarian situation took place. WFP; FAO; UNICEF; WHO and
UNHCR/ADRA participated in the mission to Sao Domingo's and Djgue.

On May 5 UNICEF distributed NFI in Djegue. The last WFP distribution
took place on May 4. 17 tones of food were distributed to the IDP's.
UNFPA deployed on May 10 through the Minister of Health essential
medicaments to Sao Domingo's.

Resources mobilization

The UN agencies have submitted a U$1.5 million request to the CERF to
finance a plan to address the urgent needs of approximately 10,000 IDPs
and host families in the areas of advocacy, protection, mine education
awareness and anti-mine activities, water, hygiene & sanitation, food &
non-food items, health, therapeutic feeding, agriculture, education, and
logistics.

Implementation of the plan will be coordinated with national and local
authorities, and with the ICRC. The request to the CERF is part of a
larger effort to mobilize resources to respond to the crisis. For this,
a Flash Appeal will be launched to cover the essential needs of the
affected population over an additional 3-month period.

In total the CERF plus the Flash appeal would allow us to cover
humanitarian assistance for 6 months.

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