Report No. 28 of 1999 Date: 16 July 1999
This report includes: A) Ethiopia B) Angola C) Sierra Leone D) East and Central Africa: Uganda, D.R. Congo and Congo/Brazzaville E) Sudan F) Afghanistan G) FR Yugoslavia and region - Kosovo crisis.
>From Manuel Aranda da Silva, Chief, Technical Support Service. Available on the Internet on the WFP Home Page at http://www.wfp.org/ or by electronic mail from Deborah.Hicks@wfp.org or Natasha.Nadazdin@wfp.org (fax 39 06 6513 2854). For information on resources, donors are requested to contact Aleesa.Blum@wfp.org or Marius.deGaayFortman@wfp.org at WFP Rome, telephone 39 06 6513 2004 or 06 6513 2250. The address of WFP is Via Cesare Giulio Viola 68, Parco dei Medici, 00148 Rome, Italy.
This issue of the Emergency Report was prepared by Natasha Nadazdin.
PART I - HIGHLIGHTS (Details below in Part II)
A. ETHIOPIA
1. Update - information as of 15 July a) WFP emergency operation (EMOP 6143) to assist 1.2 million people started on 1 June; food requirements - 103,250 tons; current shortfall 66,000 tons or 64 percent of requirement; apart from WFP shortfall, UN appeal includes USD 7.5 million for health, water, agriculture and education programmes, and supplementary food. b) A joint Government/donor assessment mission in mid-June estimates 5.3 million people need food aid (over 65,000 tons of food per month).
B. ANGOLA
1. Update - information as of 15 July a) WFP urgently seeking USD 5 million for airlift operations to war-affected cities of Kuito, Huambo and Luena; concern at low levels of emergency food stocks in insecure areas and lack of donor support; distributions in July cover only 60 percent of estimated needs; no humanitarian access to UNITA-controlled areas. b) Malange not receiving food aid deliveries since May; two-three persons die from malnutrition or related diseases every day; WFP stocks distributed by WFP implementing partners, will only last until mid-August. Huambo under shelling, WFP distributions continue during peaceful periods. c) Funding sought for new WFP emergency operation (EMOP 6138) for 800,000 beneficiaries at a total cost of USD 37.5 million.
C. SIERRA LEONE
1. Update - information as of 13 July a) Peace agreement between the Government and the RUF signed on 7 July. b) Government and RUF appointed representatives for Access Implementation Committee; the first mission to RUF-controlled areas composed of WFP, OCHA, UNICEF, UNOMSIL, UN FSO and international NGOs visited Buedu in Kailahun district; RUF accepts humanitarian assessment missions, but without participation of national staff. c) WFP distributes food aid to vulnerable groups in Port Loko town and surrounding villages. d) WFP helicopter operation continues, in June it transported some 40 tons of food and non-food supplies from Conakry, Guinea, and Freetown, to areas not accessible by road.
D. EAST AFRICA: UGANDA, D.R. CONGO AND CONGO/BRAZZAVILLE
1. Uganda a) On 14 July, WFP briefing in Kampala held to update donor community on WFP operation providing assistance to 420,000 displaced persons in northern and south-western districts; planned duration of operation 17 months (until end March 2000), food requirements 59,170 tons, current shortfall some 34,730 tons; WFP requests further donor support.
2. Democratic Republic Of Congo and Congo/Brazzaville a) Security incidents reported in northern and southern Brazzaville; ECHO, MSF and Red Cross vehicles extorted by unidentified armed people; as a result, MSF suspends rehabilitation of Mikalou hospital in north Brazzaville.
E. SUDAN
1. Update - information as of 15 June a) First UN mission to Nuba Mountains (South Kordofan State) since early 1980s carried out in late June; findings not alarming, however, food aid is needed, as well as assistance in health and sanitation, and basic education; further assessment missions recommended; UN team consisted of WFP, OCHA and UNICEF. b) Insecurity affects WFP operations in Upper Nile, Unity State and Jonglei regions, where WFP targets 600,000 beneficiaries.
F. AFGHANISTAN
1. Update - information as of 15 July a) City of Herat now quiet, but overnight missions by international staff still suspended pending review. b) International staff will be based in Jalalabad from 1 August and in Mazar from mid August, first time after 1997 suspension. c) Central Highlands: an update on the food security situation by VAM and recent FAO/WFP Crop and Food Supply Assessment Report say low rainfall, increased pest infestations and lower planting during 1998/99 season reduce cereal output.
G. FR YUGOSLAVIA AND REGION - KOSOVO CRISIS
1. Update - information as of 15 July a) Repatriation of ethnic Albanians to Kosovo slowing down; some 700,000 Kosovo Albanians returned, just over 100,000 remain outside Kosovo; many Kosovo Serbs and Roma people left Kosovo for Central Serbia, Montenegro or FYR of Macedonia; WFP closing offices in Albania and moving staff/assets mainly to Kosovo. b) Details on WFP relief operations available in the Balkan Operations Weekly Brief at <http://www.wfp.org>. Click on Kosovo Alert, then on Weekly Brief.
PART II - DETAILS
A. ETHIOPIA
1. UPDATE - information as of 15 July
1.1 A WFP emergency operation (EMOP 6143) to assist 1.2 million people in eight regions throughout Ethiopia started on 1 June. Its food requirements are some 103,250 tons of food commodities, representing almost 30 percent of national requirements. To date, WFP has received pledges totalling 37,000 tons, including cereals, CSB and pulses). In addition, WFP has allocated USD 2.5 million from its Immediate Response Account (IRA), which will be used to purchase additional food commodities. This leaves a shortfall of over 66,000 tons or 64 percent of the EMOP requirement.
1.2 On 12 July, the UN Country Team launched a UN Appeal for both food and non-food commodities. The appeal includes the remaining shortfall for the WFP emergency operation (EMOP 6143) and USD 7.5 million for health, water, agriculture and education programmes, supplementary food, as well as a budget for monitoring.
1.3 Following a joint Government/donor assessment mission undertaken in mid-June to four severely affected northern and southern areas, the number of those in need of food aid has been adjusted from 4.6 million to 5.3 million people (including the displaced in the northern areas) requiring 425,144 tons, or over 65,000 tons of food per month.
1.4 The earlier ongoing WFP emergency operation (EMOP 6080) started in March for 272,000 people with over 45,000 tons of cereals, pulses, vegetable oil, sugar and salt over nine months.
B. ANGOLA
1. UPDATE - information as of 15 July
1.1 WFP is urgently seeking USD 5 million to charter additional cargo aircraft to transport food supplies to the war-affected cities of Kuito, Huambo and Luena not accessible by land routes. WFP is concerned at low levels of emergency food stocks in parts of the country which are experiencing security problems, as well as a lack of donor support in committing new resources for operations in the country. Commercial food supplies to many provinces have been totally disrupted since the resurgence of fighting last December.
1.2 In addition to insecurity, a combination of late food arrivals and the lack of additional resources further hamper WFP activities. The distributions in July and August will cover some 60 percent of the estimated needs. Of the approximately 120,000 tons of food needed in Angola in 1999, only about 60,000 tons have been resourced. At present, WFP stocks in pulses are depleted, and distributions are only continuing through food borrowed from the in-country stocks of the European Union. In an effort to maximize the effect of food assistance in times of limited resources, WFP is focusing its interventions to the most vulnerable including children under five, pregnant women, the sick, elderly and newly displaced persons, as well as supporting initiatives which facilitate greater self-reliance of IDP populations.
1.3 WFP remains concerned at the condition of people living in UNITA-controlled areas and out of reach of humanitarian assistance, as attempts to negotiate access for evaluation missions have until now been denied by the Government and UNITA.
1.4 In Malange, the food situation is dramatic, as there have been no food deliveries to the city since May. Recent reports indicate that two or three people per day are dying from malnutrition related diseases. Following the relocation of WFP staff, remaining WFP food stocks have been handed over to the WFP implementing partners and may last up to mid-August.
1.5 In Huambo, WFP food distributions continue between periods of shelling.Last week, out of the total of 53,700 beneficiaries in the area, 8,000 received WFP food aid.
1.6 The new three-month WFP emergency operation (EMOP 6138) to start in September for some 800,000 victims of the renewed conflict, at a total cost of USD 37.5 million, has not yet received any donor contributions. The WFP operations in Angola are under-resourced, while more and more people are in need of food assistance. WFP urges donors to respond immediately.
C. SIERRA LEONE
1. UPDATE - information as of 13 July
1.1 A peace agreement was signed in Togo between the Government of President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah and the RUF on 7 July. The agreement provides for four ministerial and four deputy positions to be covered by RUF and the position of the vice-president and the head of the mining committee to be taken by Corporal Foday Sankoh, the RUF leader.
1.2 The UN Secretary General paid a one-day visit to Sierra Leone on 8 July. During his visit he met the President of Sierra Leone, the heads of UN agencies, ECOMOG officials and all UN staff. UN will provide the necessary support to the consolidation of peace.
1.3 The Government and the RUF have appointed representatives for the Access Implementation Committee. The first mission to discuss the modalities of humanitarian access to RUF-controlled areas was conducted on 7 July to Buedu in Kailahun district. WFP, OCHA, UNICEF, UNOMSIL, UN FSO and international NGOs (CARE, WVI MSF-B and ACF) discussed with the RUF field commander the humanitarian access and related issues. RUF agrees to allow humanitarian assessments/activities in their areas but expresses reservations about national staff of humanitarian agencies entering the RUF territory for security reasons.
1.4 WFP in collaboration with ACF, CAD, WVI and CARITAS has completed a registration of vulnerable groups in Port Loko town and the surrounding villages. On 15 July, on the basis of the registration WFP started distributing food aid to the identified vulnerable groups, mainly pregnant women, nursing mothers, children under five, the disabled and the elderly.
1.5 The WFP helicopter operation continues to move humanitarian cargo and personnel, including WFP, other UN agencies and NGOs, from Conakry, Guinea, and Freetown to areas not accessible by road. In the month of June it transported some 40 tons of humanitarian material (food aid, fuel, medical supplies).
D. EAST AND CENTRAL AFRICA: UGANDA, D.R. CONGO AND CONGO/BRAZZAVILLE
1. UGANDA
1.1 WFP Kampala held a meeting on 14 July to update the donor community on WFP's assistance to 420,000 displaced persons in northern and south western districts of Uganda. The planned duration for assistance is 17 months, until end March 2000. Food requirements for the project total some 59,170 tons. Currently, the shortfall stands at some 34,730 tons or approximately USD 20 million. WFP requests further donor support.
1.2 Rebel activities in the northern and south-western regions of Uganda have been the major cause for displacement, including incidences of abduction of civilians and children to be used as sex slaves, servants and fighters.
2. D.R. CONGO AND CONGO/BRAZZAVILLE
2.1 Reports from eastern D.R. Congo indicate that tension among local people is easing and traffic between Goma and other towns has resumed as a result of improved security. However, sporadic skirmishes and acts of banditry are still frequent in towns.
2.2 Several security incidents were reported in northern and southern Brazzaville, including vehicles hijacking and sporadic shooting. ECHO, MSF and Red Cross had three vehicles extorted by unidentified armed people. As a result of this incident, MSF suspended rehabilitation of Mikalou hospital in north Brazzaville.
E. SUDAN
1. UPDATE - information as of 15 June
1.1 The first ever UN mission to the Nuba Mountains in South Kordofan State since the early 1980s took place in late June. The UN team reports that the overall humanitarian situation is not as alarming as thought, contrary to some previous reports of large scale humanitarian crisis in the area. However, the UN team says that food aid is needed as well as assistance in the areas of health and nutrition, water and sanitation, and basic education. The population of the area is not known, but estimates range from 100,000 to 350,000. Further technical assessment missions to the area have been recommended in order to define the scope and specific geographical areas of assistance. The assessment mission received full cooperation from the Government of Sudan, as well as from the SPLM. The UN mission team to the Nuba Mountains consisted of WFP, OCHA and UNICEF.
1.2 Current insecurity is seriously affecting WFP operations in Upper Nile, Unity State and Jonglei regions, where WFP assistance targets over 600,000 persons. WFP and NGOs operating in the Unity State were forced to evacuate their staff on 14 July due to inter-factional fighting that broke out in the area. Four WFP staff members were evacuated from Bentiu, where WFP has a sub-office. Security Officers from the Operation Lifeline Sudan also declared a number of locations in Upper Nile, Western Upper Nile and Jonglei regions too insecure for humanitarian operations during the first half of July. The cease-fire between the Government of Sudan and the SPLA ended on 15 July. Further peace negotiations are scheduled to take place shortly in Nairobi under the IGAD umbrella. The success of the negotiations is a prerequisite for uninterrupted humanitarian operations.
F. AFGHANISTAN
1. UPDATE - information as of 15 July
1.1 Although the western city of Herat is quiet after the security incidences reported last week, overnight missions for international staff have been suspended pending review.
1.2 For the first time since 1997 international staff will take up residence in Jalalabad from 1 August and in Mazar from mid-August following the arrival of the Field Security Officers for those areas.
1.3 The 57,000 tons of wheat expected to arrive in mid-August will not arrive in Afghanistan until the end of September. The Country Office has transferred 3,200 tons from stocks allocated to northern Afghanistan and has borrowed 4,000 tons of wheat from mills. These resources are expected to carry programme activities through the middle of September.
1.4 An update on the food security situation in the Central Highlands of Afghanistan prepared by VAM Afghanistan, as well as the recently released FAO/WFP Crop and Food Supply Assessment Report, highlights that low rainfall, increased pest infestations and lower planting during the 1998/99 crop season are expected to lead to a reduced cereal output resulting in a shortfall of 323,000 tons. WFP emergency food aid was originally planned at 97,000 tons, leaving an uncovered deficit of 226,000 tons.
G. FR YUGOSLAVIA AND REGION - KOSOVO CRISIS
1. UPDATE - information as of 15 July
1.1 The pace of repatriation of ethnic Albanian Kosovars has been slowing in recent days, suggesting many of the remaining refugees and IDPs will be needing assistance to go home. According to UNHCR, the total number of returnees to date is approaching 700,000, while the number of refugees remaining in the neighbouring countries and territories has fallen to just over 100,000. In fear of retaliation, many Kosovo Serbs and Roma people have left Kosovo for Montenegro, Central Serbia and FYR of Macedonia.
1.2 WFP operations in Albania are quickly closing down, in an atmosphere of insecurity. Safety in the near-empty refugee camps has been difficult to maintain. Food stocks, equipment, vehicles and staff are being moved, mainly to Kosovo.
1.3 Details of WFP relief operations in the Balkans are available in the Balkan Operations Weekly Brief at <http://www.wfp.org>. Click on Kosovo Alert, then on Weekly Brief.
Note: all tonnage figures in report above refer to metric tons
(End WFP Emergency Report No. 28 of 1999 - July 16, 1999)
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