Humanitarian needs continue to spiral in Southern Africa: OCHA

Humanitarian needs continue to spiral in Southern Africa as the lean season reaches its peak following the worst El Nino-induced drought in decades, a UN-affiliated organization said on Tuesday.

With food stocks largely depleted due to poor or failed harvests across the region, estimates of people in need of humanitarian assistance have increased by more than one million to 13.8 million, mainly due to rising needs in Madagascar, Malawi, and Zimbabwe, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a report on Tuesday.

"Humanitarian assistance is being scaled up throughout the region," said Timo Pakkala, El Nino Coordinator for OCHA Southern Africa.

"However as we enter the critical period of the crisis during the lean season, many countries are struggling to stretch funds to cover the growing needs. It is essential that humanitarian assistance to the most vulnerable people is sustained through this period, and for farmers to be supported so they can resume agricultural production," Pakkala said.

On Tuesday, humanitarian agencies of the Regional Inter-Agency Standing Committee (RIASCO) launched a revised Action Plan, outlining the deteriorating humanitarian conditions as well as response in the region.

Food shortages across the region are now severe, and are being exacerbated by a multitude of existing and increasing vulnerabilities, including weak commodity prices, unfavourable exchange rates and slow economic growth, the OCHA report said.

Moreover, the region accounts for a third of all people living with HIV worldwide. The crisis is also disproportionately affecting women and children, with an increasing number of children dropping out of school due to lack of water and food, and entering child labour or early marriage. For example, in Malawi, more than 137,000 children are being forced out of school by the crisis.

Southern Madagascar is of particular concern where an estimated 845,000 people are currently in the emergency or crisis category of food security, according to OCHA.

Maize, cassava and rice production has decreased there by as much as 95 percent compared with 2015. The Madagascar humanitarian response plan is only 29-percent funded.

As of early December 2016, some 757 million U.S. dollars has been raised for the humanitarian programmes of RIASCO partners in the region, which has helped save lives, protect livelihoods and reduce human suffering. This funding has allowed for a broad range of humanitarian assistance from partners.

Despite efforts, critical remaining funding gaps amounting to 550 million U.S. dollars need to be met, without which, millions of the most vulnerable people will not receive full rations, and hundreds of thousands of children will remain at risk of irreparable damage from undernutrition and from dropping out of school, OCHA warned.

Health centres will not be able to provide the most essential services, and farmers will be unable to resume full agricultural production, the office added.

Alongside humanitarian assistance, the RIASCO action plan revision advocates stepping up efforts to end the cycle of drought-induced crises in southern Africa.

Development partners say focus should be on the development of sound national policies and strategies, expanding coverage and strengthening social safety nets, promoting climate-smart agriculture, reinforcing early warning systems, and improving management of water and other natural resources.

Further investments in these areas, combined with solid fiscal and other risk management instruments at national and regional level, are required to build resilience and achieve the goal of breaking the cycle of recurrent drought emergencies. Endit