The Southern African Development Community (SADC) and KfW Development Bank on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) have agreed on establishing a Regional Fund for Water and Basic Sanitation. The Fund will be financed with an initial grant contribution of EUR 10 million by the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany through KfW. The Fund will be managed by the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA).

The Government of the Republic of Botswana today donated various food items such as beans, sorghum, beef, milk to the Government of the Kingdom of Lesotho in response to an international flash appeal on the drought situation in that country. The donation was received by the Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lesotho Hon. Tim Thahane, accompanied by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Hon. Mophato Monyake.

This summary note is an excerpt from the chapter on Lesotho that will appear in the peer-reviewed IFPRI monograph, Southern African Agriculture and Climate Change: A Comprehensive Analysis.

The research, produced in collaboration with scientists from the countries studied, is based on scenarios from economic global climate change models, and takes into account estimates of each country’s economic and population growth. Each study includes a set of policy recommendations.

An earthquake with magnitude 5.6 has hit South Khorasan province in Iran, killing at least eight people and injuring 12. As of 6 December, no further information available

Mr Tsitso Mohalake is 62 years old and lives in a remote farming village in north-eastern Lesotho. He and his wife care for their two children (one who is in school and one who is looking for work) as well as their three grandchildren whose young parents passed away following long illnesses. Due to poor rainfall last season, Mr Mohalake only managed to harvest enough to feed the family for a month and a half. Of his original five cattle, four have been stolen and the fifth has died.

The Global Overview is a weekly update that provides a snapshot of current humanitarian priorities and recent events. Its primary objective is to rapidly inform humanitarian decision makers by presenting a summary of major humanitarian crises, both recent and protracted.

Link: Southern Africa Humanitarian Bulletin: Issue 07 - November 2012

By Suzanne Beukes

VAN ROOI, Lesotho, 28 November 2012 – Since losing her two daughters to HIV/AIDS – “this disease which is affecting everyone,” she says – 75-year-old Puseletso Tsiu has been forced to eke out a living for herself and her three orphaned grandchildren by doing piecework.

Tears stream from her eyes as she describes how much more difficult putting food on the table has become for her since food crisis gripped the small, landlocked, mountainous country of Lesotho.

In desperate times, stretching slim resources

Mamatsuri Mathinyane is a 33 year old widow, and she is trying to find a way to feed her five children until the next harvest. She has tried everything to budget the money she has and to find a way to bring in more income, but she knows it may not be enough.