Namibia: Floods - Mar 2004

JOHANNESBURG, 31 December 2010 (IRIN) - The crises in Zimbabwe and Madagascar were a major focus of IRIN's Southern Africa coverage, though riots over food and fuel prices in early September 2010 in Mozambique managed to grab the headlines for a while. [ http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportID=90618 ]

Civil rights activists warned of a possible surge of violence if elections - hinted at by President Robert Mugabe - go ahead in 2011.

SADC REGIONAL SUMMARY

Seasonal rainfall performance so far has been good for most parts of the SADC region except for Tanzania where the Vuli (short rains) season failed and the start of the main season has been delayed. However, dry spells have also been experienced in parts of Angola, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa and Swaziland. Similar but less serious conditions have occurred in Zimbabwe and Zambia.

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

JOHANNESBURG, 11 July (IRIN) - The almost total failure of the maize crop in Namibia's northeastern Caprivi region could have "disastrous consequences" for the area's food security, according to a crop assessment report.

"The Emergency Management Unit is yet to conduct a vulnerability assessment, so we do not know the numbers in need of food aid in Caprivi," said Lesley Losper, an agricultural economist with the Namibia Early Warning and Food Information Unit (NEWFIU) of the …

The Federation's mission is to improve the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity. It is the world's largest humanitarian organization and its millions of volunteers are active in over 181 countries.

In Brief

Appeal No. 09/2004; Final Report; Period covered: April to June 2004; Final appeal coverage: 76.6%.

Appeal history

- Launched on 01 April 2004 for CHF 797,000 (USD 629,201 or EUR 511,688) for five months to assist 50,000 beneficiaries.

By Tapiwa Gomo, Harare

Emergency response operations are almost over in Caprivi region where approximately 5,000 people were displaced and 15,000 affected by floods following incessant heavy rains that hit the area in March this year. The flood, the worst to occur in almost half a century in Namibia's Caprivi Strip, left a trail of destruction to property and disrupted the functioning of the communities in the region.

As WFP's James. T. Morris, the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Humanitarian Needs in Southern Africa visits Namibia, spokesperson Richard Lee talks to people on the front line of the crisis.

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

Civil strife, bad weather and HIV/AIDS said to be main causes

by Solveig Olafsdottir in Caprivi

The Federation's mission is to improve the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity. It is the world's largest humanitarian organization and its millions of volunteers are active in over 181 countries.
In Brief

Appeal no. 09/2004; Operations Update no. 2; Period Covered: March to April 2004; Appeal coverage : 30.8%

Appeal history:

Launched on 01 April 2004 for CHF 797,000 (USD 629,201 or EUR 511,688) for five months to assist 50,000 beneficiaries.

After causing flooding in Namibia, the rising waters of the Zambezi River and its tributaries have now inundated northern areas of Zambia, raising fears of serious food insecurity. Around 20,000 people have been displaced and are currently accommodated in schools and churches, but many have remained in flooded areas to look after their remaining assets.

RIACSO provides support to the national efforts in addressing the southern African crisis and ensures cohesion and complementarity of the effort at a regional level. In addition, RIACSO supports the UN Secretary General's Special Envoy for Humanitarian Needs in Southern Africa, Mr. James Morris, in his mandate to raise awareness of the situation, its underlying causes and to provide recommendations on how to strengthen the humanitarian response and mobilise donor support for the affected countries.

CAPRIVI, Namibia, 3 May 2004 - The spotlight of international attention shone briefly on Namibia this week when the Zambezi River flooded, displacing thousands of children, women and men from their homes, killing hundreds of cattle and ruining acres of crops. But there is another crisis in the region, far more damaging than the flood disaster - the spread of HIV/AIDS, which in Namibia has left tens of thousands of children without parents.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
Given the erratic rains in the first half of the season, necessitating multiple plantings, and the flooding that occurred in the second half, communities across the region are faced with a wide range of yield output possibilities. Overall prospects are not very good. Crop production assessments and crop forecasting surveys, which will provide an indication of food crop production and available food supplies for the 2004/05 consumption year, are currently underway in most countries of the region.

CCA Guidance for August - September - October at 4 Months Lead
This week we focus on the outlooks for August-October for the following areas; the Sahel, the Gulf of Guinea and northeast Africa with four months lead-time.

Sahel

When the Zambezi River burst its banks in late March, thousands of people were forced to abandon their homes. The British Red Cross has sent =A357,000 from our Disaster Fund and Jersey Overseas Aid, to help those affected.

Katimo Mulilo, Caprivi Region, Namibia, Tuesday, 27 April - Namibian officials are caught in a desperate bid to try and save thousands of cattle from near-certain death as the flooded Zambezi River closes in on them, threatening an outbreak of cholera, dysentery and malaria in one of the country's most populated areas.

JOHANNESBURG, 26 April (IRIN) - A government helicopter evacuating the last remaining people from a village cut off by flood waters in Namibia's northeastern Caprivi region crashed while taking off last week.

CAPRIVI, 23 April (IRIN) - Namibian officials are caught in a desperate bid to try and save thousands of cattle from almost certain death as the flooded Zambezi river closes in on them, while one of the country's most populated areas is threatened by outbreaks of cholera, dysentery and malaria.