Ethiopia: Humanitarian Bulletin - 18 Jan 2010

Food Security Update

According to the latest WFP report, a food allocation and prioritization meeting was held on 6 January at which it was agreed that relief food allocations for the first quarter 2010 would be made at full rations (i.e. 15 kg of cereals, 1.5 kg of pulses and .45 kg of oil per person per month, 4.5 kg of Corn Soya Blend (CSB) for 35 percent of the total beneficiary number). At present, however, DRMFSS, WFP and the NGO consortium Joint Emergency Operation (JEOP) are completing dispatch and distribution of the final round of 2009 food distributions to the 6.2 million beneficiaries covered under the revised Humanitarian Requirements Document (HRD) issued in October; this round of dispatches is expected to be concluded by the end of the month. Meanwhile, a new HRD for the first six months of 2010, based on the results of the meher assessment conducted between 22 November and 6 December 2009 is being prepared by the Government and partners; it is expected to be released near the end of January 2010 and will replace the December contingency plan.

In the short term, food security is expected to improve temporarily as a result of the ongoing meher harvest, espite the below-normal harvest prospects in some areas. The unseasonable rains received in parts of the country since mid-November 2009 have also temporarily improved the availability of water and pasture for livestock, and benefitted some late-planted meher crops, in some areas. However, the lowlands of eastern Oromia, parts of eastern Amhara, eastern and southern Tigray and some parts of the southern SNNP lowlands are already showing indications of food insecurity.

For example, pastoralists in Surma woreda, in southwestern SNNPR, are practicing excessive livestock sales to buy grains following unsuccessful harvests in both the belg and meher seasons. The regional DRMFSS is to send an assessment team to the area according to WFP, which also reports that livestock that typically migrate to Mago Park in the dry period from December to February have not yet returned to normal grazing areas. An extended migration could have serious environmental impacts.

An update on the joint Food Management Improvement Project (FMIP) undertaken by WFP and DRMFSS indicates that, between 2007 and 2009, 940,000 of the 1.3 million metric tons (MT) of food assistance dispatched to food distribution point (FDPs) was registered as delivered by the Government. The agencies are now working to collect data distribution data for the same period. In its second and third phases, the FMIP will develop a tracking and reporting system for the entire food aid supply chain and work to improve commodity management. For more information contact: wfp.addisababa@wfp.org & gezahegn97@yahoo.com

Nutrition Update

The Emergency Nutrition Coordination Unit (ENCU) reports that admissions to Therapeutic Feeding Programmes (TFPs) are showing decreasing trends. From January to November 2009, TFP admissions totaled 117,315 new admissions, at a 41 percent reporting rate. A slight increase in the TFP reporting rate (38 per cent in September compared to 43 percent in November 2009) has been reported; the recommended reporting rate is 80 percent.

Rapid assessment conducted by the regional Early Warning and Food Security Sector and the regional ENCU in Dassenech and Bena Tsemay woredas (SNNPR) in late December 2009 indicates a worsening nutrition situation among pregnant and lactating women in Dassenech. The food security situation in the woredas is also a source of concern, with reports of deteriorating pasture availability and livestock conditions. Cereal prices were reported to be elevated, while prices of livestock were low. Meanwhile, a monitoring survey conducted in late December in Boroso Sorie (also SNNPR) by the NGO International Medical Corps (IMC) indicates a normal situation based on the national classification guideline. A general decrease in Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) from 7.7 percent in 2008 to 4.9 percent in 2009 during the same period was reported, as was a normal crude and under-five mortality rate. For more information contact: isaackm@dppc.gov.et

WASH Update

Severe water shortages continue to be reported in parts of the country, including in parts of the Somali, Afar and the lowlands of Oromia and SNNP. At present, MSF-Holland is trucking water to 19 kebeles in Warder woreda and UNICEF is supporting OWDA to provide water trucking to parts of Geladin and Bokh woreads (Warder). While the MSF project is scheduled to conclude at the end of the month, arrangements have been put in place for ACF to continue the service.

For more information contact: wfp.addisababa@wfp.org & kmcdonald@unicef.org

Health Update

Despite an overall decline in Acute Watery Diarrhoea (AWD) cases across the country, the Federal Ministry of Health's Ethiopia Health and Nutrition Research Institute (EHNRI) reports that AWD cases continue to be recorded in Oromia and SNNPR. Federal and regional level response activities are ongoing and WHO continues to provide technical support to regions to strengthen surveillance, early warning systems, assessment of AWD response and on the job training of health workers to improve the quality of case management. For more information contact: whowro@ et.afro.who.int