Joint Government-UN Addendum Launched
The UN Country team and the Government
of Ethiopian presented the Addendum to the "Emergency Assistance Requirements
and Implementation Options for 2003" on Friday, 14 March 2003, calling
for additional support increase in food and non-food requirements to address
the ongoing humanitarian crisis affecting the country; food requirements
have been adjusted from 1.44 million MT to 1.46 million MT. On the non-food
side, the original requirement of US$75.0 million has been revised to US$81.1
million. The addendum is a follow up to the joint Government-UN appeal
for the year 2003 that was launched on 7 December 2002. It provides an
update on the current situation and assistance requirements and reflects
the result of collaborative efforts in the major sectors of humanitarian
intervention: food, health, water, agriculture and livestock, attention
is given to important issues of HIV/AIDS, education, and protection, which
are not normally addressed through the annual appeal mechanism. Donors,
Government Ministries, DPPC, UN country team and NGOs attended the meeting.
Issues of Resettlement
The deputy Prime Minister's office has shared a paper entitled "Voluntary Settlement in Ethiopia: The Road Ahead" with attendees at the release of the Addendum to the 2003 Appeal. At the same meeting an informal request was made to the office of the DPM to organize a special discussion on resettlement.
ADDITIONAL Monitoring unit dispatched
The DPPC has dispatched a Monitoring Unit (accompanied by UNEUE-OCHA Field Officer) to Garaghe in SNNPR to examine beneficiary number and distribution modalities in that area of the country following a series of visits exposing pockets of high incidence of severe malnutrition.
UNICEF Sponsors Jijiga Training Workshop
on Managing Moderate Malnutrition
As part of the response to the current drought crisis in Ethiopia, UNICEF is hosting a training workshop on the screening, triage and management of moderate malnutrition through targeted supplementary feeding. Nutrition specialist Dr. Yvonne Grellety will facilitate the workshop. The four-day workshop will take place at the Nursing School in Jijiga 18 through 21 March.
UNICEF and WFP Host Advocacy Meeting on Emergency Nutrition
UNICEF and WFP are hosting a half-day meeting on emergency nutrition on 17 March at the UN Conference Center from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday. The objectives of the meeting are to discuss the nutrition status of the drought-affected population in Ethiopia, current interventions being undertaken and the way forward. Discussion will also take place on recommendations for future strategies.
East/West Hararghe Emergency Update
CARE's general food distribution under the JEOP program is continuing in East and west Hararghe. In East Hararghe, February distribution has been completed and preparation for March distribution is underway. In West Hararghe, January food distribution has been completed and February distribution is underway. Distribution of supplementary food to the new hot spot that was identified several weeks ago in Kurfachelle is continuing, with 36 Mt of CSB being distributed to 7,200 people in the area. Such distribution will be repeated next month if necessary. In the agriculture sector CARE has arranged for the purchase of 400 Mt of Katumani Maize seeds to be distributed through its Belg seeds program. Distribution of these seeds will begin in the next two weeks and is planned to be completed by the end of the month. In all its programs CARE will provide seeds to roughly 40,000 households living in the nine Hararghe woredas that it serves. CARE's training series on the new federal Food Aid Targeting Guidelines is now well underway. Training of woreda level officials and community leaders has begun in West Haraghe. This program will continue throughout the rest of the year.