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Mauritania + 1 more

UNHCR Mauritania Factsheet - February 2016

Attachments

WORKING WITH PARTNERS
UNHCR collaborates with the Ministry of the Interior and Decentralization and local authorities for the coordination of protection and assistance to refugees in Mauritania. The organization actively participates in the UN Country Team and works closely with national and international NGOs. UNHCR holds coordination meetings every two weeks with all agencies in Mbera camp.

2016 ACTIVITIES FOR MALIAN REFUGEES IN MBERA CAMP

Protection

  • Maintenance and update of the refugee biometric registration database.
  • Tailored assistance to people with specific needs through home visits, psychosocial counseling, walking aid, support for people with disabilities.
  • Awareness-raising activities and training on the prevention and response to gender-based violence, as well as child protection for refugees and partner agencies and medical and psychosocial support for victims.

Education

  • Support to primary education in Mbera camp with the payment of indemnities for more than 200 school staffs, including directors, teachers and canteen staffs.
  • Literacy/numeracy classes for 400 adults in the camp.

Health

  • Support access to primary health care in Mbera camp with the supply of medical equipment and medicine to the health center.
  • Medical evacuation to Nema and Nouakchott hospitals for refugees with serious medical conditions in need of secondary or tertiary health care.

Food Security and Nutrition

  • Monthly distribution of food (rice, pulses, oil provided by WFP) in the camp and monitoring of refugees’ access to food in sufficient quantity and quality through monthly Food Basket Monitoring and quarterly Post-Distribution Monitoring.

Access to energy

  • Distribution of charcoal for 1,200 households with specific needs.

Shelter and Non-food items

  • Replacement of deteriorated basic items (jerry cans, mosquito nets) and distribution of shelters in the camp under a self-help scheme.
  • Maintenance of community infrastructures (reception centre, schools, community centres…).

Water, Sanitation and hygiene

  • Maintenance and optimization of the existing water system, construction/rehabilitation of semi-permanent latrines.
  • Organization of hygiene awareness-raising activities in the camp and sustainable waste management (more than 10,000 individuals targeted per month).
  • Distribution of hygiene kits (soap, buckets, cups etc.) for 100% refugees and distribution of sanitary hygiene kits for women of childbearing age twice a year.

Peaceful coexistence between refugee and host communities

  • Strengthening of community-based mechanisms such as mixed committees (composed of refugees and host community), socio-cultural activities and focus groups to promote peaceful coexistence.
  • Quick-impact projects in the host population targeting more than 10 villages, including the rehabilitation of water and sanitation infrastructures, the fencing of arable land and support to livestock activities.

Self-reliance and Community Empowerment

  • Strengthening refugees’ self-reliance in the camp with the funding 100 new income-generating activities in 2016, technical support and follow-up on 195 projects started in 2014-2015.
  • Maintenance of vegetable gardens benefiting more than 1,800 women and their families as well as distribution of dairy-goats for 570 households to strengthen their livelihoods and improve refugees’ diet.
  • Strengthening capacity of refugee committees which participate in the management of services and infrastructures in the camp.

2016 ACTIVITIES FOR URBAN REFUGEES/ASYLUM SEEKERS

Protection

  • Registration of urban asylum seekers and determination of refugee status under UNHCR’s mandate.
  • Training of more than 70 police/military officers and members of the ministries on refugee protection, refugees’ rights and freedom of movement.
  • Support to the authorities for the finalization of a national refugee law.

Education

  • Primary/secondary education support for urban refugees through tuition coverage and access to remedial courses.

Health

  • Facilitate access to the national health system for all refugees and support access to primary health care for urban refugees with specific needs and secondary and tertiary health care for all urban refugees.

Shelter and Non-food items

  • Distribution of hygiene kits to women and girls of childbearing age twice a year.

Self-reliance and Community Empowerment

  • Follow-up on 29 micro finance projects started in 2015 and start-up of 5 new projects to support small businesses (e.g. fabrics and crafts, fish and grocery shops).
  • Access to vocational training programmes for 59 refugees in coordination with public and private training centers.

Durable Solutions

  • Identification and submission of resettlement cases (currently 140 refugees in need), assistance to voluntary returns (50 planned in 2016).