The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
UN seeks $76 million in emergency aid to support Madagascar through its “worst drought in a decade”
The island nation of Madagascar, one of the most impoverished countries in the word, has seen its agricultural season ruined by the worst drought in the decade, the UN humanitarian office said today.
Three consecutive droughts, compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, have left more than 1,27 million people in the island’s Grand Sud area in desperate need of humanitarian assistance.
“The United Nations in Madagascar has just issued a Flash Appeal for US$76 million to urgently support over 1 million people who face huge and potentially life-threatening humanitarian needs for food, nutrition, water and sanitation and health assistance”, said Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
Speaking today at a news conference at the United Nations in Geneva, Laerke added that “we are trying to be out there urgently right now to save lives which are at risk. The COVID-19 situation has of course made everything much more difficult”.
The COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns have driven people to the brink of survival.
“One of the things that are particular concerning is, of course, that the normal coping mechanisms for people during the lean season--because this is not the first time that we have food insecurity in Madagascar -- is often to send a family member to the larger cities to look for work so that they can send money back home. With COVID-19 this kind of coping mechanism is no longer available because people cannot move and there are no jobs available,” Laerke explained.
Cereal corps, including maize, have been hard-hit by climatic factors in Madagascar’s Grand Sud, and have also suffered due army worms outbreaks. These caterpillar pests attack crops especially after periods of drought, when their green leaf material they normally feed on has been depleted. The average infestation rate In Madagascar has been 53 per cent and yield losses on corn crops are being estimated at 47 per cent by the country’sMinistry of Agriculture.
“One in three people in the south are now severely food insecure. The food security analysis from last month December also showed the alarming projection for more than 135,000 children under the age of 5 suffering from acute malnutrition in the coming months in the Grand Sud, ” Laerke said in making the case for urgent donor support.
The Flash Appeal complements Madagascar’s own national response plan and focuses on the most urgent life-saving and life-sustaining needs of communities in the Grand Sud during the peak of the lean season. According to OCHA , the funding will help improve food security for 1.1 million people, provide access to water for 420,000 of the most vulnerable, give nutritional support to 300,000 children under age 5 and ensure essential health care services for 230,000 people.
Just a week ago, the UN’s World Food Programme appealed for $ 35 million in emergency aid to help fight hunger in the region.
- Exterior wide shot, Palais des Nations, Pregny entrance, a sunny day.
- Wide shot, press briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English) — Jens Laerke, Spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): “The United Nations in Madagascar has just issued a Flash Appeal for US$76 million to urgently support over 1 million people who face huge and potentially life-threatening humanitarian needs for food, nutrition, water and sanitation and health assistance”.
- Medium shot, spokespeople at the podium
- SOUNDBITE (English) - Jens Laerke, Spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): “We are trying to be out there urgently right now to save lives which are at risk. The COVID-19 situation has of course made everything much more difficult”.
- Close up, journalist in the press briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English) - Jens Laerke, Spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): “One of the things that are particular concerning is, of course, that the normal coping mechanisms for people during the lean season, because this is not the first time that we have food insecurity in Madagascar, is often to send a family member to the larger cities to look for work so that they can send money back home. With COVID-19 this kind of coping mechanism is no longer available because people cannot move and there are no jobs available”.
- Close up, journalist in press briefing room at the UN Palais
- SOUNDBITE (English) - Jens Laerke, Spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): “One in three people in the south are now severely food insecure. The food security analysis from last month December also showed the alarming projection for more than 135,000 children under the age of 5 suffering from acute malnutrition in the coming months in the Grand Sud”.
- Close up, spokesperson OHCHR
- Medium shot, journalists in press briefing room
- Medium shot, journalist with cell phone in press briefing room
Similar Stories
1
1
2
Edited News | UN WOMEN
Sudan: Women’s bodies ‘a crime scene’ as tens of thousands flee El Fasher atrocities – UN Women
In war-torn Sudan rape is being systematically used as a weapon and simply being a woman is ‘a strong predictor’ of facing hunger, violence and death, the UN’s gender equality agency warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
The UN human rights office (OHCHR) on Friday called for an end to continuing expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, where “unchecked” settler violence has surged since the war in Gaza began more than two years ago.
1
1
1
Edited News | WFP
The crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to worsen amid ongoing fighting that has driven tens of thousands of people from their homes and created acute hunger, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | WFP
Gaza: One million receive food parcels as humanitarians race to ‘push back hunger’
Food is slowly returning to the shelves in Gaza amid “apocalyptic scenes” but supplies are still desperately inadequate, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday, as they issued fresh calls for wider access and continued financial support.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango today told the bi-weekly UN press briefing in Geneva of more details that are emerging on the atrocities committed in El Fasher, in Sudan during and after its takeover by the Rapid Support Forces.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango made the following comment on Friday at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani made the following comment on Friday at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , WHO
Sudan: UN Raises Alarm Over Mass Atrocities in El Fasher as Survivors Report Executions, Killings and Rapes
More details continue to emerge about atrocities committed during and after the fall of El Fasher to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan on 23 October. Since the powerful paramilitary group made a major incursion into the city last week, the UN Human Rights Office has received “horrendous accounts of summary executions, mass killings, rapes, attacks against humanitarian workers, looting, abductions and forced displacement,” said Seif Magango, spokesperson for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA
Ukraine: Russian attacks on energy terrorize population as winter starts; could trigger major ‘crisis within crisis’
The UN’s top aid official in Ukraine expressed concern on Friday about “continuous attacks” on energy production sites and distribution facilities.
1
1
1
Edited News | HRC
Navi Pillay Retires After Decades Defending Human Rights and Pursuing Justice
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The telecommunications shutdowns in Afghanistan in September had serious and far-reaching impacts on people’s lives, according to a briefing paper published today by the UN Human Rights Office and the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Jeremy Laurence at the UN Geneva press briefing made the following comment on the ASEAN declaration on the right to a healthy environment.