Thumbnail Image

Food Security and Humanitarian Implications in West Africa and the Sahel. N°53 - February 2014

Year of publication 2014

Pages 6p.

Publisher FAO ;

Category Bulletin

Series title Food Security and Humanitarian Implications in West Africa and the Sahel

Edition 1

Synopsis (short abstract) The pastoral lean season will start earlier than usual in some areas in the Sahel region, following pasture dryness and decreasing water levels of watering points. The most affected regions are the ones that experienced rainfall deficits in 2013, most notably in Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Chad. The food security situation is starting to deteriorate throughout the region, especially in countries like Senegal and Mauritania, where recent surveys confirm the risk of an early lean season a nd a difficult food security situation for poor households. In West Africa, the three trade basins are currently well supplied with local cereals and prices remained stable or decreased in most markets compared to December 2013. This regional trend in the markets correspond to price decreases in the international markets, particularly for wheat and rice, which are the most imported cereals in the region. In 2014, in line with the Strategic Response Plan for the Sahel region, the food security se ctor aims to support 11.8 million people out of the estimated 20.2 million food insecure people throughout the region. The mobilization of USD 838 million is required to improve the food security situation of the most vulnerable households in the Sahel. Early funding (before April 2014) is required for already food insecure households in order to implement projects that prepare for the main agricultural season as well as the pastoral lean season.

Language English

Also available in:

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Thumbnail Image
    Bulletin
    Food Security and Humanitarian Implications in West Africa and the Sahel. N°62 - February 2015 2015
    Also available in:
    The off-season activities are continuing without any major hurdles. Regarding pastoralism, four months after the end of the rainy season, drying and depletion of pasture and water sources continue, particularly in areas that had a rainfall deficit in Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Chad. Pastoral lean season is already shaping up with high concentrations of animals in the areas that remain favourable to grazing, the descent into agricultural areas and cross-border transhumance, particularly towards Togo and Northern Benin. The results of the periodic food security monitoring which took place in Mauritania by the Commissariat à la Sécurité Alimentaire and WFP in December 2014 shows a deterioration of the food security situation with food insecurity rates never before seen in the post-harvest period. The effects of agriculture and pastoralism following the rain deficits recorded in the country could explain these high rates of food insecurity.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Bulletin
    Food Security and Humanitarian Implications in West Africa and the Sahel. N°54 - March 2014 2014
    Also available in:
    The meeting of the Regional Consultation on Food and Nutritional Situation in the Sahel and West Africa (PREGEC) confirms the decrease in cereal production in the Sahel during the 2013/2014 agricultural campaign compared to last year. Significant production decreases have been recorded in several areas, notably in Chad, Mali, Niger and Senegal. Poor and very poor households living in these areas, which are also affected by the decrease in pasture production, are already facing food insecurity. T he markets will function normally until the lean season, when seasonal increases in cereal prices will be observed, especially for millet, the production of which decreased significantly (20 percent). According to the Harmonized Framework analysis, 26 zones out of 345 are identified as currently food insecure, with the situation reaching a crisis phase in Chad, Mali, Niger, Senegal and The Gambia. During the lean season (June to August 2014), an increase in the number of zones in crisis phase is expected, reaching 58 zones in total and extending to areas in Burkina Faso, Guinea and Mauritania. It is crucial to address the needs of these populations under pressure and to protect their livelihoods.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Bulletin
    Food Security and Humanitarian Implications in West Africa and the Sahel. N°59 - September 2014 2014
    Also available in:
    In the region, recent rainfall contributed to reduce deficits in central Mali and northern Senegal. However, the deficits persist in some areas of the Atlantic side (Mauritania, Senegal and the Gambia) and in Nigeria. These deficits explain the delays in harvesting which prolonged the lean season of agricultural households. The regional consultation of the Regional System for the Prevention and Management of Food Crises (PREGEC), held in The Gambia, announced that the expected agricultural produ ctions (cereals and pulses) will likely be lower than the five-year average in the Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Mauritania and Senegal. This situation needs to be closely monitored as it will unavoidably affect income of agricultural households and their access to adequate food.
Show more

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

No results found.