El Niño response plan for Southern Africa launched

In response to soaring needs of drought-stricken farmers in the region, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) launched the Southern Africa El Niño Response Plan last year.The organisation appealed for an amount of US$109 million to assist 3,4 million pastoral, agri-pastoral and smallholding farms across 10 countries.The 2015-'16 agricultural season in Southern Africa was the driest in 35 years. In a region where over 70% of the population is dependent on agriculture, and following two to three consecutive years of drought, El Niño has had a devastating impact on the lives of farmers and herders.Drought emergencies have been declared in Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Swaziland and Zimbabwe, as well as in the Grand Sud of Madagascar.Mozambique issued a Red Alert, and eight of South Africa’s nine provinces have been declared disaster areas, which account for almost 90% of the country’s maize production and are critically important for exports within the region.Food reserves and seed stock have been depleted, and water and pasture are scarce. More than 643 000 livestock deaths have been reported in five countries alone due to lack of food and water, and the outbreak of disease. The 2015-'16 harvest assessments indicate a regional shortfall of nearly 9,3 million tonnes of cereal production. The high regional deficit is increasing staple food prices and putting strain on the already-limited purchasing power of vulnerable families. The situation is already urgent with at least 40 million people projected to be food insecure in the 2016-'17 lean season - 22 million of whom require urgent help.The planting season started off well in most of the sub-region. The Southern Africa Regional Climate Outlook Forum (SARCOF) gave a positive rainfall forecast. If farmers do not receive assistance in time, this could be a missed opportunity for household recovery. With the imminent threat of locust infestation in the sub-region, support must be provided with monitoring, surveillance and pest control.Emergency activities in the agriculture sector will not only enable families to regain their livelihood, but contribute to closing the food gap and reduce reliance on emergency food aid.FAO’S RESPONSEBy October last year, the FAO's appeal was 38% funded. To address the scale and magnitude of the crisis, the FAO declared Corporate Surge Support for Southern Africa on 4 July last year, lasting until 15 February 2017. Providing overall coordination for the implementation of the Response Plan, the capacity of the FAO Southern Africa Resilience Hub (SFS-REOSA) has been enhanced to increase technical and operational support to affected countries.Food security and agriculture information and analysis are prioritised by supporting crop and input assessments, national Vulnerability Assessment Committees and Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) processes. To inform response, regional seed and agricultural inputs and water availability assessments have been finalised. The FAO actively supports sub-regional partners, including the Southern African Development Community, and is an active member of several coordination platforms, including the Regional Inter-agency Steering Committee (RIASCO), Food Security and Nutrition Working Group, IPC Technical Working Group and RIASCO Resilience Working Group.

El Niño response plan for Southern Africa launched

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El Niño response plan for Southern Africa launched

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