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In July 2003 the
United Nations appealed for $530-million;
$310-million for food relief and $220-million
for non-food activities to address the
humanitarian needs of vulnerable people in
Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Zambia
and Zimbabwe. However, donors have so far
contributed just 20% of the required funds,
leaving a massive shortfall of $423-million. The
appeal for non-food items has raised
only
$9,5-million or 4,3% of overall needs.
The United Nations World Food Program (WFP)
warns that millions will face starvation in
early 2004 unless donor funding for humanitarian
relief is increased soon. The critical shortfall
in international aid threatens a new food crisis
in southern Africa, where some 6.5 million
people could starve in coming months. WFP
highlights that without immediate contributions
the "fragile gains" that were made over the last
12 months could be destroyed. "A humanitarian
tragedy was averted in southern Africa in 2002,
but the crisis is far from over,” James T.
Morris,
WFP Executive Director and the UN
Secretary-General's Special Envoy for
Humanitarian Needs in Southern Africa, told
journalists in Johannesburg. "In the last 12
months we have been able to generate a million
tons of food here in a situation caused by
drought, health, political and economical
factors, thereby avoiding significant loss of
life. We have made enormous progress in gains
since 2002 and that progress and gains will be
at risk if we are not able to continue
supporting the highly vulnerable people, mainly
women and children," he emphasised.
Despite last year's successful emergency
operation and an improved agricultural season,
Morris pointed out that millions of people
remain extremely vulnerable, due to a
combination of chronic poverty, severe food
shortages and, in particular, catastrophic rates
of HIV/AIDS. According to the UN Regional
Inter-Agency Coordination Support Office (RIACSO),
current projections showed an alarming outlook
for the "critical hunger period", with a total
shortfall of
74% in January 2004, escalating to
95% in February, and culminating in a 100 per
cent break in the pipeline in March. While
harvests had improved in Malawi, Zambia
and
Swaziland, there were still urgent food aid
requirements in Zimbabwe, Lesotho, and southern
Mozambique, Morris stated.
In Lesotho, two summer harvests and the current
winter harvest have been poor as a result of
persistent drought. The World Food Programme (WFP)
was expected to begin general distributions
targeting food-insecure beneficiaries this
month. In the coming months as many as 800 000
people in the tiny country could face food
shortages. In his statement Morris specifically
mentioned the complex humanitarian environment
in Zimbabwe and drew attention to the
government's recent commitment to abide by
humanitarian principles and promote the
impartial delivery of food aid and other
assistance. "Donors have been concerned about
developments in Zimbabwe. This has been resolved
following the signing of a memorandum of
understanding (MOU) between the government and
WFP. Recent public statements coming out of
Harare affirm that food delivery will be
conducted in a non-partisan manner. Already,
since then, the United States has pledged
$22.8
million and the Netherlands $1.4 million, which
is expected to ease the pipeline," Morris
explained. Over
4 million people in Zimbabwe
face food scarcity, with HIV/AIDS compounding
the impact of shortages on vulnerable
households. The number of people in need
is
expected to rise to over 5 million at the height
of the
lean season.
The WFP Executive Director went on to say that
more major donations of both food and non-food
items including seed, fertiliser and funds for
education, sanitation, health and irrigation
projects are needed to build the region's
agricultural capacity. He also emphasised the
alarming shortage of seeds and fertilisers for
subsistence farming
this season, especially in
Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
An investment in seeds
and fertiliser for the region by donor countries
now will help enormously during the agricultural
season. In most areas of the region, farmers
must plant no later than October to benefit from
the entire growing season.
Morris also highlighted that HIV/AIDS, which
infects some
22 million sub-Saharan Africans is
taking an increasing toll of the region's
agricultural workforce, exacerbating food
shortages and posing a major threat to Africa's
food security for decades to come. |
