I det nordlige Mali, som var i verdens søgelys under den fransk-ledede militæraktion mod islamisterne, sulter folk og i modsætning til de mange hundrede millioner dollars til militærindsatsen tøver donorerne med at udbetale penge til nødhjælpen.
BAMAKO, 12 April 2013 (IRIN): Hunger in Mali has reached crisis levels in the northern Kidal Region and has reached critical levels in Gao and Timbuktu regions, according to food security agencies and the government’s early warning body.
One in five households in Gao and Timbuktu are facing severe food shortages, while in Kidal one in five households faces severe malnutrition (underernæring) and increasing mortality.
The situation is likely to worsen over the coming months as the lean season progresses, part of the usual seasonal deterioration in food security across the Sahel.
So far, 28 percent of the 139 million US dollar appeal for food security and 17 percent of the 73 million dollar appeal for nutrition (ernæringsmidler) have been committed by donors.
“The problem is that people are starting the lean (magre) season from an already highly deteriorated (forringet) position. Assistance is not yet meeting needs, and even if security improves dramatically tomorrow it will take a long time for households to rebuild their livelihoods,” Cedric Charpentier, West Africa market specialist for the World Food Programme (WFP), told IRIN.
In January, donors pledged (lovede) 455 million dollar (2,6 milliarder DKR) to the African-lead international force in Mali, leaving some to fear the situation in northern Mali could be seen through a politico-military lens that overlooks the chronic vulnerability of ordinary Malians.
“There is very strong political will to intervene in northern Mali,” said Frank Abeille, head of the NGO Solidarités Internationale in Mali, which is operating across the north, adding:
“What we need is to see a motivation that can also adapt to (tilpasse sig) the reality on the ground: the real needs are humanitarian, not military.”
Near-empty markets
Markets are still near-empty in Gao town and surrounding villages, and cereal (korn) prices are up by between 30 and 70 percent, according to the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET).
The closed Algeria border and the flight of the majority of Arab and Tuareg traders in both Gao and Timbuktu have made products like pasta, oil, rice and sugar scarce.
While large cereal markets continue to function, smaller village-level markets have shut down, leaving rural communities and small traders – many of them women – destitute (armodsramte), according to Sally Haydock, Mali’s WFP head.
The availability of staple grains, sorghum (durra), millet (hirse) and corn is better than in February but still far from healthy, according to food aid analysts.
“We cannot say people are starving yet, but they are not eating as they should,” said Oumar Hama Sangho, a Gao resident who has just finished assessing food security in the area.
“You go to the market, there is no fruit, no vegetables, meat or fish… There is only rice, millet and corn – mainly donated by the government or internationals. Old and young are surviving on these cereals, but it is not enough.”
One meal a day
Mahamane Touré, coordinator of the German NGO Agro Action in Timbuktu, told IRIN insecurity prevented many women from planting their market gardens this year, so they have little to fall back on:
“I have met many families who eat just one meal – of cereals – a day,” he told IRIN.
Banking systems in Gao and Timbuktu have also been largely shut down since mid-2012, making large-scale transactions impossible. This has led suppliers to refrain from large deals.
While security has improved in much of Gao and Timbuktu, widespread acts of criminality and banditry on transit roads and on the outskirts of towns are also disrupting food markets.
In Kidal Region, both food and non-food items are largely unavailable in markets or are for sale at prices out of reach for the poorest people, said several NGOs. Kidal residents are highly dependent on markets, as they do not produce much of their own grain.
“The region is already very fragile,” said Wolde Gabrielle Saugeron, spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), noting:
“People lack seeds (såsæd) to plant this year, and planting will be even more difficult for the displaced, while for herders, the lack of livestock services will pose severe problems.”
“The situation changes daily and remains unstable across the north,” he added.
ICRC is providing food to 30.000 people in Kidal – about one-third of them displaced – and is providing water to people in Kidal town. Doctors of the World (MDM) is providing healthcare and nutrition assistance.
IDPs (fordrevne) share rations
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http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97834/Hunger-at-crisis-levels-in-northern-Mali
