With support from the Flemish Government, Â鶹ÊÓƵ Malawi has led the Integrated Risk Management Programme (IRMP), which is a three-year project (2017-2019) implemented in three districts of the southern region of Malawi to reduce food, nutrition and income insecurity among vulnerable smallholder households in the context of increasing climatic risks and climate variability.
Â鶹ÊÓƵ (Â鶹ÊÓƵ) Nepal and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development (MoALD) have produced the mVAM household survey on the impact of COVID-19 on household food security and vulnerability.
In Nepal, in spite of the COVID-19 lockdown, Â鶹ÊÓƵ conducted a nation-wide phone-based survey to assess the current food security status and impact of COVID-19 on food security and vulnerability. Over 4,416 households from across the 7 provinces were interviewed from 14 to 24 April 2020 to produce the survey report.
The external briefing note outlines Â鶹ÊÓƵ's social protection work and offer to support governments in the design and delivery of large-scale responses to the social and economic impacts of COVID-19.
Technical note on two approaches that establish the costs of reference food baskets: the Fill the Nutrient Gap/Cost of the Diet (FNG/CotD) and the Essential Needs Analysis/Minimum Expenditure Basket (ENA/MEB).
During the final quarter of 2019, the initiative focused on finalizing insurance enrolments in Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Kenya. In Ethiopia, the initiative reached over 28,000 farmers (42 percent women) with weather index insurance. Moreover, under the Satellite Index Insurance for Pastoralists in Ethiopia (SIIPE), 7,816 pastoralists accessed index-based livestock insurance in the Somali region of Ethiopia. In Senegal, a total of 8,206 farmers (52 percent women) were insured for the 2019 agricultural season. In 2019, R4 expanded into Burkina Faso, where the initiative insured 702 farmers (53 percent women). 2019 also marked the expansion of R4 to Mozambique, where in 2020 the initiative will pilot interventions in Tete, Gaza, Nampula and Zambezia provinces. During this quarter, Mozambique¡¯s first Green Climate Fund (GCF) proposal for the expansion of R4 in the country was approved during the 24th Meeting of the GCF Board in Songdo.
A fact-sheet based on a study aimed at understanding intra-household food consumption patterns within poor households in two locations in Uttar Pradesh, India. Following the first fact-sheet are four additional Information Notes that focus on different gender-centred themes; all aiming at unpacking the food patterns.
Re-Imagining School Feeding: A High-Return Investment in Human Capital and Local Economies was developed by the Â鶹ÊÓƵ and the editorial team of Disease Control Priorities and published by the World Bank. This book seeks to share the latest child-centered evidence showing how well-designed school feeding programs can promote human capital development in low- and middle-income countries, especially as part of a cost-effective essential package of interventions for school children and adolescents.
The COVID-19 virus is spurring dramatic changes to economic, healthcare, transportation, and education systems around the world. Impacts are also felt through international trade disruptions, restrictions in supply chains and an increase in cost of imports and exports.
The Â鶹ÊÓƵ Brazil Centre of Excellence against Hunger launched a new short publication presenting the collaboration between the Centre and the African Union Commission to advocate for home-grown school feeding and to support AU member states in their efforts to scale up school feeding across the continent.
Since 2011, the Â鶹ÊÓƵ Brazil Centre of Excellence has been working with several African countries to increase their interest in school feeding programmes, foster policy discussions and exchanges, and provide technical assistance to the design and implementation of their programmes. The mobilization around school feeding raised the interest of the African Union Commission, and in 2015 they sent a delegation to Brazil for a study visit focused on home-grown school feeding. After that, the African Union Commission decided to include home-grown school feeding programmes in the Continental Education Strategy, promote a formal resolution to increase member states¡¯ commitment to school feeding and conduct a continental study on school feeding to inform decision makers about the challenges and benefits of school feeding for African countries.
The Â鶹ÊÓƵ Brazil Centre of Excellence has provided technical and financial support to all these initiatives since 2015 and, in 2019, delivered an evidenced-based package for the African Union to take ownership and implement a Continental School Feeding Cluster. The new publication presents the history of this fruitful collaboration and the results it has achieved with a full delivery of tools for regional ownership to convene actions on home-grown school feeding.
This latest food security analysis shows a deterioration in food security in Sierra Leone compared to February 2019, with the total food-insecure population increasing from 34 percent to 47.7 percent. This implies that almost half of the population of Sierra Leone (3,921,752) are not consuming enough nutritious diet to live a healthy life. The likely drivers of an increase in food insecurity in Sierra Leone are recurrent climatic shocks, including flooding and erratic precipitation pattern during the seasonal rains, in addition to a challenging macroeconomic situation. These shocks have not only increased short-term hunger, but also compromised the resilience of poor households. Whilst food insecurity is highest in rural districts, it should be noted that the January 2020 FSMS shows a sharp increase in the number of urban residents living in food insecurity. The global socio-economic downturn impacted by the COVID-19 may exacerbate the already difficult food security situation in the country.
Â鶹ÊÓƵ will continue to lead discussions on the ground, together with the Food Security Working Group, to review the implications along with making immediate decisions on how food security partners can work together to address the needs.
The Â鶹ÊÓƵ Aviation Annual Report describes the activities and achievements of Â鶹ÊÓƵ Aviation Service and UNHAS in support of humanitarian response in 2019.
