WFP :: Kenya Update :: August 2013

Transcription

1 WFP :: Kenya Update :: August 2013 Highlights As of 31 August, WFP Kenya s funding shortfall for the next six months was US$100 million. The refugee operation has the largest shortfall of US$54 million followed by the drought-recovery operation with a US$40 million deficit. Results of the food security assessments indicate that continued good performance of the rainy seasons has reduced the number of people in need of immediate food assistance to 850,000 in August 2013, down from 1.1 million in February. WFP is analysing the programme and budget implications of these results. WFP started two cash/voucher projects in August: (i) distribution of fresh food vouchers to pregnant women in Dadaab refugee camp; and (ii) disbursement of cash to schools in Isiolo County. WFP and UNHCR are undertaking final preparations for the full rollout of the biometrics identification system in the refugee camps starting in October. 1. Food and Nutrition Security The Kenya Food Security Meeting endorsed the results of the food security assessments, which showed that the food-insecure population declined from 1.1 million people in February 2013 to 850,000 in August. The 2013 long rains season ranged between normal and above normal over most parts of Kenya, with the exception of localized areas in the northwest, central highlands, southeastern and coastal lowlands. The rainfall was good in drought-prone pastoral and agro-pastoral livelihood zones, which are largely inhabited by nomadic pastoralists. As a result, food security continues the gradual improvement trend that began three rainy seasons ago. Water and grazing resources (pasture and browse) increased, which in turn boosted quantity of milk available to families and improved pastoralists terms of trade. However, the national maize output may be 16 percent below the five-year average because of poor rainfall distribution and delays in the supply of farm inputs in the country s highpotential farming areas. Nevertheless, production of sorghum, cowpeas and green grams was above average in the southeastern and coastal lowlands. While the food prices are currently stable, they may increase due to the below-average harvest and the impact of the new value-added tax law that is taxing basic food commodities that were previously zero-rated. The assessment recommended that on-going activities that support resilience building of communities to food security shocks, rainwater harvesting and improvement of household food storage facilities should continue. Other proposed interventions were in the agriculture, livestock, water, education, health and nutrition sectors.

2 2. WFP Response in August 2013 Drought Recovery Operation (PRRO ) PRRO : Food and Cash Transfers August 2013 Beneficiaries Tonnage (mt) Cash transfers (US$) Based on the seasonal livelihood approach, in August, food assistance targeted people in pastoral, agro-pastoral and marginal farming zones. WFP distributed food to most vulnerable households through the general food distributions (GFD) and households participating in food assistance-for-assets (FFA) activities in pastoral areas, with the exception of Moyale, where intercommunity clashes disrupted food distributions. However, there continue to be delays in opening of bank accounts and issuing of cards by the newly contracted bank; thus, WFP could not transfer cash to FFA beneficiaries in marginal farming areas. The retroactive payments are expected to begin in September. General food distributions (GFD) Food Assistance for Assets (FFA) Planned Actual Planned Actual Planned Actual Food 454, ,729 (99%) Cash 15,800 8,521 (54%) Food 321, ,967 (72%) 5,411 4,861 (90%) 3,415 2,333 (68%) 177,750 69,840 Cash 370, ,158,333 0 WFP is analysing the programme and budget implications of the recent assessment results and recommendations. WFP is also coordinating with the government authorities (national and county governments) to assist the people displaced by conflict in Moyale, Marsabit County. A rapid assessment conducted by partners indicates that 39,000 people require assistance in form of food, water and health services. Targeted supplementary feeding (TSFP)* Food 26,100 22,279 (85%) TOTAL 1,187, ,496 (60%) (85%) 9,027 7,365 (82%) 2,158,333 69,840 (3%) The three Rome-based United Nations agencies - WFP, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD) - held planning meetings with Turkana and Garissa county officials in charge of agriculture, livestock, water, irrigation and nutrition in order to move forward implementation of the joint programme on food security. WFP and the World Bank met to understand the scope of each other s activities in Kenya aimed at improving livelihoods and building resilience to food security shocks. Discussions explored possible areas of synergy, opportunities for layering the programmes, and avenues for graduating WFPsupported households to World Bank-funded projects. Possible strategic partnership areas identified were alternative livelihood options, communication and networking, and natural resource management in coastal region. Joint field visits are planned in October to kick-start the partnership. PRRO : Food Distributions August 2013 General food distributions (GFD) Targeted supplementary feeding programme moderately malnourished children aged 6 to 59 months Mother-Child Health & Nutrition (MCHN) Children aged 6 to 23 months MCHN Pregnant & Lactating Women School meals programme (SMP) including girls take home rations Institutional feeding (Hospital, HIV, TB & other cases) Food-for-assets (host communities) Beneficiaries Food tonnage (mt) Planned Actual Planned Actual 580, ,805 (91%) 15,000 10,233 (68%) 35,000 21,633 (62%) 26,000 19,310 (74%) 71,000 59,275 (83%) 4,300 2,458 (57%) 36,000 13,590 (38%) 9,744 9,376 (96%) (47%) (57%) (73% (63%) (24) (37%) Food-for-training (youth from host and refugee communities) 2,000 1,242 ( 62%) 18 1 (6%)

3 Refugee Operation (PRRO ) The number of registered refugees in Dadaab camps remained stable at 402,000, while in Kakuma camp, the figure increased slightly to reach 125,000 by the end of August. In Dadaab, WFP did not distribute pulses during the second cycle of August because food could not be released from the Mombasa port because the request to be exempted from paying the newly introduced Railway Development Levy was being considered by the National Treasury. Final preparations before the biometrics identification system goes fully live in October i.e., every food collector whose fingerprints do not match is denied food, are on-going. The Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) continues to register alternates who can collect food on behalf of vulnerable households unable to make it to food distribution centres. WFP evaluated the effectiveness of FilmAid International s communications campaign that began in March. While the campaign has been successful in transmitting important messages regarding the new procedures, needs to be more information on which families are eligible to nominate an alternate to collect food on their behalf. Statistics collected during the 'test mode' indicate that reductions in eligible households resulting from the new system are likely to be higher in Kakuma than in Dadaab, where UNHCR's recent verification exercise has already reduced the population figures significantly. The first distribution of fresh food vouchers (FFV) started on 21 August in health centres in Dadaab where pregnant women are attending antenatal care clinics. The vouchers will provide the women and their families (using an average household size of five) with fresh vegetables, fruits and meat required for a diversified diet. The fresh foods are purchased from the 69 contracted food sellers who then redeem the vouchers from a local bank. By engaging local traders, the project is also expanding the livelihood options available to refugees and the host community. A Complaints and Feedback Mechanism using a telephone hotline, which became operational in July, enhance WFP s accountability to beneficiaries. The table below summarises performance under the FFV project by end of August. A woman buying fresh vegetables in a Dadaab market PHOTO: WFP/Rose Ogola Beneficiaries Vouchers Distributed to the Women Vouchers Redeemed at the Bank Registered Women served Total Reached No of Vouchers No of Pregnant with vouchers including family KES US$ vouchers KES US$ Women members 7,779 6,318 31,590 51,305 6,811,975 77,718 22,357 2,988,435 34,095

4 Country Programme (CP106680) WFP disbursed cash to most of the 96 primary schools in Isiolo County to purchase food for the third school term of About KES 29 million (US$336,000) was disbursed, and most schools began purchasing food from local traders; meals will be prepared starting September. The cash transfer to schools is a pilot activity to assess the feasibility of expanding the Government s homegrown school meal programme (HGSMP) into the arid areas. WFP seeks to identify systems and business processes that would address the unique challenges faced in the dry lands. As a complementary activity, WFP and the Ministry of Education are finalizing a strategy document for the expansion, based on lessons learned in implementing the programme in marginal farming areas. In the other counties where food transfers are ongoing, WFP moved 88 percent of the food into county warehouses for onward delivery to the schools by the Government. WFP organized a discussion forum with representatives from the Ministry of Health, development partners and other actors engaged in supporting attainment of the flour fortification policy recently introduced in Kenya. Discussions highlighted the need to support medium and small-scale mills to ensure rural populations benefit from fortified flour. It is recognised that many millers do not have access to the knowledge, financing or equipment necessary to meet the new fortification requirements. WFP will explore how best to support the national fortification programme including creating linkages with farmers to ensure they produce aflatoxin-free cereal grains, creating awareness on fortification, and potentially providing aflatoxin testing equipment in selected counties. Aflatoxin is a naturally occurring contaminant produced by mould. United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) UNHAS has been providing dedicated air transport service to humanitarian agencies within Kenya since February The two dedicated 37-seater aircrafts are serving close to fifty agencies (United Nations, diplomatic missions, and non-governmental organizations). Forty percent of the budget is being recovered through sale of one-way passenger tickets at US$150 per seat to Dadaab and US$200 to Kakuma. The operation still requires US$1.7 million to cover costs through December February 2013 Sum of Hours Flown No of Passengers Flown Quantity of Cargo Transported (mt) No of Flights Taken March April , May , June , July , August TOTAL 539 7,

5 Purchase for Progress (P4P) Gender: Empowering Men to Empower their Wives This story illustrates how a simple practical action can empower a woman and improve the quality of life for a family. Elijah Lelei and his wife Magdalene are members of Kaptebee Sachangwan Youth Group, a farmer s organization engaged with WFP in Uasin Gishu County. In their community, men dominate over access to and control of valued resources that form the basis of livelihood advancement. Even though women provide substantive labour in farms, their heavy workload - which includes child welfare and household chores such as cooking, cleaning and fetching water - limits the amount of time they spend on economic activities. This means that WFP s efforts to empower smallholder farmers do not automatically empower women like Magdalene economically. To increase the likelihood of securing sustained economic benefits for women in agribusiness, WFP started gender awareness training among members of farmer organizations engaged in P4P in In February 2012, Elijah gave his wife full control over 1.5 acre piece of land, later increasing it to two acres. Encouraged by the results, Magdalene leased an extra 2.5 acres of land, intercropped maize and beans, and sold surplus harvests for about KES121,000 (US$1,400) in This empowerment has changed her life! She is building a better house for her family with Elijah meeting the cost of roofing. She also plans to use part of her proceeds to take her children to a better school a boarding school where they can concentrate on learning, with hopes of building a better future for themselves and that of their children. Left, Magdalene s current house, and right, the house she is currently constructing PHOTO: WFP 3. Resourcing and Pipeline Summaries (September to February 2014 ) WFP s current six-month shortfall (September to February 2014) for operations in Kenya is US$99.6 million. PRRO Drought Recovery operation: the operation is seriously under-resourced with limited funds to transfer to beneficiaries, support capacity augmentation or purchase non-food items to implement FFA. As of 31 August, shortfalls totalled US$39.9 million, of which US$29.7 million is for cash transfers. PRRO Refugee operation: The food pipeline for the refugee operation continues to be supported by loans from WFP advance funding mechanisms to avoid major pipeline breaks. Within the context of concerns implementation of biometric identification during food distributions starting in October, it is critical that food be available for refugees in the next few months. The six-month funding shortfall is US$54 million as of 31 August. CP Country Programme: The programme has a resourcing gap of US$4.9 million, most of which is for the school meals component. Given the extended lead time it takes for shipments to arrive from abroad, in-kind contributions confirmed in September will not be available for distribution in the first school term of 2014 that starts in January. The shortfall excludes an outstanding loan of 1,800 mt of food owed by HIV and AIDS component. UNHAS has a shortfall of US$1.7 million to cover 2013 operational costs.

6 10,000 7,500 5,000 2,500 - PRRO Drought Operation - Food Distributions (mt) Resource shortfalls for food distributions over the six months period are US$10.2 million including unpaid advances) Needs Shortfalls PRRO Drought Operation - Cash Transfers (US$ Millions) Shortfalls for cash transfers in FFA are US$29.7 million. Needs Shortfalls 12,000 10,000 8,000 6,000 4,000 2,000 - PRRO Refugee Operation - Food in mt Needs Shortfalls The shortfalls for the refugee operation are US$54 million, including unpaid advance requests CP Country Programme- Food in mt Need s Shortfalls Six months resource shortfalls for the Country Programme are US$4.9 million mostly for the school meals component