Nexus of
Early Warning Systems (N.E.W.S.)
The N.E.W.S. (Nexus
of Early Warning Systems) is a monthly publication aimed at
decision-makers in Ireland, on the European stage, and in the wider
world, with an immediacy which comes through the use of new
technology. The N.E.W.S provides monthly summaries of food security
situations in selected developing countries. Each month, researchers
at the famine centre compile food security information from the
Internet and the World Wide Web. Currently, a combination of an
approximate twenty five web sites and situation reports from various
active organisations are accessed.
Food insecurity alone
is not a satisfactory indicator of famine, thus problems such as
conflict and unfavourable climate are also discussed. Once this
information is collected, the editorial team decide which countries
are facing problems of food insecurity.
N.E.W.S
Vol.1 Issue 7 October 1999
Published
to Web: 20/10/99
The Horn
Central Africa
Great Lakes
West Africa
Southern Africa
Central Asia
Ethiopia/Eritrea
Eritrea accuses Ethiopia of razing villages in a border areas,
where four-thousand inhabitants had fled before the Ethiopians
arrived. ( BBC
11th Oct) Underfunded relief programmes place both Ethiopian and
Eritrean populations at nutritional risk. 5 million drought-affected
people in Ethiopia are believed to be at high risk (UNACC/SCN
28th Sept) Ethiopia will export 100,000 tonnes of white
plantation sugar from this year's crop after producing a surplus for
the first time (BBC
Sept 24th ) WFP has recently received an additional donor pledge
of 10,000 tons of maize to assist populations displaced by the border
conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea. A shortfall of over 16,000
tons exists still exists. While originally designed to reach 1.2
million people affected by crop failure, the programme is now trying
to cope with the needs of almost 3 million people, for a shorter
period of time, as responses to appeals were above expectation.
However actual numbers of those requiring assistance exceed the
current estimates of those in need (WFP
17th Sept) The World Bank is refusing to fund any new projects in
Ethiopia and Eritrea saying they should be fighting poverty and not
each other (BBC
Sept 13th )
Return to Headlines
Somalia
The failure of the years main
harvest has resulted in worsening food shortages, which have affected
three-hundred-thousand people in Southern Somalia (BBC
Oct 5th)
UN agencies resumed their aid activities in Somalia's central and
southern regions, following suspension due to the murder of a UNICEF
doctor on 15 September. Operations to deliver some 535 tons of WFP
relief food to Lower Juba is on hold due to the current insecurity in
the area (WFP
Oct 1st)
The failure of the Gu rains in addition to several recent poor
seasons and continuing unrest will result in acute food insecurity
for over one million people in Central and Southern areas of the
country (UNACC/SCN
28th Sept)
There is a growing food crisis in central and southern Somalia.
Based on the WFP/FAO/FSAU/FEWS 1999 Gu crop harvest assessment, and
estimated 1.2-1.5 million Somalis are at risk of being food insecure
(UNSCN RNIS 28th
Sept )
A UN Joint assessment mission to southern Somalia has estimated
that 300,000 persons there are in need of immediate assistance. An
estimated 10,000 tons is required from September to December 1999
southern regions. The 830,000 people of Bay and Bakool regions have
been suffering from the impact of conflict and several seasons of
below normal crop production (WFP
24th Sept
)
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Sudan
Christian Solidarity International bought the freedom of more
slaves in Sudan, an act condemned by UNICEF, who say that this only
encourages the slaving practices (BBC
Oct 8th)
WFP operations reached approximately 1.3 million beneficiaries in
southern Sudan in July, but population assessment exercises and food
distribution have been suspended due to insecurity and heavy rains
(UNSCN RNIS 28th
Sept)
Compared with this time last year, food security and public
health are much improved, but humanitarian agencies continue to
report problems in delivering assistance due to insecurity and
seasonally bad weather limiting access (UNACC/SCN
28th Sept)
THE Sudanese President Omar al Bashir has told local authorities
in Northern State plan to remove the need for human settlements in
lands bordering the Nile, to prevent adverse effects from flooding,
where currently thousands are homeless as a consequence and a two
week state of emergency has been declared (BBC
Sept 14th)
Rebels in the south are mobilising their fighters and
press-ganging new recruits in preparation for another round of
fighting (BBC
Sept 14th)
190,000 beneficiaries from WFP food relief (WFP
11th Sept)
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Afghanistan
Conflicting reports have emerged from government and opposition
on the effects of offensives from each side, with opposition claiming
advances and government sources denying any fighting had taken place
(BBC
Oct 9th)
Humanitarian efforts to aid over 100,000 displaced peoples have
been disrupted by fighting (UNOCHA
6th Oct)
Tajikistan's President called on the international community to
help end the civil war in Afghanistan, as Tajik opposition complain
of the government's preventing registration of candidates (LF
RFE 4th Oct)
The Taleban have again called for recognition from the
Organisation of Islamic Conference as its forces make new advances in
the far north of Afghanistan. The Taleban claims to control the
northern province of Kunduz. The opposition speaks of repeated air
strikes causing many civilian casualties with civilians have been
fleeing the area (BBC
Oct 3rd)
United Nations agencies are planning to provide food and shelter
to tens of thousands of people displaced by the recent fighting in
Afghanistan (BBC
Sept 25th)
According to the FAO, more than a million people will need relief
and rehabilitation assistance over the next 18 months( UNSCN
RNIS 28th Sept)
UN sets up aid task force for IDPs in Afghanistan, where there
are an estimated 100,000 displaced persons (Xinhua
19th
Sept)
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Guinea-Bissau
A UN report on Guinea Bissau which was released on 2 October has
appealed for US $4.4 million in humanitarian international aid to
help returning refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs)
resettle, and to help families hosting IDPs to recover from a
military revolt that ended in May. According to UNHCR 1,137 of the
estimated 1,572 refugees had so far have been repatriated from Cape
Verde, The Gambia, Portugal and Senegal. UNHCR staff have registered
600 volunteers for repatriation from neighbouring Guinea Conakry. An
estimated 50,000 internally displaced persons have decided to settle
temporarily with host families, thereby contributing to the ongoing
farming activity UNOCHA
8 Oct 1999 and UNHCR
8 Oct 1999.
Fewer than half of the estimated 5,000 homes destroyed in and
around Bissau had been rebuilt and lack of construction material had
delayed reconstruction. UNOCHA
8 Oct 1999
Presidential and Legislative elections are to be held on the 28
November. 14 political parties had registered for the elections and
95% of eligible voters had been put on the electoral role by
September 2 AFP
1 Oct 1999.
The United Nations Peace-building Support Office in Guinea-Bissau
(UNOGBIS) is helping to organise a training programme for 20 lawyers
that will hopefully speed up hearings for political and military
prisoners detained after the fall of ex-president Joao Bernardo
Vieira in May UNOCHA
8 Oct 1999 .
The internal security situation in the country is calm but
conditions remain somewhat volatile. Small arms are circulating
widely among civilian population and acts of banditry are on the
rise. The military are still in control and omnipresent, particularly
in the provinces, manning roadblocks, checkpoints and milling around
in uniform. Because of the lack of an appropriate structure,
resources and training, there is no functioning police force; this
means that routine law and order duties are left to the military for
which they are not properly trained.
The disarmament and demobilization programme, which experienced a
serious setback after the withdrawal of ECOMOG, is proving difficult
to revive. Given the uncertainties associated with this current
transition, the population has so far not responded fully to
voluntary disarmament. UNOGBIS, with the active support of the World
Food Programme (WFP), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the
United Nations (FAO) and the Department for Disarmament Affairs is
developing a programme of incentives to encourage civilians to
surrender voluntarily arms in their possession. Although this
programme is at its incipient stage, it has already gained the
support of the Mayor of Bissau, who offered 500 lots of land for
cultivation as a contribution to the incentive measures developed by
WFP and FAO UN
Security Council 28 Sep 1999.
Return to Headlines
Democratic
Republic of Congo
The army spokesman for the DRC
government claims that there has been a breach of the July ceasefire,
a claim denied by both the rebels and a local government official
(BBC
9th Oct)
Far reaching implications are anticipated by UN from decision to
outlaw forex bureaux. Food scarcities continue, as WFP coordinate
food deliveries, which have been attacked in some regions. Military
activities have caused displacement in some areas (WFP
Oct 1st)
Numbers of IDPs greater than anticipated (UNSCN
RNIS 28th Sept )
Congo remains seriously under-funded, receiving only one-sixth of
needs (WFP
17th Sept)
While Western governments are spending millions on the rebuilding
of Kosovo, the starvation and poverty of over 650,000 in the
Democratic Republic of Congo people is largely ignored (MSF
9th Sept)
MSF starts vaccination programme, while health centres have been
looted, torched and abandoned with local population and displaced
persons alike deprived of medical aid (MSF
2nd
Sept)
Return to Headlines
Burundi
The European Union has added
its voice to international concern over the plight of more than
two-hundred-thousand people in Burundi, forced into specially created
camps by the government as part of its fight against rebel groups,
fearing the outbreak of cholera or meningitis (BBC
9th Oct )
Tanzania is expected to remain the largest of the refugee
operations in the region, with approximately 350,000 Burundians and
Congolese still seeking asylum (WFP9th
Oct )
The government has appealed for help from international agencies
for 'regrouped' or displaced people, estimated to be a quarter of a
million in Bujumbura province alone (WFP
8th Oct)
A quarter of a million people that have been forcibly 'regrouped'
in Bujumbura province to allow troops to operate against rebels are a
WFP priority. This brings the total number of IDPs to around 320,000,
or 75% of the population of the province. There is a total of 800,000
IDPs in Burundi (13 percent of the country's population).People are
being denied access to their fields, which will impact on future
harvests (WFP
1st Oct )
The army in Burundi has forcibly moved 260,000 civilians into
makeshift camps, described by an observer as concentration camps, in
the past fortnight to clear the way for operations against rebels (
BBC
30th Sept)
Increased rebel action has been reported in Bujumbura province
(BBC
25th Sept)
The opposition has denied links with Rwanda (BBC
25th
Sept)
Return to Headlines
Liberia
Liberia needs international help to rebuild its war-shattered
economy, institutions and infrastructure, Foreign Minister Monie
Captan told the 54th UN General Assembly on Saturday. He appealed to
donors to honour a pledge to provide US $230 million toward this
effort. Captan also said the government's determination to
rejuvenate the economy, engender productive activities, restore
social infrastructure and improve living standards would remain
elusive without relief from Liberia's US $3-billion debt UNOCHA
6 Oct 1999.
Liberia's main border with Sierra Leone was officially reopened
after a nine-month closure. Defence Minister Daniel Chea said Liberia
was reopening the border to help facilitate the peace process in
Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone's deputy defence minister, Hinga Norman,
said the move would strengthen the ties between the two countries
UNOCHA
12 Oct 1999. The transfer of Sierra Leonean refugees driven out
of camps in Liberia by insecurity is continuing with another 552
people transferred from the village of Tarvey to Sinje camp on
Monday, 11 October. The UNHCR has still not received government
approval to evacuate the last group of vulnerable refugees from their
original site in troubled northern Lofa County UNHCR
12 Oct 1999.
The Liberian defence minister, Daniel Chea, has categorically
denied ordering troops into neighbouring Guinea, despite Guinean
claims of two recent incursions. He told the BBC he had not sent a
single soldier over the border, although his forces were currently
involved in operations to deal with dissident forces from Guinea who
had attacked Liberia on two occasions. The Liberian president,
Charles Taylor, yesterday warned Guinea to stop the attacks, saying
it was a mistake to think Liberia was vulnerable just because it had
disarmed after the civil war. The two countries signed a
non-aggression pact earlier this year as members of the Mano River
Union BBC
September 15.
Five armed men broke into the Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF)
compound in Harper, near Liberia's border with Cote d'Ivoire, on 3
October and stole about US $8,000, Claudette Picard, head of MSF's
office in Harper, told IRIN UNOCHA
8 Oct
1999.
Return to Headlines
Sierra
Leone
The Government of Sierra Leone has urged human rights groups not
to challenge the July 7 peace accord which put a formal end to its
eight-year civil war, one of the most brutal in Africa. Foreign
Minister Sama Banya warned the UN General Assembly that although the
ceasefire was holding, the peace accord had yet to be implemented and
the country faced "a dangerous void". Under the accord, signed
in Lome, rebels are due to receive amnesty for all acts committed
during their operations, including massacres, kidnappings, rape and
amputations during the course of a conflict that has claimed more
than 20,000 lives. "Various human rights groups denounced the UN for
signing the Lome agreement," Banya recalled. He appealed to the
international community "not to do anything that will adversely
affect the implementation of the peace agreement". Banyan did not
identify the groups by name. On July 8 Human Rights Watch issued a
statement condemning the UN "for acting as moral guarantor of a peace
agreement that includes a blanket amnesty for atrocities committed in
Sierra Leone's civil war". The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights,
Mary Robinson, said that although "there is blanket amnesty under
national law ... it does not apply to crimes against
humanity"AFP
30 Sep 1999.
According to the United States Committee for Refugees, an
effective centrally coordinated response to internally displaced
persons does not exist in Sierra Leone. The most vulnerable are the
displaced persons who live in rural villages, outside of officially
recognized camps or shelters. The government prohibits food aid
distributions to displaced persons living on their own. Children who
do not live in camps are not entitled to receive rations after they
are discharged from feeding centers. Camps for displaced persons are
often overcrowded and lack adequate shelters. Poor water and bad
sanitation conditions have resulted. Some camps have as many as 150
people per latrine. Three new camps are currently under construction
near the key towns of Bo and Kenema to help alleviate the problem.
Virtually all Sierra Leonean refugees and displaced persons told USCR
they would return home only when disarmament and demobilization are
complete. Many plan to wait several additional months after
demobilization to make sure combatants will not rearm with hidden
weapons.
A lack of basic information is hampering accurate evaluation of
current food needs. It is difficult to determine if sufficient
funding and food exist for the months ahead. Although the WFP food
pipeline may not be up and running again until November, three other
aid agencies (CRS, World Vision, and CARE) have their own parallel
food pipeline, funded by U.S. Food for Peace, and can meet present
food requirements. Aid agencies foresee food requirements increasing
exponentially as they expand their operations into previously
inaccessible rebel areas of Northern and Eastern provinces. Poor
evaluation and monitoring of food distributions in Southern Province
has contributed to alarming malnutrition in some areas. Food is not
reaching intended beneficiaries, and corruption is a problem at the
local level, particularly in Kenema US
Committee for Refugees 30 Sep 1999.
Soldiers from an ousted junta in Sierra Leone handed over some
100 child combatants northeast of Freetown and promised to free more
in the coming weeks. The children included girls and boys between six
and 17 years old, according to Colonel Mohamed Kallon. They were
released to Nigerian-led west African ECOMOG intervention forces and
members of the United Nations Observer Mission in Sierra Leone
(UNOMSIL), before being handed over to the Catholic relief
organisation Caritas AFP
6 Oct 1999.
The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) has called on
the international community to help Sierra Leone rebuild after its
devastating war. The latest appeal came in a statement issued at the
end its 12th meeting that started on 30 September. Established by the
Commonwealth Heads of Government in 1995 to review serious and
persistent violations of Commonwealth principles as outlined in the
Harare Declaration, CMAG comprises ministers from eight Commonwealth
countries and is chaired by the Commonwealth Secretary-General, Emeka
Anyaoku UNOCHA
5 Oct 1999.
Sierra Leone's top two rebel leaders whose followers are blamed
for a reign of terror in the West African country have returned home,
pleading for forgiveness. The return of Revolutionary United Front
(RUF) leader Foday Sankoh and former military junta ruler Johnny Paul
Koroma is expected to speed up implementation of a July 7 peace
accord ending nine years of civil war in the former British colony.
`We stand before you today to ask for forgiveness in the spirit
of reconciliation,'' Sankoh said in a statement shortly after he and
Koroma arrived from Liberia Reuters
4 Oct
1999.
Return to Headlines
Angola
Fierce fighting in early October between Angolan government
forces and UNITA rebels has displaced tens of thousands and threatens
to worsen the country's already dire food security situation. The
situation is especially serious in the central highlands, a UNITA
stronghold and formerly the country's breadbasket. In the past three
weeks, 30,000-45,000 displaced have arrived on the outskirts of
Kuito, the provincial capital of Bie, camping out on barren terrain
that lacks even grass to allow them to build shelters UNOCHA
5 Oct 1999.
The United Nations said in a report in August that two million
people, more than one-sixth of the population, had been forced from
their homes by the recent fighting and at least 200 were dying from
starvation each day. The government last month attacked
Bailundo, which also serves as the traditional and spiritual seat of
the Ovimbundu people who make up the bulk of UNITA supporters.
Regional analysts said the small town had been cut off by government
troops, but UNITA said the offensives were unsuccessful Reuters
4 Oct 1999.
After a series of recent diplomatic exchanges, South Africa and
Angola appeared to have mended ties in a relationship marred by
Angolan accusations that Pretoria had for years turned a blind eye to
support for the UNITA rebel movement dating back to links established
with the rebels during the apartheid era. According to African
diplomats, the breakthrough came when President Thabo Mbeki received
a special envoy from Angolan President Eduardo dos Santos UNOCHA
29 Sep 1999.
The UK government has welcomed the decision by De Beers, the
world's largest diamond producer, to stop buying diamonds from
Angola. The company announced that it had placed an embargo on the
purchase of diamonds from the war-torn country. UK Foreign Office
Minister Peter Hain said in a statement that the decision was
excellent news. He said he hoped others would follow the company's
example BBC
October 6.
Implementing relief programmes in Angola since 1995, the
international organisation Action Against Hunger is witnessing the
continuous and alarming deterioration of the situation. Since
mid-September the situation has considerably worsened, amplified by
the impossibility of access to the victims of fighting between the
governmental forces and UNITA, for humanitarian organisations. Action
Against Hunger asks for access to the victims to enable all the
humanitarian organisations to respond to the immense needs of the
displaced people and urges the international community to take action
to end a conflict which, in terms of victims, surpasses the Kosovo
crisis. Angola has a children under five death rate of 292 per 1000
and a maternal death rate of 150 per 1000. Only 31% of the population
has access to safe drinking water and 40% to acceptable sanitation
installations. Furthermore, in some towns, such as the capital Luanda
where 90% of the population is below the poverty line, widespread
criminal activities threaten the deployment of humanitarian aid
Action
Against Hunger 1 Oct
1999.
Return to Headlines
North
Korea
The food situation in North Korea continued to be precarious as
the country entered the lean season before the harvests of maize
(September) and rice (October). The anticipated break in WFP's cereal
pipeline started to affect beneficiaries in late September and will
continue to have an adverse effect until new shipments (rice, maize,
oil, CSB and wheat flour) start to arrive in late October.
Complementary foods such as oil and pulses continue to be
available from non-resident NGOs through the FoodAid Liaison Unit
(FALU). Food arrivals from the European Union (90,000) were expected
to cover the shortfalls in South Pyongan and South Hwanghae, but it
now appears their food deliveries are to be delayed at least until
November 1999.
The overall food shortage experienced during this time of the
year (June-September) is reflected in the declining health situation
evident around the country and the growing exposure of vulnerable
groups to malnutrition. Cases of malnutrition and related stomach and
respiratory ailments have been observed at a number of medical
institutions, particularly affecting the very young and expectant and
nursing mothers. The food shortage along the East Coast is severe
among most age groups, with indicative numbers of malnourished
patients of all age groups in a large number of hospitals. Monitors
note that pregnant and nursing women are particularly vulnerable with
weight gains of mothers during pregnancy rarely exceeding 6 kg
UNOCHA
17 Sep 1999.
Despite indications that the situation in the DPRK is improving,
overall conditions remain critical in terms of sustainability of the
national economy and the resulting human cost. Assessments conclude
that the external food and health assistance will need to be
continued for an indefinite period. The lack of pharmaceutical raw
materials and antiquated production facilities has meant that the
production of drugs within the country has ground to a halt, leaving
the health sector almost entirely dependent on herbal medicines. In
addition, many hospitals are unable to provide a basic and balanced
food ration to in-patients, and the increasing number of patients
suffering from gastrointestinal ailments as a result of eating
"substitute food" is further straining the inadequate
facilities IFRC
16 Sep 1999 .
Recent reports from those who have visited North Korea indicate
that the food crisis has stabilized but the situation remains
fragile. U.S. Representative Tony Hall, after a recent visit to North
Korea, said "hunger still plagues the overwhelming majority of its
people. They seem to be surviving - but just barely." If
international aid ceased, there would be widespread deprivation
within a month United
Methodist Committee on Relief 8 Sep 1999.
Despite the continuing efforts of UNICEF, OCHA, WFP and ECHO,
progress on the second Nutrition Survey, which it was hoped would
take place during September, has not yet received the agreement of
the Government. The survey is important to track progress and provide
feedback to agencies and donors on food aid and nutritional
programmes through comparison with the results of last year's survey
UNOCHA
17 Sep 1999 .
According to the Washington Post, foreign donors are having
difficulty monitoring distribution of aid in North Korea, because
surveillance equipment there has been either destroyed or is
functioning intermittently. The paper quotes a GOA (Government of
America) report on food aid as saying that North Korea's failure to
provide required reports meant that the UN World Food Program "cannot
be sure that the food aid is being shipped, stored or used as
planned" AFP
9 Oct 1999 .
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