FOCUS ON ETHIOPIA PAGE 1 (January-March) and with the poor gu rain forecast of the THIS ISSUE HIGHLIGHTS: National Metrological Services. Worrying indications of an • REGIONAL OVERVIEW escalating emergency such as increasing mortality of • AVIAN INFLUENZA IN ETHIOPIA livestock, malnutrition, and sky-rocketing prices of staple • RELIEF FOOD AND NON-FOOD UPDATE food prevail. The situation has forced significant numbers of • UPCOMING & ONGOING MEETINGS people to resort to extreme distress strategies of street begging, over-selling of basic assets, slaughtering of weak Focus on Ethiopia is produced by UN Office for the animals and killing of calves to cope up with the disaster. Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), in The closure of local schools following the low attendance collaboration with other UN agencies and partner NGOs. rate is another social consequence of the drought. Wild Focus on Ethiopia provides a monthly overview of animals are violently attacking people and livestock in parts humanitarian trends and activities in Ethiopia, as well as of Gode and Korahe. This is triggered by the competition focusing on particular issues of interest. Send comments, for the scarce water and other resources. suggestions and contributions to [email protected] The livestock situation particularly in the three zones (Afder, Liben and Gode) is critical. Massive cattle deaths REGIONAL OVERVIEW are reported from the three woredas. The death of 35,000 and 45,000 livestock is reported in Liben and Afder zones SOMALI respectively. A serious shortage of feed and water coupled Of the identified 1.7 million beneficiaries in the critically with increasing outbreaks of animal disease are causing affected pastoral and agro-pastoral areas of the country, the deaths. The situation is aggravated by the cross border 1.5 million are in Somali Region. In this region there are migration of livestock from Kenya and Somalia. 640,000 people that require emergency water Competition for the scarce resources-water and pasture interventions. The most affected zones are Afder, Liben has already led to serious clan conflict, particularly in and parts of Gode zone. Geladin woreda (Warder zone) and Bare woreda (Afder zone). Even though the humanitarian emergency has received attention from the government and humanitarian partners All nutritional surveys conducted in the region, especially in since late 2005, interventions still could not avert the Gode, Afder and Liben, so far reveal critical malnutrition situation from deteriorating. The situation is expected to with high under five mortality rates. Diarrhea is the main become further perilous with the advancing dry jilal season causes of death for children under five. Vaccination rates remain below international standards and should be further A monthly focus on humanitarian trends and activities in Ethiopia, produced by UN OCHA in collaboration with other UN agencies & NGOs FOCUS ON ETHIOPIA PAGE 2 improved through regular vaccination and supplementation campaigns by the health bureau. Access to health facilities The United Nations Country Team's Recovery Programme is very poor in most woredas. Hygiene practices are also moved the last caseload of IDPs comprising approximately extremely poor. Meanwhile, an emergency measles 1,414 individuals (237 Households) from Fafen camp to campaign (integrated with EOS) is underway in 25 Degehabur zone in the region. The strategy aims at woredas, aiming to reach 313,663 under-five children. As repatriating and reintegrating 6,000 IDPs from Hartisheik expected, the challenges to attain the necessary coverage and Fafen camps to their place of origin in Somali Region. are substantial and a preliminary coverage assessment will be done as soon as possible to determine whether IDPs from other zones in Somali Region still remain in the follow-up actions will be necessary. A measles campaign two camps. The UNCT is now looking at post return integrated with polio in the 26 non-EOS woredas is activities especially livelihood strategies and interventions scheduled to commence on 24 March. A house to house to ensure the sustenance reintegration of the IDPs in polio campaign for the region is scheduled for 24 March. Degehabur. The Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Agency CONCERN OVER THE FUTURE OF THE JARAR (DPPA) continues to dispatch emergency food aid for 1.5 VALLEY WATER SYSTEM million people. WFP reports that the food dispatches UNHCR recently reported that the future of the Jarar during January and early February have not been as fast Valley water system, which is presently serving 38,909 as planned due to limited transport capacity. In order to people, including more than 15,000 Somali refugees, increase the dispatch rate, DPPA has engaged their is concerning. The project is based in Kebribeyah, the emergency transport fleet, and the Road Transport only remaining camp in eastern Ethiopia after eight Authority is coordinating the commercial transport fleet for others were closed following successful repatriation priority loads to the drought-affected areas. As of 6 March, activities. The agency reports the pumping capacity is the DPPA has completed transporting 21,395 tonnes 50 percent of the theoretical capacity of the wells and (74%) of food from the food allocations of 29,100 tonnes the pumps and other equipment are ageing, causing made in January. WFP is providing a full food basket and occasional interruptions of service. The US$ 4 million supplementary food for 35 percent of beneficiaries worth of water system was originally installed by the regarded as the most vulnerable groups in the region. agency to support more than 173,000 people DPPA has now taken additional measures in order to composed of Somali refugees in Kebribeyah and ensure delivery of relief food to the intended beneficiaries. Hartisheik camps, the local communities in both towns, These measures include regular radio broadcasts the communities of the Jarar Valley and people living informing beneficiaries of food allocations and their along the route of the pipeline. Over the years, the entitlements, deployment of DPPA monitoring teams to the refugees in Hartisheik returned to their homes but worst drought-affected areas, deployment of military those originating from south and central Somalia convoys to follow trucks carrying relief food to particular remained waiting for conditions to improve. To ease "hotspot" areas, and the establishment of committees at the lives of both the last refugees and the local woreda level to control the receipt of food. WFP has communities, the agency is supporting the region and increased its monitoring capacity by hiring new food aid woreda administrations in building their managerial monitors and field assistants. capacity to take over the scheme. There is also a need for further discussions and negotiations to get a proper Thirty percent of the water schemes are not functioning and sustainable management system in place. and there is an immediate need to rehabilitate them. The Contact: [email protected] Ministry of Water Resources has identified 50 sites for emergency drilling, 20 of which were set as priorities. Oromiya Competitive bidding has begun and the budget is secured. While the situation in Borena zone continues to deteriorate Somali DPPB identified 42 hotspot areas (recently from a lack of water and food, other areas are also increased from 39) for water tankering. The region has seriously affected, according to the regional Food Security now deployed 20 trucks for tankering and preparation is and Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Commission. completed to deploy additional 18 trucks. Humanitarian East Shewa (Fantale woreda); East Hararghe (Fedis, partners including UNICEF, ICRC, ACF and OXFAM GB Meyu, Jarso, Chinaksen, Golo Oda, Babile and Gursum); have deployed 59 water trucks to provide tankering West Hararghe (Boke, Kuni, Doba, Chiro and Mieso); Arsi activities. (Merti and Robe) and Bale (Rayitu, Seweyna and Guradamole) are also seriously suffering from the failure of There is need to focus on saving livestock as it is the base the belg rains and severe shortage of water. asset of the pastoralist and agro-pastoralist population of the region. The USAID led Pastoralist Livelihood The meher assessment in November 2005 has identified Initiatives’ (PLI) de-stocking plan proposes to hold 60,000 733,780 emergency beneficiaries requiring emergency food shoats and 4,000 cattle affected by drought in six sites, assistance for the first six months in the region. 155,000 of providing them with feed. Other partners including FAO, those beneficiaries are in Borena zone. There is a severe ICRC, IRC, and Save the Children USA are actively shortage of water and pasture for livestock in the zone and involved in livestock interventions such as vaccination and critical water shortage is reported in Dire, Teltale, Moyale treatment. and Arero woredas. Meanwhile, due to the rapid deterioration of the overall food and humanitarian situation A monthly focus on humanitarian trends and activities in Ethiopia, produced by UN OCHA in collaboration with other UN agencies & NGOs FOCUS ON ETHIOPIA PAGE 3 in the lowland areas of the zone, a joint rapid assessment of budget and drugs. CARE has started distribution of mission conducted by the zonal offices and NGOs working supplementary food in Moyale and Dire woredas in Borena in the area in mid-February indicates that the number of zone after conducting nutritional surveys in the area which affected beneficiaries may have doubled from the number revealed a poor situation: 10.0% GAM and 1.1% SAM in estimated by the meher assessment team. The results of Dire; 10.9% GAM and 1.0% SAM in Moyale; and 6.1% the assessment are being forwarded to DPPA. GAM and 0.3% SAM in Teltele. World Vision and GOAL also reported 5.5% GAM, 0.6% SAM in Arero woreda. International Medical Corps is providing supplementary feeding in Dire and Mi’oo woredas. EOS, integrated with measles is scheduled to start on 24 March in Borena, Guji and Bale zones.