UN APPEALS FOR $16 MILLION FOR NIGER FOOD CRISES

(Reissued as received.)

NIAMEY/GENEVA/NEW-YORK, 19 May (OCHA) -- The United Nations has issued a flash appeal for the Niger, asking for $16.2 million to combat the severe food crisis threatening the country.  Immediate needs include food aid for some 3.6 million people in 3,815 villages.  A total of 800,000 children under five are now suffering from hunger, including 150,000 who are suffering from severe malnutrition.  The appeal covers the lean season, until the end of September.  Affected areas include:  Tillabéri, Tahoua, Maradi, Diffa, Agadez, and Zinder.

The food crisis is compounded by the locust infestation of 2004 and drought.  In 2004, the Niger was severely hit by the worst desert locust invasion in 15 years.

To combat the effects of drought and locusts, the appeal focuses on helping malnourished children under five and pregnant and lactating women through therapeutic and complementary feeding.  In addition, the appeal seeks to increase food availability through subsidized sales, food-for-work activities, cash for work, food for training, and support to cereal banks.

A "silent crisis" is looming in the Niger; all indicators point towards increased poverty due to population increases, desertification, locust infestations, and rain shortfalls.  Classified as both a least developed and a low-income, food-deficit country, the Niger ranked 176th out of 177 countries in the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) 2004 Human Development Index.  Sixty-three per cent of the Niger's population of 12 million survives on less than $1 a day.  Malnutrition indicators in the Niger are among the worst in the region, and 60 per cent of the population lacks access to basic social services.

Most families in the Niger support themselves through subsistence farming.  These families only grow enough food to support themselves until the next harvest.  Even in the best agricultural years, 40 per cent of children are malnourished.  Livestock breeding is particularly important for families in the Niger, serving as a type of financial insurance.  When families experience economically trying times, they simply sell their livestock.

With the drought and devastating locust infestation, even the survivability of livestock populations is at risk.  Priority needs also include ensuring livestock survival through the distribution of fodder.  The distribution of agricultural seed is also essential at the community level.

Finally, it is necessary to stabilize migration flows by providing food assistance and creating favourable conditions for the 2005 agricultural campaign.

For further information, please call:  Stephanie Bunker, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) New York, tel: 917 367 5126, mobile: 917 892 1679; Elizabeth Byrs, OCHA Geneva, tel: 41 22 917 2653, mobile: 41(0) 79 473 4570.

* *** *