UNITED NATIONS RESPONDING TO NEEDS IN COTED’IVOIRE

 

NEW YORK, 3 June (OCHA) -- The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has taken rapid action to address the humanitarian situation in and around the town of Duékoué in western Côte d’Ivoire in the wake of recent, repeated attacks on civilians there.  Two joint inter-agency missions have been organized to visit Duékoué and the nearby villages Guitrozon and Petit Duékoué, despite security restrictions, and a coordination meeting with humanitarian actors was held yesterday at the Guiglo OCHA/IOM (International Organization for Migration) sub-office in order to establish a common action plan for urgent response to the crisis.

Over the last couple days, thousands of people, mostly women and children, have been seen in the streets of Duékoué, hauling bags and bundles.  Some of the displaced have begun to move to nearby locations, but current estimates continue to put the number of displaced seeking shelter in the local Catholic mission at more than 15,000.

Two major needs have been identified:  protection and shelter.  Among efforts to facilitate their provision, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is working to provide protection for unaccompanied children, and is working, in conjunction with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), to install tents in the mission’s courtyard to shelter the displaced.  The children’s agency has a water and sanitation specialist on the ground, and is providing clean water and sanitation materials.

The World Food Programme (WFP) is organizing to provide food assistance to the displaced, while the World Health Organization (WHO) is scheduled to deploy a rapid assessment mission to Duékoué to evaluate local health needs, in collaboration with UNICEF and other partners.  Measles vaccines have been pre-positioned at the Duékoué hospital.  Médecins Sans Frontières and the ICRC have provided the Catholic mission and the local hospital with basic medical kits to treat the wounded.

For further information, please call:  Stephanie Bunker, OCHANY, tel.:  (917) 367-5126, mobile:  (917) 892-1679; Elizabeth Byrs, OCHA Geneva, tel.:  41 22 917 2653, mobile:  41(0) 79 473 4570.

* *** *