Sahel Nutrition Development Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sahel Nutrition Development - Assignment Example used in assessing the nutritional situation of children in the region, Countries most affected by this crisis include Niger, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Chad, Mali, Senegal, northern Cameroon, and Gambia. This situation has deteriorated rapidly throughout this year. Research has clearly outlined that most of the areas stand to experience acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3) from April to September this year. The nutrition status is quite catastrophic in areas worst affected with severe malnutrition with rates ranging between 10-16%. The drivers of this crisis are eroded resilience, compounded by the sporadic rains, prices increases and insufficient harvests. The agro-pastoral returns of production is reported to have decreased by 50% in the areas that are affected by poverty, and agricultural products market prices, as well increased up from sixty percent to eighty percent for maize and 100 percent for dry cereals. Increased levels of drought in Sahel have caused a reduction in cereal production on average 26% relative to the previous year. Most notable is the fact that Gambia, as well as Chad realized a 50 percent decrease with other countries still experiencing serious localized deficits. The 2012 Sahel’s strategic plan was aligned as a serving response plan to addressing the Food and Nutrition Crisis in the region. This has been developed by the Working Regional Group on Food Security and Nutrition mainly composed of among other organizations, the Red Cross, Crescent Movement, United Nations agency, Non Governmental Organizations and donors. In 2011, IASC (Inter-Agency Standing Committee) launched a strategy that effectively responds to food shortage and nutritional crises in Sahel. The document was done in consideration of joint efforts of the organization of Food and Agriculture of United Nations (FAO), Action against Hunger, the United Nations Child Fund (UNICEF), the United Nation Humanitarian Affairs Coordination Office (OCHA), and the WWP (Word Food