HIGHLIGHTS
A total of 31.6 million people are food insecure in the region, according to the Southern Africa Food and Nutrition Security Working Group. This figure represents the number of food insecure people at the peak of the current lean season and marks an increase from 29.9 million in February, 2016.
WFP El Niño related programmes in southern Africa are currently facing a 74% shortfall through to February 2017. Please refer to page 6 for project requirements.
The SADC Council of Ministers met 14-15 March in Gaborone, Botswana and agreed there should be a declaration of a regional drought disaster. This followed a SADC convened special meeting on 25th-26th February in Johannesburg to discuss the impacts of the El Niño and develop an action plan.
Lesotho, Swaziland and Zimbabwe have completed rapid multi-sectoral assessments; while updates are ongoing in Mozambique and Namibia.
SITUATION UPDATE
Southern Africa’s unprecedented El Niño-related and weather-related stress has triggered a second year of food insecurity for the vulnerable with serious consequences that will persist until at least the next harvest in March 2017.
The current regional cereal deficit of 7.9 million tonnes will increase steeply and unprecedented food price volatility will continue through to the next harvest. This will aggravate the food and nutrition security, health and HIV situation in the region and calls for stronger regional cooperation to facilitate cross border movements to the areas that are most affected.
The current El Niño event is expected to persist for an additional 4-6 months, with the potential to change to La Niña in southern Africa before the end of the year. La Niña is characterized by increased rains and the possibility of flooding.
There are early signs of nutritional deterioration with acute malnutrition increasing in Zimbabwe, southern Madagascar, Malawi and Mozambique. In Zimbabwe the ZIMVAC rapid assessment found a Global Acute Malnutrition rate of 5.7%, the highest it has been in 15 years. In Mozambique, acute malnutrition is rising and in southern Madagascar acute malnutrition rates are significantly worse than in 2014.