Mali

USAID provides food assistance to internally displaced people in Mopti, Mali

CRS

To date in Fiscal Year (FY) 2012, USAID has responded to two disasters in Mali.  Ongoing conflict and displacement in northern Mali have combined with food insecurity triggered by below-average agricultural production and above-average cereal prices to create a two-fold emergency.

USG HUMANITARIAN FUNDING PROVIDED IN FY 2012

*This figure includes funding for both disaster response and disaster risk reduction activities. (As of September 14, 2012)

Sahel Food Insecurity and Complex Emergency Fact Sheet #16 (414kb PDF) and map (205kb PDF)

USAID/DCHA Pounds of Prevention - West Africa (278kb PDF)

Key Developments

Beginning in 2011, decreased agricultural production across the Sahel and subsequent increased cereal prices resulted in high levels of food insecurity in localized areas of five of Mali’s eight regions, according to the Government of Mali (GoM) Food Security Commission. In December 2011, the USAID-funded Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) reported a decrease in Mali’s cereal production due to rainfall deficits. Cereal prices, which normally decline during the harvest season, saw almost no drop following the 2011 harvest.  According to the U.N., up to 4.6 million people were at risk of food insecurity in Mali in 2012, including approximately 3 million people in the southern regions.

On January 26, 2012, U.S. Ambassador Mary Beth Leonard declared a disaster due to the effects of food insecurity in Mali.

In early 2012, fighting commenced in northern Mali between Government of Mali forces and armed combatants affiliated with the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad and other groups.  Insecurity displaced many within regions in Mali and to neighboring countries, primarily Burkina Faso, Mauritania, and Niger.  By mid-March, the displacement had strained Malian host communities’ limited resources, including water and sanitation, and exacerbated food insecurity.

On March 12, 2012, U.S. Chargé d'Affaires Peter Barlerin declared a disaster due to the complex emergency.  USAID’s Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA) provided $50,000 to the Mali Red Cross for the procurement and distribution of emergency relief supplies to internally displaced persons and Malian host communities in Tombouctou Region.

In response to ongoing food insecurity, USAID/OFDA and USAID/FFP have been supporting programs that respond to immediate needs while building resilience among food-insecure populations, including projects that reduce and treat acute malnutrition, income-generating activities that support land regeneration, and the distribution of food aid, cash transfers, and agricultural inputs.

In northern Mali, access to goods available in local markets remains limited as household incomes are below-average due ongoing insecurity and drought, while cereal prices are above-average, according to FEWS NET. The recent conflict has also disrupted normal trade flows, although imported foods are available in markets. Conditions in northern Mali should gradually improve between August and September, with the expansion of ongoing humanitarian assistance in the north and the coming harvest.