One in five children dies before the age of five Almost 30 percent of the population is in need of emergency food aid 60.2 percent of children display signs of stunting (low weight for age)

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CERF allocates $2 million to underfunded humanitarian activities in Niger

1 October 2007: CERF allocates US$ 2 million to Niger as part of the second underfunded allocation in 2007. With an estimated population of 13.5 million, largely concentrated in a narrow band of arable land along its southern border, rural subsistence agriculture and raising of livestock dominate Niger’s economy.  The country suffers from chronic food insecurity during the lean season before the harvest, a situation which is exacerbated by the frequent onset of natural disasters such as drought and locust invasions.

Tuareg and Pleu herdsmen extract water from a rare well [Photo: IRIN/Parsons]

Niger has just one harvest period per year - in September/ October. Only a few households are able to produce enough food to allow their household stocks to last from harvest to harvest. For the majority of Nigeriens, the lean season begins around May or earlier. At this point their household stocks are exhausted and they must rely on other coping mechanisms to feed their families, including procuring their food in the market.

The under-funded CERF grant of US$ 2 million will be used entirely for therapeutic and supplementary feeding for malnourished children under five years of age.

While UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) is responsible for the provision of therapeutic food for severely malnourished children, World Food Programme (WFP) provides commodities for the treatment of moderately malnourished children. The project will be implemented in all regions of Niger. Each agency has been allocated US$ 1 million each.

The agencies will provide supplementary feeding for malnourished children and pregnant/lactating women but will also increase efforts towards the prevention of malnutrition. Villages in remote and food-insecure areas that are not adequately served by markets will benefit from cereal bank activities. Moreover, CERF funds will be used for supplementary feeding for moderately malnourished children in all regions of Niger. Micronutrient-fortified foods (corn-soya blend, vegetable oil and sugar) will be distributed, in collaboration with NGO partners, to moderately malnourished children below the age of five years.

[Last Update: 5 October 2007]

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CERF in Niger 2008

CERF in Niger 2006