Togo is a least developed food deficit country (LIFDC) and considered as a low-income country under stress (LICUS). Togo is ranked as the 147th poorest country in the world, out of 177 countries. A large part of the population lives in precarious conditions, with lack of food security, little access to social services and low life expectancy. Only 20.3 percent of the Togolese population has sufficient financial resources to cover its basic food needs and 47 percent of Togolese households face food security problems. Less than 3 percent of children under-five have an adequate diet.

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CERF allocates almost $1.5 million to the flood response in Togo

4 October 2007: Floods have affected over 800,000 people in 13 countries in West Africa (Mali, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Niger, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, The Gambia, Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire, Togo, Sierra Leone, Benin and Ghana).

The Northern part of the country is presently struggling with the worse floods experienced over the last 10 years in the region. The region most affected by the floods is Savanes, where rainfalls these last months have resulted in the overflowing of most water courses causing widespread infrastructural damages, crop failure and population displacements.

A partial governmental report indicates 24 casualties and over 100 people injured; the destruction of a significant portion of cultivated lands, one main bridge, 99 civil structures and 6 dams. Some 12,000 persons have been identified as having lost their house and are now staying with host families. Wells have been contaminated with surface water and because latrines are either non-existent or have been flooded, risks of waterborne diseases are high. Malaria, which is endemic in the region, is likely to peak in the coming weeks with large area of stagnant water now covering the region.      

Governments and the aid community are mounting a response to flooding that has affected over half a million people in West Africa. [Photo: UNMIL/Wleh]

The government of Togo declared that up to 120,000 people had been affected directly or indirectly by the flooding, including those made homeless or having lost their crops, animals or source of income. Today, rivers are receding but many communities in the lower laying area are still not accessible, mainly in the East Savanes region, from the borders with Benin, Burkina Faso and Ghana. Some temporary repairs on the main access roads have already been made, allowing aid to reach some of the flood victims.

This crisis is happening in a region already struggling with food insecurity problems and alarming rates of malnutrition, in particular among children 6-59 months. Based on a recent analysis of the nutritional situation in Togo, a first CERF request was attributed to WFP and UNICEF (in July 07) in order to provide an immediate nutritional assistance for the most vulnerable children and mothers.

The rate of acute malnutrition among children under five is unacceptably high in the region of Savanes (32%), where over 8% of children suffer from severe acute malnutrition. These children are in need of immediate life-saving treatment and care. With the funds made available through the CERF, WFP and UNICEF has been able to jumpstart operations in the targeted areas.

A rapid assessment UN inter-agency mission report indicates that approximately 60,000 persons are in need of urgent food assistance. Emergency water and sanitation items are also needed to prevent the outbreak of diarrhea and diarrheic diseases for some 30,000 beneficiaries. Furthermore, FAO will provide assistance to 2,000 farmers (10,000 – 12,000 beneficiaries) to ensure that market garden production is ensured in the next few months.

In response to the new humanitarian situation following the floods, additional beneficiaries and commodities needs to be added to the existing operation in the area. In order to mitigate the effects of the loss of crops and food stocks, WFP will provide immediate food assistance to an estimated 60,000 people in the form of dry food rations and the FAO will initiate a rapid project for 2,000 families consisting of fast growing vegetable crops that can be harvested within two month of planting. UNICEF will distribute essential items (soap, tarpaulins, water purification table, and water containers) to 30,000 people in order to address the risks associated with the contamination of water sources. In parallel, UNICEF will monitor water quality and sensitize affected population about appropriate preventive health and hygiene measures to reduce the risks of waterborne diseases. UNICEF will also provide tarpaulins to 2,000 families whose houses have been destroyed by the floods.

[Last Update: 15 October 2007]

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$2.3 million allocated to UNICEF and WFP to help 95,000 children in Togo

18 July 2007: CERF has allocated USD 2.3 million to urgently assist 95,000 children younger than five suffering from acute malnutrition in Togo. Reports from recent assessment missions conducted by UNICEF, WFP and FAO qualified the situation in the regions of Savanes, Kara and Maritime as alarming from a nutritional point of view. The rate of acute under-nutrition is estimated to be over emergency thresholds and the children are in need on immediate life-saving treatment and care.

Each year, about 20 million infants are born with low birth weights. [Photo: N. Reader/IRIN]

CERF funds will enable supplementary feeding for malnourished children through a comprehensive community-based therapeutic care in Kara, Savanes and Maritime regions.  Malnourished children detection will be done by health community agents and also among sanitary structures. Health care and food assistance will be provided in identified health centres in each region. A nutritionist consultant will also be recruited for the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the project. 

With an allocation of USD 1.3 million, UNICEF will concentrate on therapeutic feeding (stabilization care and outpatient therapeutic) for 23,000 children below 5 years of age. CERF funding will enable UNICEF to control acute malnutrition and keep rates below critical values (<10 percent). In addition, the UNICEF programme will ensure the prevention of further acute malnutrition in early childhood through the promotion of improved child feeding, care giving, and care seeking practices at the facility, family and community levels in the regions of Savanes, Kara, and Maritime regions.

As part of a comprehensive response in collaboration with UNICEF, WFP will implement a supplementary feeding programme to accommodate 70,000 children under-five suffering from moderate acute malnutrition. Based on a daily food basket with items such as corn soya blend (CSB), oil and sugar for three months, the operation will need more than 1.3 metric tons of supplies. Assistance will be provided through health care centres in collaboration with implementing partners.
 

 [Last update: 18 July 2007]

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Situation map of the floods in West Africa (4 October 2007)

Press release on CERF grants to Ghana, Togo, and Mali (9 October 2007). Click here for French

Click here for the IRIN article on high malnutrition rates in Togo and how CERF funds provides assistance to remedy this situation (3 September 2007)