Home - OCHA Regional Office for Southern Africa

Regional Context

The Southern Africa region presents one of the most complex and pressing challenges in the world today, where more than half of the population faces chronic vulnerability due to extreme poverty, HIV/AIDS and a lack of basic services such as health care. Southern African countries continue to bear the heaviest burden, accounting for most of new HIV infections and Aids deaths in the world. The impact of HIV is a creeping emergency that is progressively eroding the lives and livelihoods of millions of Southern Africans both at household and macro-economic levels.

When a modest natural disaster occurs, it triggers widespread suffering and illness for a people, already devastated by poverty, food insecurity as well as HIV and AIDS. Added to this, natural disasters are occurring with increased frequency and magnitude, further weakening vulnerable populations and compromising hard-won developmental gains.

What We Do

Since its establishment in 2002, the Regional Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs for Southern Africa (OCHA ROSA) has sought to minimise the vulnerability of populations in the region to humanitarian crises. ROSA has provided support and assistance to governments, UN agencies, NGOs and other humanitarian actors in response to a number of major natural disasters as well as human disasters. ROSA also works to build response capacity in the region before disasters strike by strengthening emergency preparedness.

OCHA ROSA activities include:

Advise UN Country teams and Government on disaster preparedness and response plans.
Build disaster preparedness and response capacity through training and support to country teams and government.
Coordinate humanitarian actors and provide secretariat support during an emergency.
Assess humanitarian impact and needs to inform planning and action.
Analyse needs and response activities to identify gaps and duplication and ensure aid reaches the people most in need quickly.
Strengthen coordination and capacity of UN & regional partners to respond to humanitarian crises.
Mobilize funding and resources through joint appeals and advocacy.
Raise awareness of forgotten emergencies and issues affecting the most vulnerable.
Inform and engage the press and public on UN humanitarian activities.

Where We Work

The OCHA Regional Office provides support and services to UN Country Teams in 14 countries: Angola, Botswana, Comoros, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Seychelles, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.