Continuing its recent support for building food secure futures for the people of South Sudan, Norway has contributed a further $7.7 million to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to help tackle hunger among conflict-affected farmers, fishers and herders in 2016.
Article continues below
Norway’s funding will allow FAO to continue providing emergency livelihood kits to families in hard-to-reach areas of the conflict-affected states. The support will target some 80 000 vulnerable households with crop seeds, fishing tools, farming tools and vegetable seeds, as well as livestock veterinary health assistance.
In 2015, with Norway’s support, FAO has distributed 70 000 livelihood kits (crop, fishing or vegetable) to families in remote or difficult to access areas of South Sudan. In 2015 FAO provided more than 470 000 crop, vegetable and fishing kits, directly supporting a total of 364 000 households (2.2 million people) to improve their food security.
In addition, FAO provided a further – previously unplanned - 140 000 fishing and vegetable kits to conflict affected population in Unity, Jonglei and Upper Nile States.
For 2016, FAO has developed a two-pronged approach to help improve food security and nutrition in South Sudan. In severely conflict-affected areas, where food insecurity and malnutrition are particularly high, FAO will be providing emergency livelihood kits to support rapid food production.
In less-affected states and counties, vulnerable families and communities will be receiving support to boost food production through activities such as input trade fairs and seed multiplication, which help strengthen local economies in the medium and longer terms, and increase beneficiaries’ resilience.
“Norway’s contribution has arrived at the right moment”, said Abdoul Karim Bah, Deputy FAO Representative in South Sudan. “With these funds, FAO will procure critical livelihood inputs well in time for the 2016 campaign, which ultimately means that 80 000 households will be able to plant crops and vegetables, fish in the rivers and protect livestock from devastating diseases”.
FAO is appealing for more than $43 million to provide emergency livelihood support to more than 3.2 million people. Moreover, more than 11 million livestock will be vaccinated and treated against major diseases. ■
Predominant upper-level ridging stretching from the Southwest to the southern High Plains will allow for another day of record-breaking heat across parts of Nevada and Arizona today.