OCHA Under Secretary General expresses concern about humanitarian situation in Burkina Faso
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (PANA) - The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator at the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Martin Griffiths, Thursday expressed concern about the humanitarian situation in the country.
"I have just completed a short mission to Burkina Faso. What I have seen and heard has left a deep impression on me. This is a critical moment for Burkina Faso," he wrote in a statement issued here.
Mr. Griffiths, who visited Burkina Faso on Thursday, explained that first of all, humanitarian needs were rapidly increasing in Burkina Faso with a quarter of the population, some 4.9 million people, in need of emergency assistance, 40% more than at the beginning of the year.
He pointed out that one in ten Burkinabes was displaced from their homes by devastating conflicts and climatic shocks. Then, he added, growing insecurity and blockades in many areas have left communities cut off from the rest of the country and facing increasing hunger as aid workers struggle to reach those in need.
On Thursday, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator at the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) visited Djibo in northern Burkina Faso.
"I spoke with women and children who have been eating nothing but leaves and salt for weeks. The situation is so bad that women are risking their lives by crossing the lines of control at night in search of food," he said.
"I have spoken with community leaders who have urged officials to open the roads so that food, water and life-saving medicines can reach them, to save lives.
"There are peaceful initiatives to find solutions and there is still hope. The people of Djibo deserve our respect, our admiration and much more support in this hour of need," he added.
Mr. Griffiths also met with the new transitional president, Ibrahim Traoré.
"We discussed these points in detail. I stressed the need to protect civilians, including those who are unable or unwilling to leave areas of military operations. I also reiterated the responsibility of the national authorities to create an environment conducive to humanitarian operations and to allow humanitarian access, so that we can reach all Burkinabe in need, everywhere in the country," he revealed.
According to OCHA, despite these challenges, humanitarian action is making a difference in Burkina Faso. In the first nine months of this year, the UN and its humanitarian partners have provided food aid to 1.8 million people and enabled 740,000 people to access health care in areas where health facilities have closed and medical supplies are lacking.
"We have also provided access to water, hygiene and sanitation to 550,000 people and nutritional support to 421,000 children and new or expectant mothers," said the Under-Secretary-General.
Since the beginning of the year, humanitarian donors have generously channelled about US$100 million through the UN Central Emergency Response Fund to Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Nigeria.
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