Apia --- One week after the tsunami hit Samoa, family food security is extremely fragile, according the FAO’s early recovery needs assessment. Most victims are at the moment relying on external food assistance or moved to live with relatives and/or friends, putting additional pressure on the limited food availability. Restoring the key lost assets essential for food security and enabling rural households to resume food production is an urgent priority.

The livelihoods’ base for the majority of the tsunami affected households includes subsistence agriculture, backyard pig and poultry production for self-consumption, and artisanal/subsistence fisheries. In addition to tourism, which was the main source of cash income, these activities represent the main pillars of the family food security strategy.

As the main plantations of taro, banana, cassava and other root crops are usually located on higher grounds at a relevant distance from the sea, the damages caused by the tsunami have been in general limited. However, most of the farming tools and equipment has been lost and affected farmers may not be able to carry out essential farming works in the coming weeks.

The home gardens around the houses, where breadfruit trees and other fruit trees, some bananas and taros and vegetables were grown, have been totally destroyed by the direct impact of the waves or by the salt accumulated in the soil. These home gardens are important for a nutritionally balanced family diet as most of the nutritious foods use to come from there.

Finally, large numbers of pigs and poultry have been lost, as well as fishing gears and canoes, so families lost most of the protein sources for their diets. It is not expected that artisanal/subsistence fishing will be revived soon since the reef areas were severely damaged by the tsunami, with accumulation of large quantities of sediment and debris. It will take time for these areas to recover and be again a healthy environment for fish resources.

The human and material losses have also changed the priorities of affected households. The loss of dear ones, the destruction of the houses and all households’ goods, and the scale of the disaster, have caused deep trauma. Many victims are not willing to move back to the coastal areas and when land is available, they are considering the option of resettling on higher ground, near their plantations.

Detailed qualitative and quantitative information about losses, including cost estimates, will be provided once the data analysis from the Food Security Survey will be completed in a couple of days time.

Overview of key early recovery needs
The most urgent needs identified for the early recovery of agriculture and fisheries sectors and restore food security are: rehabilitation of damaged and lost home gardens and plantations to increase food supply for self consumption and reduce dependency on food assistance; restocking of lost small backyard livestock (poultry and pig) to increase availability of proteins for self-consumption; provision of suitable fishing alternatives to artisanal/subsistence fishers who cannot fish within the reef anymore due to tsunami damages; rehabilitation of damaged Alia fishing vessel fleet; repair/replacement of lost/damaged engines, fishing gear and other equipment to allow for early resumption of fisheries activities to ensure adequate supply to the local market and minimize risk of price increase; training of mechanics to build capacity of repair and maintenance of out-board engines; and rehabilitation of damaged giant clam nurseries.

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