COTE D'IVOIRE (2 August)
Following the start of rains in late February, abundant precipitation covered the entire country during April. However, rains decreased and remained generally below average from May on, which may have affected maize development in the south and millet and sorghum crops in the north. Agricultural production is not expected to reach its pre-crisis level this year due to mass population displacement and likely seeds shortages, following the civil war.
Although the overall security situation has started to improve, the food situation in the country remains critical, mainly in the west and rebel-controlled north. There are grave concerns about the humanitarian situation in the west, where hundreds of people have been emerging from the bush since French and West African peacekeeping troops were sent into the area in late May. Most of the children and women showed signs of malnutrition. WFP is facing a gap in donor funding for food supplies in the region and there is no functioning healthcare system. Humanitarian assistance falls short of current needs and an escalation in malnutrition, morbidity and mortality rates is feared. The humanitarian situation has been aggravated by the dire situation in Liberia which prompted a new influx of over 30 000 refugees. In the rebel-controlled north, access to food is very difficult for cotton farmers who were unable to sell their crop because of the conflict.
More than 1 million people have been displaced by the conflict. At least 800 000 people fled south from the north and centre and about 300 000 were displaced in the west around the city of Man. Another 200 000, mostly migrant workers from neighbouring Burkina Faso, Guinea, Liberia and Mali left the country. WFP has launched a Regional Emergency Operation to assist 588 600 people in Côte d’Ivoire and 275 000 people in transit/returnees to neighbouring countries (Ghana, Burkina Faso and Mali) for a period of 8 months (May-December 2003).