Central America Drought - Situation Report #2 12 December 2014
Central America Drought:
Restoring Food Security and Livelihoods
Through
Assistance
for
Vulnerable
Groups Affected by Recurrent Shocks
In Numbers
Over 2 million people affected and
in need of food assistance.
4 Countries affected: El Salvador,
Guatemala, Honduras & Nicaragua.
Over 500,000 beneficiaries already
reached by WFP.
US$20 million shortfall for the next
3 months.
Highlights
 Of the 2 million people affected, WFP as-
sessments indicated that more than 1.6
million people are suffering from severe
or moderate food insecurity in Honduras,
El Salvador and Guatemala. While no assessment was conducted in Nicaragua,
initial analysis of secondary data indicated an estimated 460,000 people may
have been affected.
 The drought disproportionately impacted
the dry corridor where many farmers are
only able to harvest during the primary
cropping season.
 Furthermore, all four countries have suf-
fered from coffee rust which has affected
55 percent of land cultivated with coffee,
seriously endangering the livelihoods of
almost two million people (of which
715,000 are food insecure) who depend
on coffee production as a primary source
of income.
 The assessments concluded that the re-
gion was affected by both a delayed arrival of the rains (April-May) and pronounced deficits during the most sensitive crop development stages (July).
 All four governments have launched sub-
stantial feeding programmes in response
to the drought.
Situation Update
 Central America and northern areas of South
America have suffered significant rainfall deficits in 2014 with serious impacts on crop production and the food security of vulnerable
households in Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Honduras.
 Compared to baseline data, the assessment
results reflected a deteriorating food consumption and dietary diversity, a reduced consumption of micronutrient-rich foods, poor access to food and a notable uptake of negative
coping strategies.
 Throughout the region, the critical hunger gap
for vulnerable populations will last until the
second harvest, while the 2015 lean season
will begin earlier and is likely to be more severe.
 Maize losses are estimated at 50 to 70 percent
for the first cropping season, which accounts
for the bulk of the annual production.
 The bean harvest suffered similar levels of
losses, although most of the yearly production
arises during the second cropping season.
 Migration is a coping strategy employed by
many: 5 to 12 percent of households reported
at least one member migrating in search of
work opportunities over the past two months.
 Governments are supporting drought-affected
populations through their own relief and safety
net programmes.
 The governments of Guatemala and Honduras
have launched an international call for humanitarian assistance.
WFP Response
 WFP conducted emergency food security assessments (EFSA’s) in Guatemala, Honduras and El
Salvador and they largely confirmed government
declarations that the drought has resulted in
negative impacts on household food security in
the affected areas.
Central America Drought - Situation Report #2 12 December 2014
 Market assessments coupled with an anal-
ysis of lead times of in-kind procurement
and existing stocks, suggested that market
-based transfers were feasible and preferable. These were also balanced with the
need to link WFP interventions with broader government responses in each country
to ensure alignment when determining
transfer modalities.
 The vast majority of WFP assistance in
Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador is
being provided by cash and vouchers
transfers through cash for assets and
vouchers for assets. The response in Nicaragua is solely through in-kind assistance.
 WFP is supporting the rehabilitation of
crops and food production in family gardens through food-for-assets programs.
In Nicaragua:
 WFP
has assisted 276,000 droughtaffected beneficiaries that depend on subsistence farming, daily wage labour and
families with small children in the dry corridor of Nicaragua.
In Guatemala:
 WFP is assisting 150,000 people and has
resources to cover less than half of the 6
months of planned recovery assistance.
The government has requested WFP to
scale this up to 350,000 people.
In Honduras:
 WFP is currently assisting 56,000 people
out of the 700,000 in need of food assistance. There remains a major gap for the
coming months for those not targeted by
WFP.
In El Salvador:
Clusters
 The Food Security Cluster has been acti-
vated in Guatemala.
Partnerships
 WFP is working closely with the National
Governments of all four countries.
 For rapid assessments, WFP continues to
work with specific government ministries,
inter-institutional committees, NGOs such
as Save the Children, World Vision, Care
and other UN agencies such as the Food
and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and
Technical Unit for Food and Nutrition Security.
 WFP is working with the UN Country teams
in Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras
and have prepared response plans and
submitted requests to CERF.
Resourcing Update
 The total cost of the initial 6 month
drought response is estimated at US$35
million . WFP has an urgent shortfall of
US$20million for the next 3 months to provide essential food assistance.
 In order to absorb the drought response
into the regional PRRO a budget revision is
currently in process. The value of the
PRRO is expected to increase to US$92
million.
 WFP is grateful for critical support provided
by multilateral funds in response to the
drought as well as that of the United
States, Germany, Japan, Republic of Korea, the United Nations Central Emergency
Response Fund (CERF) and Switzerland.
 WFP is currently assisting 37,000 people
out of the 480,000 in need of food assistance. There remains a major gap for the
coming months for those not targeted by
WFP.
Food Assistance
Contacts
 WFP will provide assistance through the
Alan Brown, Regional Donor Relations Officer
regional Protracted Relief and Recovery
Operation (PRRO) to meet the immediate
food needs of vulnerable households for at
least 90 days, and depending on the rainfall conditions, rehabilitate the agriculture
during the second cropping season.
WFP Regional Bureau for Latin America
Tel. (+507) 3173900 ext. 3984
[email protected]
Central America: Restoring Food Security and Livelihoods Through Assistance for
Vulnerable Groups Affected by Recurrent Shocks
wfp.org/es