Madagascar Drought Joint Response (MDJR)

The Madagascar Drought Response is implemented through 5 partners with ZOA as lead agency. The people in southern Madagascar’s deep south regions are facing the most extreme drought since 1981. Amid the resulting severe and rapidly deteriorating food security and nutrition crisis, approximately 1.1 million people in southern and southeastern areas of the country experienced high levels of acute food insecurity and required emergency assistance in 2021, nearly double estimates from the same period in 2020, according to an Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis. Conditions in late 2021 and early 2022 in the same regions are likely to be even more severe. The 2019-2020-2021 agricultural seasons in the regions were very bad and were characterized by an exceptional rainfall deficit.The harvests in April 2021 were very low or even non-existent for all the Districts.Moreover, this food insecurity situation has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 Pandemic. The district of Amboasary remains the epicentre of the crisis with 80% of the population in phase 3 or above and nearly 28,000 people, or 10 per cent of the population in IPC5. In Ambovombe, acute malnutrition is affecting over 27 per cent of children under age 5, compared to 8.5 per cent in November 2020. In Bekily, malnutrition nearly doubled from November 2020 (8.2%) to May 2021 (16%). Ambovombe, Ampanihy, Beloha and Tsihombe are also strongly affected by food insecurity with 55 to 60% of the population in IPC phase 3 and above. ZOA, as part of the Dutch relief Alliance Joint Response, will focus on providing life-saving humanitarian assistance to the most vulnerable households. , </strong></p> <p style="box-sizing: content-box;"><span style="box-sizing: content-box; text-decoration-line: underline;">Geographical focus: </span></p> <p style="box-sizing: content-box;">1st priority: Districts of Ampanihy-Ouest, Beloha, Tsihombe, Ambovombe-Androy, Amboasary-atsimo, (IPC phase 4)</p> <p style="box-sizing: content-box;">2nd priority: Districts of Betioky-atsimo, Bekily, Betroka, Taolagnaro (IPC phase 3)</p> <p style="box-sizing: content-box;"><span style="box-sizing: content-box; text-decoration-line: underline;">Addressing identified priority needs: </span></p> <p style="box-sizing: content-box;">1st priority: Food Security and Livelihoods, Nutrition, WASH, Protection, MPC</p> <p style="box-sizing: content-box;">2nd priority: Health </p> <p style="box-sizing: content-box;">Protection mainstreaming mandatory</p>