Please do not forget to sign-up for the next Global Partner Meeting by writing to Vanessa Bonsignore, vanessavita.bonsignore@wfp.org

For more information on the meeting, please visit the Food Security Cluster website.

• Needs for seeds, food assistance and nutrition programmes are increasing, which calls for an expansion of assistance ahead of the lean season. Prepositioning efforts need to be undertaken soon, ahead of the May-November rainy season.
• Agricultural inputs distribution, combined with seed protection rations, general food distribution and nutrition activities remain April’s priorities. FAO, WFP and cluster partners are finalising distribution plans for the agricultural campaign 2014.
• As insecurity along the main roads remains a challenge for the safe transportation of commodities, it is essential to preposition inputs ahead of the rainy season in May-November, when many roads will become impassable. As this period coincides with the peak of the lean season when food and nutrition needs increase, funds are urgently required to enable large-scale prepositioning to ensure the timely assistance of beneficiaries.

• As of 27 March, food partners had reached about 502,180 people under the emergency operation in conflict-affected states. Food assistance was also provided to 335,700 other food-insecure people, including refugees and displaced people in areas not directly affected by violence.
• Food airdrops have so far been conducted in Maban, Upper Nile State and Ganyel, Unity State.
• The cluster is working with national authorities to conduct Food Security Monitoring System surveys in the seven states where there are no active hostilities. Data collection is completed and data entry has begun.
• Emergency Food Security Assessments are being conducted in the three states most affected by crisis.
• Support to protein-rich food production is key to containing malnutrition among displaced communities.
• The crisis has increased insecurity along commercial supply routes causing private sector actors to flee the country and market fragmentation. Food and fuel price inflation is making availability and affordability a challenge.
• Access constraints, including insecurity, require a flexible approach to delivering assistance, focusing on rapid distributions and pre-positioning in strategic but accessible hubs.
• Lack of funding and pipeline pre-positioning have delayed implementation of some activities, including livelihoods support. Cluster members are working with donors and other stakeholders to overcome this constraint.

• Community consultations were conducted in Region VI particularly in the Province of Capiz (Municipalities of Culasi, Libas, Panitan, Pontevedra, Panay, Jamintan) and Municipality of Estancia in Iloilo Province. The activity generated 12 focus group discussions and 67 interviews. The focus groups targeted community associations like fisherfolk, farmers, senior citizens, youth, global workers as well as women’s groups.
• The next line of community consultations will be conducted in the Municipality of Estancia (continued) and Concepcion as well as in the province of Negros Occidental and planning underway for Antique in Aklan province. For more information please visit this link.

• Food Security Capacity Building Project of FAO aims at building consensus and developing capacity for improved food security response by covering four main components: Strengthening capacity to conduct high quality and accurate seed security assessments;  Building capacities to integrate nutrition in food security programming; Ensuring better integration of accountability to affected populations (AAP) in food security programming (mainstreamed across all project activities); Building capacities in resilience analysis and measurement and communicate this effectively to decision-makers.
• OCHA & IGAD strengthen ties on resilience and humanitarian action in Uganda:  The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) agreed to enhance their collaboration in disaster preparedness, coordination of humanitarian aid, and advocacy for the protection of civilians affected by conflict and natural disasters.
• For information on the 29th ALNAP Annual Meeting held on 11-13 May, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, please visit this link.
• Wageningen University: international nutrition courses with fellowships opportunities available, for more information, please visit this link.