Sahel Crisis | WFP | United Nations World Food Programme

15-Second Overview

WFP and its partners are bringing food assistance to more than 10 million people in eight countries in the Sahel region of West Africa. Drought in the region has brought hunger to millions of people for the third time in seven years. Meanwhile, conflict in Mali has forced around 340,000 people to flee their homes, adding to the hunger crisis both in Mali and neighbouring countries.

What's the situation now? Read interview

Latest News

The Sahel Crisis - One Year On

ROME -- One year ago, levels of malnutrition and hunger were rising in the Sahel region of West Africa, due to a devastating drought. Watch: 'The Human Chain', a film about the humanitarian response...
One Year On From The Sahel Crisis: A Review Of The Humanitarian Response

The large-scale response – providing US$1.2 billion in assistance to around 10 million people across eight countries – helped to avert a humanitarian catastrophe. However, millions...
The Government of Senegal donates to WFP in hopes of a nation-wide impact

“806,000 vulnerable people have been targeted by WFP assistance through targeted food and cash vouchers distributions. To date you [WFP] have reached more than one million people in 12 out of...
WFP reaches communities isolated by floods in Burkina Faso

Each year during the rainy season in the Sahel region of Burkina Faso, roads and bridges are flooded, cutting off many areas of the region from WFP food assistance. But this year, at the height...
Drought sends food prices soaring in Mauritania

Across the scrubland of the Gorgol region in southern Mauritania the effects of the drought are alarmingly visible. Carcasses of dead livestock are scattered throughout the landscape. ...

Sahel Background

The Sahel region of Africa is a hot, dry band of land which starts in Senegal on the west coast and reaches as far as Chad, nearly 4,000 km to the east. It was hit by severe drought as recently as 2010 and many of the region's people were still struggling to get back on their feet when the current drought struck. Food prices are high across the region, making access to food even more difficult for poor families. Grain production is below the five-year average in Mauritania, Chad, Niger and Burkina Faso. The situation has been exacerbated a fall in remittances and conflict in Mali, which has displaced over 300,000 people.

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Photo Stream

Sahel 2012 - The Response To The Hunger Crisis 6

Mali: Kayes, Ambidedi village   This man has collected his family ration in a general food distribution that allows a daily allocation of cereal 450g, pulses 100g, oil 30g, and salt 5g totaling 2,100 kcal per person per day. As part of its response to the Sahel crisis, WFP reached 1.2 million people in Mali in 2012 with food and nutrition assistance and resilience building activities - emergency school feeding, cash transfers, food for assets and cash for assets.

Operational Info

WFP is currently reaching around 6 million people with food assistance across the Sahel region
In Niger, WFP's operation during the June-September hunger season will reach 2.6 million people. Over the course of 2012, WFP programmes will reach a total of 4.2 million people.
In the wake of the conflict in Mali, WFP is supporting internally displaced people, refugees and their host communities in Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Mauritania. We aim to reach 550,000 people.
In Chad, WFP’s current operation aims to assist a total of 1.5 million people. In June, we reached 855,000 people.
In Mauritania, WFP is supporting 574,000 people through a range of programmes including cash transfers, food for assets and nutrition and cereal bank support
Regular food distributions are also underway in Senegal and Gambia. Over 700,000 people were reached in the two countries in June.
The UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS), operated by WFP, is operating and has scaled up its operations to fly in Chad, Niger, Mali and Mauritania.