Burkina Faso: world’s fastest-growing displacement crisis
The country is on the brink of a hunger crisis. A staggering one in ten people in Burkina Faso will need food assistance by June. The violence is also storing up problems for future generations, as some armed groups deliberately target schools and teachers, leaving 330,000 children without access to education.
While aid agencies have rapidly scaled up to respond to humanitarian needs across the country, our work is severely hampered by the lack of funding from donor governments. Last year, less than half of the money required to meet growing humanitarian needs was received.
The Norwegian Refugee Council is sounding the alarm and calling for States supporting the military intervention to increase efforts to respond to humanitarian needs with equal emphasis.
In addition, military operations should be carried out with protection as a priority, and ensure it does not put the population at greater risk by triggering new displacements and increasing their vulnerability. Finally, it is urgent to address the root causes of the conflict and for dialogue to be re-established between communities and authorities.
3. Burkina Faso
Newly displaced people waiting on the side of the road after they fled attacks in Barsalogho.
A severe lack of funding is hampering humanitarians from saving lives.
The military response alone cannot respond to the needs of the displaced who are in precarious situations due to insecurity. Displaced people need urgent assistance. They need shelters, food, water, education, but as long as the response will be mainly security-oriented, the needs will not be met.
The funding of the humanitarian response is falling short. Aid organisations have scaled up their capacity in the country and stand ready to respond to the skyrocketing needs but their work is being severely hampered by the lack of commitment from donor governments. In 2019, not even half of the funds for the humanitarian response were allocated.
Date: 21 January 2020
Location: Kaya - Center North Burkina Faso
Photo: Tom Peyre-Costa/NRC
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