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The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) together with the Kingdom of Belgium contribute to the Government of Cameroon’s Emergency Plan to Combat Food Crisis in the country through agriculture and livestock support in the eastern region
Cameroon, as most countries in the Sahel, is currently facing shocks that are affecting people’s food security and livelihoods. The upsurge in attacks by non‑state armed groups in the Far North region on the border with Nigeria, the sociopolitical crisis in the North-West and South-West regions and the influx of Central African refugees in the East and Adamawa regions are the main factors exacerbating people’s vulnerabilities. The eastern regions are also confronted with the issue of artisanal gold panning, which creates competition for agricultural land and leads to the recruitment of young people, who are exposed to gold recovery chemicals. This puts enormous pressure on local natural resources, such as water, land and forests. Furthermore, vulnerability to climatic extremes is exacerbating the situation; households’ weak adaptation capacities and the lack of human and financial resources for anticipation and adaptation to shocks is impacting agriculture, livestock, fisheries, health, housing and other sectors. According to the latest Cadre Harmonisé analysis, 2.5 million people are likely to experience high levels of acute food insecurity (Phase 3 or above) during June– August 2024.
FAO, alongside other rural development actors, has been called upon by the Government to contribute to the implementation in Cameroon’s East region of Component 2 of the Emergency Plan to Combat the Food Crisis (Projet d’urgence de lutte contre la crise alimentaire [PULCCA]) – a project developed by the World Bank in partnership with the Government of Cameroon to provide crisis-affected people in the country with humanitarian assistance by not only delivering food aid but also strengthening the capacities of small-scale farmers through agricultural and livestock support for improved food production (Component 2).
Thanks to Belgium’s contribution, through SFERA, FAO will be able to provide additional support for the implementation of PULCCA, funded by the World Bank, to reach 750 households in urgent need of agricultural assistance. These will include internally displaced people, refugees, returnees and vulnerable host communities, who mostly depend on agricultural and livestock production for their livelihoods.
More specifically, activities will be implemented from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, and include the distribution of inputs and equipment for market‑gardening to 450 households; the provision of small livestock to 100 households; support for poultry production to 200 households; and the establishment of 8 ha of farmland for fodder production.
In addition, project participants will be trained on crop management for sustainable production. Overall, the assistance will enable vulnerable households to recover their livelihoods and restore food production, resulting in increased availability of and access to food, benefiting the wider community. The involvement of agricultural and livestock technical services, as well as complementarities with other FAO projects will contribute to ensuring the sustainability of activities implemented.