Press release -

​VIOLENCE DISPLACES MORE THAN 87,000 IN MALI IN JUST THREE MONTHS

London April 9, 2019: An upsurge in violence, the spread of armed groups, and the intensification of military operations in northern and central Mali have led to more than 87,000 new civilian displacements since the beginning of 2019.

“Civilians are paying a heavy price for the growing insecurity. Since the beginning of the year, more than 400 civilians have been killed in central and northern Mali. In comparison, a total of 287 civilians were killed in 2018,” warns Tidiane Fall, country director for Action Against Hunger Mali.

“Faced with the exacerbation of conflicts and the intensification of military operations in the north and center of the country, the displacement of civilians continues to increase while our ability to respond as humanitarian actors is weakening," adds Prince K. Lumueno, emergency program manager for the Norwegian Refugee Council in Mali.

Since January 2019, an estimated 71,000 more people have been displaced in central and northern Mali than during the same period last year. In the Mopti region alone more than 15,000 people have already been displaced due to the surge of inter-communal conflicts since the beginning of 2019. Military operations southwest of Menaka have also caused, in part, the displacement of more than 10,000 people since January.

“For several months, thousands of women, men, and children in need are still not receiving any humanitarian assistance. This is currently the case along the Mali-Niger border, southwest of Menaka, in the Gourma region, north-west of Timbuktu, and on the Mali-Burkina Faso border strip, including Koro and Bankass,” explains Lumueno.

"Several people were coldly murdered before my eyes. Our cattle have been swept away, members of my community are scattered in the wild. We do not have access to the market or the health center because no one dares to go out for fear of being killed,” says Hamidou, who fled the violence south of N'tillit in Gao District.

The efforts of the international community in the Sahel have focused on the development of security strategies without sufficiently taking into account the humanitarian needs generated by the intensification of violence and conflict.

The Norwegian Refugee Council and its Rapid Response Mechanism partners call on donors to fund the humanitarian response in Mali and call for unrestricted access to those displaced by the violence.

Topics

  • War

Categories

  • sahel
  • mali

  • :: The Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM) is an operational, programmatic and partnership model designed to enhance capacity of sectors to respond in a timely, coordinated and standardised manner to the needs of populations made vulnerable by displacement, disease and/or natural disasters in humanitarian/emergency settings. :: RRM actors are funded by the European Union; USAID/OFDA/FFP; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway; Swedish Cooperation; DANIDA and UNICEF.
    :: In 2018, more than 71,000 people were assisted through the Mali RRM.
    :: The humanitarian crisis in Mali affects more than 7 million people.
    :: In 2018, more than 145,000 people were displaced in Mali because of violence and insecurity.
  • Action Against Hunger is a global humanitarian organisation that takes decisive action against the causes and effects of hunger. We save the lives of malnourished children and work with their communities before and after disaster strikes. We ensure that everyone can access clean water, food, training and healthcare. We enable people to provide for themselves and we constantly search for more effective solutions, while sharing our knowledge and expertise with the world. We push for long-term change. We will never give up. Until the world is free from hunger.
  • In 2017, Action Against Hunger helped more than 20.2 million people in nearly 50 countries around the world.
  • www.actionagainsthunger.org.uk
  • Follow us @acf_uknews   

Contacts

ANTHONY GALE

Press contact Press & PR Manager Media +44 (0)208 293 6130

AMANDA FARRANT

Press contact ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS, ACTION AGAINST HUNGER UK +44 (0)208 293 6130

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