Cadre Harmonisé for Identification of Areas and Populations in Food Insecurity in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone

fao.org - March 2015

CLICK HERE - Cadre Harmonisé for Identification of Areas and Populations in Food Insecurity in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone (5 page .PDF file)

Overview

In March 2014, the first Ebola virus disease (EVD) case was confirmed in Guinea and quickly spread to the neighbouring countries of Sierra Leone and Liberia. In September, the EVD outbreak was declared a global emergency by the UN assembly and national governments in the region, resulting in the implementation of measures to contain the outbreak including border and market closures, road blocks and quarantines. The measures and behaviours related to the outbreak directly disrupted many economic activities leading to major economic losses in almost all sectors.

The peak of the Ebola outbreak coincided with the 2014 lean season period (June to August) and affected the agricultural growing season through labour shortages caused by movement restrictions in production zones during the typical planting and crop maintenance periods. This contributed to crop production losses in localized areas. However, with increased awareness on Ebola over time, agricultural activities (especially harvest activities) resumed in most areas and allowed households to replenish some of their food stocks for the coming 2015 lean season.

While the Ebola incidence rates have fallen in all countries, transmission remains widespread in Western Guinea and Western Sierra Leone. The lifting of quarantines in Liberia and Sierra Leone and recent reopening of main crossing points on borders between the three countries and the neighbouring countries such as Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire are expected to trigger recovery for markets, trade and the overall economy of these countries and the region. On the other hand, the lean season that will typically start in May/June is expected to be harder than usual due to the economic losses suffered by households in all areas over the past months, and lower food stocks from the recent harvest for households in areas most affected by the disease.

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