Food Security Outlook in Kenya
Food security is deteriorating for households throughout Kenya. Poor rains in most pastoral and marginal agricultural areas has decreased pasture availability and reduced household access to food from on-farm production. Food security has decreased for normal food-secure households in Rift Valley, Nyanza, central and western Kenya following diverse effects of post election crisis since late December 2007, which disrupted production and trade and displaced farmers, business persons and casual labourers.
Data by the Kenya National Bureau of statistics (KNBS) indicates, inflation soared to 31.5 percent in May compared to the 26.6 percent registered in April driven by unrelenting rise in food and fuel prices, which have shown an upward trend since January. Such high figures were last recorded in 1994. Between now and September, calmness is expected to return to the conflict – affected areas of the country, allowing trade to increase and some displaced households to return home. However, food availability will be below normal due to disruptions in planning activities for the 2008 long rain harvest.
In the worst case scenario, the poor performance of the long rains will extend to the north west and southern pastoral areas, leading to localized extreme food insecurity. The political crisis may not be fully resolved, causing further reduction in 2008 long rains harvests and a significant increase in food prices in the third quarter. The food security of displaced households will decline further, as many would be unable to leave camps to access their livelihoods, and host families would no longer be able to continue hosting IDPs due to erosion in their own purchasing capabilities.
What is the current food security situation?
Households through out Kenya currently face a precarious food security situation due to 2007 short rain season and disruption in trade and production following post-election conflict since December 2007. Although most households are currently moderately food insecure, food access is rapidly deteriorating for many households that remain displaced from their homes.
An estimated 200,000 persons remain in camps while more than 400,000 are integrated with host families or have started other livelihoods elsewhere. Some Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) are returning back to camps as host family capacity to house IDPs begins to decrease. Other IDPs are returning to camps for registration in anticipation of resettlement by the government. A small proportion of the IDPs are accessing their farms, mostly under security, and returning to camps in the evening, and businesses are reopening in areas that are deemed safe, especially in Nyanza Province and a few areas of the south Rift.
Food production was also disrupted in key producing areas of the Rift Valley in particular, as farmers were unable to harvest their crops from the 2007 short-rains season in a timely fashion after the outbreak of conflict. Heightened pre and post harvest losses also occurred as the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB), the main buyer of newly harvested gain, did not purchase any maize since the onset of the crisis. The production losses and limited purchasing activity have already had a significant impact on household security. Households in the grain basket are receiving low producer prices and therefore earn decreased incomes, and households in deficit production areas and urban areas face reduced food access due to a 15 to 32 percent increase in prices from December to May.
Although the country holds a six month supply of maize, cumulative national output for two 2007 agricultural seasons of about 2.6 million metric tonnes is 15 percent lower than initially anticipated due to drought losses in South Eastern lowlands and pre and post harvest losses in the Rift Valley.
Additionally, the post election conflict has affected the initial planting for the 2008 long rains harvest. Both inputs and output markets have not functioned normally during the first two months of 2008, largely because most roads remained inaccessible, blocked by armed post-election protestors. However, the power sharing agreement that was signed between the government and the opposition at the end of February has resulted in a marked reduction in violence and opened many of the inputs and outputs markets that were previously inaccessible. Less than 50 percent of the land that is normally put to maize had been prepared for 2008 season at the onset of the long rains in mid March, signalling a likely production downturn during the current year in a region that accounts for close to 60 percent of national maize production.
About 830,000 pastoral, agro-pastoral and marginal agricultural farming households and IDPs are included in the current emergency program. These households are expected to receive relief food through general distribution, food for work (FFW) and food for assets (FFA) programs, following recommendations on the just concluded short rains assessments. The World Food Program (WFP) has appealed for $84 million for food aid and logistical support to meet these needs. Additionally, an estimated $1.2 million is required for livestock interventions, $ 1 million for crop production, $ 3 million for health and nutrition, $ 3.3 million for water and sanitation and $ 500,000 for education. This is a mile stone that is yet to be achieved.
Phares Mugo is the programme officer in charge of Economic Justice and Good Governance at Jesuit Hakimani in Nairobi.
Psycho-social support by JHC
JHC is partnering with the Education Department of the Catholic Diocese of Nakuru is organizing psycho-social support programme for the displaced families and teachers in selected schools in Nakuru Diocese. The Piloting part of the initiative has debriefed 240 teachers and reached six schools and begun the healing process.
In the second phase we seek to enhance the counselling skills of teachers from the Molo area with particular emphasis on Trainers of trainers so as to enable the healing process to be replicated in schools in areas that were heavily affected by the post Election violence. This way, we hope to reach more facilitators and teachers who will continue to assist pupils and students to cope with trauma and other effects of the post election violence.
At the same time JHC is carrying out a Healing process for various groups in the informal settlements in Nairobi. We are offering an opportunity to all those who were displaced and heavily affected by the post election crisis to go through a healing process that will contribute to their being re-integrated into the society.
We welcome requests from groups and communities for open forum and peace barazas and healing sessions facilitated by Jesuit Hakimani.
Send your requests or get in touch with the undersigned for this facilitation.
editor@jesuithakimani.org Telephone no.020 359707/020 3870617.
Hakimani Economic Justice Forum
Jesuit Hakimani Centre will be holding a discussion on the Budget titled ‘Budget for Social Justice: A Post- Budget Analysis Forum’ for the Kenyan context on June 17th 2008 at Shalom House, off Ngong Rd between 2-4 pm in Nairobi. In this bimonthly forum, JHC will, among other speakers, give special mention to the concerns of the urban poor by reflecting on the findings of our annual household survey. JHC has been monitoring the cost of living in 16 informal settlements in Nairobi. The findings are published as The Nairobi Basic Needs Basket will explore the following questions:
- To what extend is the budget taking into account the economic needs and welfare concerns of the urban poor?
- How are the poor coping with a 31.5 % rate of inflation?
- What do we read into the 7 % economic growth registered last year?
- What are some of the policy formulation recommendations that can be forwarded to policy makers and the government?
Kindly confirm your attendance to the undersigned on
Tel. 3597097/3870617/3877553/3874000 ext. 222
or email: econjustice@jesuithakimani.org
Ambassador of Peace Kakamega Diocese Visit
The Ambassador of Peace, Rev. Timothy Njoya and Archbishop Emeritus Rafael Ndingi visited Turbo, in Kakamega Diocese. The visit was to support a peace initiative facilitated by the Catholic Justice and Peace Commission (CJPC) local provincial administration. The meeting was attended by provincial administration, local leaders, community leaders, as well as leaders from Turbo and Likuyani camp. The theme of the day was, “make me an instrument of peace”, the issues discussed were resettlement, reconciliation, forgiveness and co-existence. Archbishop Emeritus Ndingi thanked the provincial administration, local leaders, and churches for assisting the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPS) and also for initiating peace meeting at the communal level. He further called for reconciliation at the community and level and promised to assist through his office as the Chair for Humanitarian Affairs. Rev. Njoya, called for community reconciliation and peaceful co-existence. According to him, peaceful co-existence could be attained by providing a month amnesty for the return of stolen property and no one would be prosecuted. Both Ambassadors, called for reconciliation, forgiveness and treating each other as creations of God.
Hakimani Staff Retreat
Hakimani staff had a staff retreat at Brakenhurst retreat Centre in Limuru. The two day retreat was meant to build team spirit, familiarize staff with Hakimani administrative policies, evaluate the progress on the strategic plan and review programs’ efficiency mechanism.
Upcoming: Policy Brief and Basic Need Basket Launch
Jesuit Hakimani is looking forward to the launch of the Nairobi Needs Basket BNB for 2007 on the 19th of June 2008. This edition entails an analytical pullout of the cost of living in Nairobi’s 16 informal settlements, with a particular focus on how the inflationary tendencies have impacted on the poor.
At the same time the Economic justice desk is working on a Policy Brief on strengthening budget reforms in Kenya: issues and challenges.
Call for Contributions:
Hakimani: Jesuit Journal of Social Justice in Eastern Africa
In seeking to inform social action, Jesuit Hakimani Centre (JHC) publishes Hakimani: Jesuit Journal of Social Justice in Eastern Africa (ISSN 1995-6339). Hakimani is published quarterly and engages critical analysis on all aspects of social justice. Hakimani focuses on structural change by identifying the structures that create and/or perpetuate social injustices, and what can be done to change these.
|
Hakimani is inviting articles for its Issue theme for the Jun-August 2008 edition, National budgets and food Security.Eastern Africa is endowed with great natural resources, from land to minerals, to forests and fresh water sources. East African governments continue to preside over inequities in distribution of these resources and unjust concessions to multinationals working in these areas, leading to avoidable conflict and social injustices. We seek to critique the structures that allow such injustices to occur, highlight the worst cases, and challenge government and civil society, and in particular, faith-based leaders who hold much social credit which remains largely unused in the promotion of social justice. Word allocation is 3000-3500 words. Outside the Issue theme, Hakimani also invites contributions in other areas of social justice, particularly inter-religious harmony, women’s issues, book reviews and tributes to those Eastern Africans that have promoted social justice. Deadline for submissions is 15th June 2008.
The theme for the first edition (Oct-Dec 2007) was Social Justice and the National Budgets of the East African countries. It also featured reflections and analysis on the Economic Partnership Agreements, the place of women in decision-making, social justice in Islam and the struggle for peace in Sudan, among others. The theme for the second edition (Jan-Mar 2008) was Children’s Rights and the Plight of Children in Difficult Circumstances. It also featured articles on the Rules of Origin and fair international trade, a reflection on the future of Christian-Muslim relations in Kenya, and Concern for human and environmental health for the Nairobi slum neighbouring the city’s official dumpsite.
Copies of Hakimani are available at Nairobi, Kampala, Dar es Salaam, Lusaka, Johannesburg, Lagos and Abuja at the Paulines bookstores (for addresses, see www.paulinesafrica.org or email distribution@paulinesafrica.org.
For any enquiries on subscriptions and contributions, please send us an email at editor@jesuithakimani.org
Forward this e-newsletter to a friend
and promote the understanding of just societal structures!