Burundi | Revised humanitarian response (May–December 2020)

FAO

Burundi | Revised humanitarian response (May–December 2020)

Autores

FAO

Editor

FAO ;

Descripción

Burundi, one of the poorest countries in the world, is characterized by a complex political context, population displacement, epidemics and recurrent natural disasters (109 recorded between October 2018 and June 2019) including torrential rains and strong winds. This has resulted in the total or partial destruction of crops, homes, schools and health centres, and remain the main cause of population displacement. Recurrent shocks are likely to continue to disrupt the livelihoods and resilience of the most vulnerable populations, limiting agricultural production and exacerbating food insecurity. Indeed, the agriculture sector consists of subsistence farming and represents the most important driver of the economy, contributing to 39.8 percent of the country’s GDP, with 80 percent of the production used for consumption. Following the first cases of COVID-19 reported in Burundi, the Government put in place a series of urgent and essential preventive measures, including quarantine sites, screening tests and the closure of borders, in order to contain the spread of the disease. Although the results of a rapid assessment conducted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) on the impacts of COVID-19 on agriculture and food security are expected in late July, negative effects on food accessibility due to increased prices are already observed. Furthermore, the 14-day quarantine has already led to a slowdown in trade and is disrupting cross-border markets, affecting employment opportunities for casual labour and incomes. In the framework of FAO’s Corporate COVID-19 Response and Recovery Programme and the United Nations Global Humanitarian Response Plan for COVID-19, FAO has revised its humanitarian response for 2020 to mitigate the effects of the pandemic and address the needs of the most vulnerable households.