DAKAR, Aug. 7 — The Senegalese government will mobilize more than 7.2 billion CFA francs to finance food, nutrition and livestock assistance for vulnerable communities affected by the lean season, Prime Minister Ahmadou Al Aminou Lo said Thursday.
Speaking at an interministerial meeting on food security, Lo instructed the Ministry of Economy, Finance and Planning to make the funds, totaling 7.203 billion CFA francs, available to the agencies implementing the assistance plan by Aug. 12.
The funds will be used for cash transfers to vulnerable households, the distribution of food packages, nutritional support for at-risk groups and the supply of livestock feed in areas facing shortages.
According to the Harmonized Framework, a regional tool used by the government to assess food insecurity, 836,786 people in 92,976 households are experiencing severe food insecurity.
The departments of Goudiry, Salemata, Bambey, Matam, Podor and Ranerou are among the hardest hit. The plan earmarks 2.64 billion CFA francs for cash transfers, 700 million CFA francs for food packages, 727.7 million CFA francs for nutritional assistance and more than 3.13 billion CFA francs for livestock support. (Namibia Daily News / Xinhua)
