Ministry of Social Action and National Solidarity

National Committee for Emmergency and Rehabilitation Assistance

01 BP 515 Ouagadougou 01
Tél.: (226) 34 70 03
Fax : (226) 34 52 51
Burkina Faso

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Overall picture of the execution of phase 1 of the 2001 emergency food aid
in the eighteen (18) provinces that benefited from tons

Title I. Tehcnical assessment

  1. General context of the 2001 emergency food aid

The poor rainfall of the 200-2001 agricultural campaign resulted in Burkina Faso. The most affected provinces were those of the Cente, Centre-North, the Sahel and the East. The consequences of the present situation have already started to be observed in the form of food shortages in the hard hit areas, and this as early as March 2001. conscious of the situation of disaster. The Government in February 2001 launched an appeal to national and international solidarity.

Following this appeal, the Governement, in collaboration with its partners, worked out an emergency food aid programme in three phases :

The first phase dealt with in the present report was entirely funded by the Burkinabe State with a contribution of 4 083 tons of local grain worth 622 milletlion; these quantities were used for assisting the vulnerable groups needy populations identified on the basis of the Extreme Poverty Index in eighteen (18) provinces that were singled out for distribution.

The document makes a synthesis of the technical and financial of this first phase of the 2001 emergency food aid operation with 4 083 tons of local grain.

  1. Presentation of CONASUR

Burkina Faso has, since 1970s, been experiencing a number of major difficulties due to catastrophes such as droughts and inundations. To deal with this situation, the Governement set up as early as 1973 a structure whose mission it is to prevent these natural phenomena, or to curb their bad effects on the populations and the environment. The structure is called the National Commission for the Struggle and againdt the Effects of Drought (CNLES).

With the determination of the government authories to take into account the management of the other catastrophies, the commission was changed to National Committee for Emergency and Rehabilitation Assistance (CONASUR), whose role and internal organization are as follow :

The CONASUR was established on March 5, 1993 under decree N°93/PRES/069/SASF. It is made up of about 50 ministerial departments and NGOs, the latter being represented by the SPONG and the Red Cross.

Internal organization:

  • The Provincial Committees for Emergency and Rehabilitation Assistance (COPROSUR) at the provincial level

  • The Departemental Committee for Emergency and Rehabilitation Assistance (CODESUR) at the departemental level

  • The Village Committee for Emergency and Rehabilitation Assistance (COVISUR) at the village level

  • The Municipal Committee for Emergency and Rehabilitation Assistance (COMISUR) at the village level.

Its role is centered round the prevention and management of natural disaster in Burkina Faso.

Its main missions are :

  • Work out and implement the National Plan for the organization and Coordination for Emergency and Rehabilitation Assistance (PNOCSUR) in case of disaster.

  • Take care of the coordination, follow up and elaboration of programmes for curbing the effects of the disasters on the national territory.

  • Take care of the training of the provincial administrative personnel in the field of prevention and management of disasters.

  • Educate and sensitize the populations on the prevention and management of the disasters.

To reach these objectives, the Permanent Secretariat of CONASUR pursues three (3) types of activites :

  • Prevention activities

  • Emergency intervention activities

  • Rehabilitation activities.

  1. Invitation to bid for suppling 4 083 tons of local grain

3.1  Purchasing procedures

To have at its disposal the 4 083 tons of grain to be made available to the COPROSURs of the affected provinces for free distribution to needy persons identififed according to the Extreme Poverty Index (EPI), yhe Management Joint Committee has placed an invitation to bid. After the bids were examined, the market was given to eighten (8) national economic actores operating in the food processing sector. They went on delivered the supplies directly in the chief-towns of the provinces.

The minutes of the bidding deliberation for the provision of 4 083 metric tons of local grain is attached as appendix 1.

3.2  Situation of the deliveries

The general recapitulative situation of the attributions and the follow up situation of the deliveries by the grain dealers present::

  • The total amount of the markets = 621 608 800 CFA F

  • The situation of the deliveries by types of product

  • The total quantity delivered to the eighteen (18) provinces : 4 083 MT

  • The examination of the deliveries table reveal that the deliveries have been made at 100%.

  1. Unfolding of the operation

4.1  Identification of the beneficiaries

The persons who benefited from this first phase of the  Emergency Food Aid were identified according to the Extreme Poverty Index (EPI). The idenification mission was put in the hands of the Social Action and National Solidarity bodies, with the help of the Prefects and the village administrative heads of affected areas.

The criteria that were used for identifying the beneficiaries are the following:

  • State of dispossession
  • Physical and health condition (old age, physical or moral handicap)
  • Absence of lack of support
  • Handicapped and/or old persons without revenue
  • Orphans and widows without support
  • Chronically ill and invalid persons
  • Persons lacking the minimum means of existence

These criteria made it possible for 106,556 perons to benefit from this food aid for free.

4.2  Reception operation

After the invitation to bid was launched and the markets attributed in March, the different targetered provinces started receiving their grants from mid-March to April 2001.

As soon as the provisions were received, the COPROSURs started distribution within the departements according to a preestablised sharing out plan. Then each CODESUR took care of the sharing out at the village level.

4.3   Distribution operations

Distribution Committeees composed of COPROSURs and CODESURs members were set up in the different provinces. The free distribution was done on the basis of lists of beneficiaries identified by the services of the Social Action with the help of the prefects and the administrative rulers of the villages.

Prior to the distribution proper, the information is disseminated by means of the local radio stations, the town criers and the administrative rulers of the villages.

The selected benficiaries walked to the different distribution centers with their administrative documents (famillety record books, Burkinabe identity card) and received their grants.

The quantities eceived by the beneficiaries varied from province to province and from departement to departement according to the number of persons registered.

For example, the quantity received by beneficiary ranged from 15 to 50 kg of grain.

4.4  situation of distribution

The table II.  presents the quantified situation of the free distribution operations.

  1. Follow-up – Supervision

Follow-up and supervision tours were made in the seventeen beneficiary provinces.

In the provinces, the supervision was conducted by the COPROSURs and in the departements by the Prefects, presidents of CODESURs.

The working sessions during these supervision trips consisted in exchanging with the decentralized services and the actors involved in the different operations. The questions were essentially centered roung the reception operation.

The pratical organization of the operation, the functioning of the system put in place, the difficulties experienced and possible suggestions.

  1. Main difficulties experienced

 Main difficulties experienced during this first phase of the Emergency Food Aid are as follows:

  • The inadequacy of the quantities allocated to the COPROSURs

  • The problem of storage of the supplies due to the  inadequacy of the infrastructures available in the  chief-towns of provinces and the departements.

  • Transportation problems – the economic actors in the different areas found the rate of 60F a kilometric (?) to be little attractive.

  • Difficulties in identifying and selecting the persons in need in this period of crisis.

  • The irregularity of supervision missions (CONASUR, COPROSUR) because of the lack of means of transportaion or their poor state repair. Lack of means for opening a file of the needy persons in the provinces.

  • The delay in the releasing of the funds for the different provisions of services (hauling, internal ventilation, follow-up supervision).

  1. Conclusion and recommandations

The operation “Emergency Food Aid 2001” was satisfactory on the whole. All the eighteen (18) selected provinces have received to totality of the quantities as planned.

The positive impact of the operation is self-evident; this is showing on the field through the messages of gratitude from the spokespersons and the traditional rulers of the beneficiary populations to the Government and the Partners.

To correct the shortcomings observed on the fields during this first phase of the emergency food aid, it would be indicated that :

  • The releasing of the funds be done in time to make possible the good working of the operation; if need be, the deliveries must be done directly to the departements concerned, following the provincial distribution plan;

  • The means be given to the services of the Social Action and National Solidarity to allow them to build a file for the needy persons in the provinces (to be update periodically)

  • The quantities to be distributed free be increased to take into account the big numbers of needy persons identified.

  • Adequate means be given to the CONASUR and the COPROSURs to allow them to carry out an efficient follow-up of the different operations.