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OCHA Policy Brief on Gendered Drivers, Risks and Impacts of Food Insecurity in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (2023) CC

It is widely understood that the food insecurity crisis in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa is one of the world’s fastest growing and most neglected crises. It lacks sufficient global focus, resources and urgency. As in so many crises, women and girls are disproportionately affected and shoulder t...he consequences of protracted neglect, with unconscionable impacts on their safety, life chances and agency. Gaining a holistic view of the gendered drivers, risks and impacts of food insecurity in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa is difficult. This is due to a lack of data and prioritization, and the large geographical and socioeconomic terrain covered by both regions. However, what we do know about this crisis is more than enough to urgently address the needs of women and girls. An OCHA discussion paper on this topic (which will be published imminently, and from which this policy brief is drawn) found that there is: A strong risk of profound regression in gender equality gains made to date in the countries of concern, including on education, sexual and reproductive health, and the economic independence of women and girls (with knock-on effects on broader humanitarian and development outcomes). An increasing challenge to reverse what must be recognized as a protracted and growing gender-based violence (GBV) emergency in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa. The food insecurity crisis in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa is protracted, multidimensional and highly gendered, with spiralling impacts on gender equality and food security outcomes. It is driven by interwoven and overlapping factors, including climate change, political instability, conflict, socioeconomic conditions, migration and displacement and, more recently, COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine. Interlinked with these factors are gendered structural drivers of food insecurity, including deeply entrenched gender inequalities and harmful social norms. Gendered risks and impacts of food insecurity include alarming limitations on access to education, sexual and reproductive health rights, women’s agency and participation, and dramatic increases in different existing forms of GBV and the emergence of new ones. Recognition of such gendered dimensions of food insecurity and of the need for a multisectoral approach in the response is key to addressing the crisis, along-side sustained commitment and adequate allocation of resources. This policy brief draws out key findings from the OCHA discussion paper on this topic, which includes a desk review of studies, assessments and reports, and interviews with local women’s organizations on the front lines of the food insecurity crisis in communities across both regions. Below are the most pressing gendered drivers, risks and impacts of food insecurity (not in order of priority), as well as key gaps in the current humanitarian response to food insecurity, and recommendations to take forward. more

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Compendium of forgotten foods in Africa: A companion publication for Integrating Africa’s forgotten foods for better nutrition
recommended

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FAO (2024) CC

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has launched a new Compendium of forgotten foods in Africa which is a first-of-its-kind comprehensive collection of 100 African forgotten food crops. Also referred to as neglected, underutilized or orphan crops, these species offer valua... more

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Hesitation and Refusal Factors in Individuals' Decision-Making Processes Regarding a Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination

Cerda A. A., Garcia L. Y. (2021) C2

Introduction: Considering the global prevalence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a vaccine is being developed to control the disease as a complementary solution to hygiene measures—and better, in social terms, than social distancing. Given that a vaccine will eventually be produced, informa... more

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West & Central Africa HIV catch-up - WHO in an era of transformation

World Health Organisation (WHO) (2023) C_WHO

The Transformation Agenda (TA) ushered in an ambitious reform process intended to transform the World Health Organization (WHO) into an organization that is proactive, results-driven, accountable and which meets stakeholder expectations, towards transforming and improving public health services in t... more

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State of inequality: HIV, tuberculosis and malaria.

World Health Organization WHO; Global Fund (2021) C_WHO

The World Health Organization and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria are part of a group of agencies working together to accelerate progress towards the health-related SDGs through the Global Action Plan for Healthy Lives and Well-being for All. Understanding patterns of inequal... more

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Cholera - Q & A - Fact Sheet

UN Children's Fund UNICEF (2019) CC

The Cholera Q&A Fact Sheet provides essential information about cholera, including its causes, symptoms, treatment, and prevention. Cholera is an acute diarrheal disease caused by Vibrio cholerae, which spreads through contaminated water and food. It leads to rapid dehydration and can be fatal if un... more

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Africa’s Health Financing in a New Era

Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) (2025) CC

Africa’s health sector is facing an unprecedented financing crisis, driven by a sharp decline of 70% in Official Development Assistance (ODA) from 2021 to 2025 and deep-rooted structural vulnerabilities. This collapse is placing immense pressure on Africa’s already fragile health systems as ODA ...is seen as the backbone of critical health programs: pandemic preparedness, maternal and child health services, disease control programs are all at risk, threatening Sustainable Development Goal 3 and Universal Health Coverage. Compounding this is Africa’s spiraling debt, with countries expected to service USD 81 billion by 2025—surpassing anticipated external financing inflows—further eroding fiscal space for health investments. Level of domestic resources is low. TThe Abuja Declaration of 2001, a pivotal commitment made by African Union (AU) member states, aimed to reverse this trend by pledging to allocate at least 15% of national budgets to the health sector. However, more than two decades later, only three countries—Rwanda, Botswana, and Cabo Verde—have consistently met or exceeded this target (WHO, 2023). In contrast, over 30 AU member states remain well below the 10% benchmark, with some allocating as little as 5–7% of their national budgets to health. In addition, only 16 (29%) of African countries currently have updated versions of National Health Development Plan (NHDP) supported by a National Health Financing Plan (NHFP). These two documents play a critical role in driving internal resource mobilisation. At the same time, public health emergencies are surging, rising 41%—from 152 in 2022 to 213 in 2024—exposing severe under-resourcing of health infrastructure and workforce. Recurring outbreaks (Mpox, Ebola, cholera, measles, Marburg…) alongside effects of climate change and humanitarian crises in Eastern DRC, the Sahel, and Sudan, are overwhelming systems stretched by chronic underfunding. The situation is worsened by Africa’s heavy dependency with over 90% of vaccines, medicines, and diagnostics being externally sourced—leaving countries vulnerable to global supply chain shocks. Health worker shortages persist, with only 2.3 professionals per 1,000 people (below the WHO’s recommended 4.45), and fewer than 30% of systems are digitized, undermining disease surveillance and early warning. Without decisive action, Africa CDC projects the continent could reverse two decades of health progress, face 2 to 4 million additional preventable deaths annually, and a heightened risk of a pandemic emerging from within. Furthermore, 39 million more Africans could be pushed into poverty by 2030 due to intertwined health and economic shocks. This is not just a sectoral crisis—it is an existential threat to Africa’s political, social, and economic resilience, and global stability. In response, African leaders, under Africa CDC’s stewardship, are advancing a comprehensive three-pillar strategy centered on domestic resource mobilization, innovative financing, and blended finance. more

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The Inter-American Convention on Protecting the Human Rights of Older Persons as a tool to promote the Decade of Healthy Aging

Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) (2023) C_WHO

This report aims to outline the current available knowledge on the health and wellbeing of older persons in the Region of the Americas during the United Nations Decade of Healthy Ageing (2021-2030). It also seeks to guide political actions towards ensuring the human rights of older persons, and desc... more

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ИНСТРУМЕНТ ИССЛЕДОВАНИЯИ РУКОВОДСТВО Быстрый, простойи гибкий анализ поведенческих аспектов, связанныхсCOVID-19

World Health Organization WHO (2020) C_WHO

Настоящий документ представляет собой руководство для государств-членов в Европейском регионе ВОЗ, которые желают провести исследования, направленные на выяснен... more

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Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC): Ebola virus disease outbreak - Emergency Plan of Action Operations Update n°3 (MDRCD026)

International Federation of Red Cross And Red Crescent Societies IFRC (2018) C1

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Ebola Synthesis Reference Document

Powell, Steve and others International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) (2017) C1

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Community-Based Child Protection Mechanisms in Refugee Camps in Rwanda: An Ethnographic Study

Child Protection in Crisis Network for Research, Learning & Action (2013) CC

Despite the increasing population of refugees stuck in protracted situations and our awareness of the vulnerability of children and adolescents growing in up these contexts, relatively little is known about community based child protection mechanisms (CBCPMs) in refugee communities. CBCPMs, defined ... more

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Regulation and Management of International Emergency Medical Teams

Ville de Goyet, Claude de; Perez Calderon, Luis Jorge; Saimiento, Juan Pablo et al. International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), World Health Organization (WHO) (2017) C_WHO

The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of the issues in regulating and managing international emergency in a selection of large and small-scale sudden onset disasters (SODs). In doing so, it aims to contribute to several key international commitments as well as its objective in disaste... more

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Global Monitoring of Disease Outbreak Preparedness: Preventing the Next Pandemic

Harvard Global Health Institute (2018) C1

This report is primarily intended for the community of policymakers and researchers concerned about the rising risks of domestic, regional, and global infectious disease epidemics, and the collective failure to take the coordinated actions required to reduce such risks. These risks include the expec... more

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Community-Based Rehabilitation: Cambodia’s experience

Mr. Lao Veng (2011) CC

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What Are We Learning About Protecting Children in the Community? An inter-agency review of the evidence on community-based child protection mechanisms in humanitarian and development settings

Mike Wessells Save the Children (2008) CC

How to respond to, mitigate, and prevent risks to children’s protection and well-being is a profound, if unanswered, question. Practitioners agree that it is necessary to develop or strengthen protective factors at multiple levels, such as the family, community, and national levels.

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Build back better in recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction (Consultative version)

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) (2017)

This consultative version of the guideline is the product of literature reviews, discussions and contributions from diverse stakeholders, as well as UNISDR-nominated experts appointed specifically for the development of the Words into Action guideline for Build back better in recovery, rehabilitatio... more

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COVID-19: стратегический план по обеспечению готовности и реагирования. Руководство оперативному планированию, 1 февраля 2021 г. – 31 января 2022 г.

World Health Organization WHO (2021) C_WHO

Compendium of forgotten foods in Africa: A companion publication for Integrating Africa’s forgotten foods for better nutrition recommended

Compendium of forgotten foods in Africa: A companion publication for Integrating Africa’s forgotten foods for better nutrition
recommended