USAID and the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) have agreed
to provide USD 774,000 and USD 70,000 respectively to help IOM to
deliver lifesaving aid to some 25,000 vulnerable Malians displaced
by conflict in the north of the country.

The aid, including essential non-food relief items, transport
assistance, family tracing and reunification, medical referrals and
psychosocial assistance, will target the most vulnerable, including
women, unaccompanied children, the aged and those living with
disabilities.

The projects, implemented in close collaboration with UNHCR and
other humanitarian partners, including local NGOs, will primarily
target conflict-affected internally displaced people (IDPs) from
Gao, Timbuktu and Kidal.  

From this week, IOM will also coordinate with Mali’s
Ministry of Civil Protection in Bamako and other humanitarian
actors, using IOM’s displacement tracking matrix tools to
track and monitor IDP movements, while at the same time identifying
needs and targeting humanitarian aid.

Mali has been severely affected by sporadic fighting that
restarted in January 2012 between the government and Tuareg rebels
demanding independence from the south. A military coup in March led
to further intensification of the fighting as extremist groups
joined the conflict.

In April the rebels declared the northern part of the country an
independent Islamic state of AZAWAD, but many residents and other
groups are opposed to secession from the South.

The crisis has led to the internal displacement of an estimated
154,754 people and more than 180,000 refugees who have sought
refuge in neighbouring Niger, Burkina Faso, Mauritania and
Algeria.

The mass displacement has put increased pressure on host
communities in Mali and neighboring countries already impacted by
severe food shortages that has been affecting the entire Sahel
region in the past months.

IOM is seeking additional funding to help more IDP’s and
to implement livelihood projects that will help vulnerable Malian
hosting communities to cope with the ongoing complex crisis.

For more information, please contact

Judy Dacruz

IOM Bamako

Tel. +223 74.40.05.68

Email: "mailto:jdacruz@iom.int">jdacruz@iom.int