Burkina Faso: the humanitarian situation is worrying

According to the latest report of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), more than two million people need humanitarian assistance in Burkina Faso because of the armed attacks faced by the country since 2015.

In January 2020, more than 614,000 people were forced to flee their localities to other destinations they consider to be more secure. Thus, this flow of populations has resulted in a serious humanitarian crisis. Last January, the exacerbation of violence against the civilian population, mainly in Soum, Sanmatenga, Seno and Sourou, created new displacements of populations. According to the report, 318,000 pupils are deprived of access to education due to the closure of 2,410 schools due to insecurity.

To date, OCHA estimates that 56% of displaced people are homeless or do not have adequate shelter.

The number of people in need of assistance has therefore increased from 1.5 million in December 2019 to 2.2 million in January 2020. According to the overview of humanitarian needs, in 2020, 948,000 people need protection and 1.5 million people depend on humanitarian aid for health.

In this year, OCHA estimates that US $ 312 million will be required to provide multisectoral emergency assistance to 1.8 million people targeted by the humanitarian community. This humanitarian situation is more than worrying for the country, which is still struggling to find the right formula for booting terrorism beyond its borders. And “if nothing is done”, as the minister in charge of humanitarian action, Laurence Marshall / Ilboudo had warned, the situation is likely to worsen because the attacks are increasing day by day and the humanitarian situation exasperates, following the sad development of the security situation.