National Democratic Institute
ABIDJAN, 18 Dec 2002 (IRIN) - A trio of humanitarian organisations conducted over the week the first humanitarian assessment in the western town of Daloa which recently saw the scene of fighting between the Ivorian national army and armed rebels.

The World Food Programme, Action contre la faim and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) spent 14-15 December in the towns of Daloa, Vavoua, Duekoue and neighbouring localities to inquire about the state of those affected by the recent fighting and lay the groundwork for an eventual humanitarian assistance programme.

As at 12 December, the Ivorian Red Cross had registered close to 17,000 displaced who had been living among 95 families, OCHA reported in its 16 December mission report. An additional 5,000 had found refuge at the local social center. In the locality of Bonoufla, the displaced numbered some 4,000, most of them fleeing fighting in Vavoua, a major town in western Cote d'Ivoire. While those who had taken refuge in Daloa had received some assistance in food items, the report quoted those displaced in Bonoufla as saying that they had received no aid since they had arrived on 17 November. The small town was also short on medication, latrines and other non-food items.

In the locality of Zahibo, the number of displaced had considerably dropped from 14,000 people on 5 October to some 3,000, OCHA said. Diarrhoea, chicken pox and conjunctivitis were the most frequent illnesses among the displaced. The availability of water was offset by the insufficient number of latrines, the report said.

Catholic churches continued to transform themselves into hosting sites as it was the case with the Catholic church of Duekoue, which according to Father Emilio, had catered for mostly Burkina Faso nationals who had been living in the area. While the church's compound had been hosting close to 2,000 of them, another 1,000 was reportedly living with host families, and another 300 in neighbouring villages. The church, which has had difficulty catering to the larger number, had been spending about $ US $314 (200,000 FCFA) per day for their needs.

During each visit, WFP seized the opportunity to propose a plan for an eventual food distribution. However because these localities are located in the war zones, food distribution should be kept at a minimum followed by a relocation of the populations toward a safer area, for example Yamoussoukro. Because this mission was a "rapid, general assessment", other organisations were urged to conduct more in-depth assessment missions to better identify the needs.

On the diplomatic front, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) opened its second extraordinary summit on Cote d'Ivoire in the Senegalese capital Dakar. The heads of state will attempt to put back on track negotiations which have stalled so to find a peaceful agreement to the three-month conflict.

In other news, a Belgian lobby group, Prevention Genocides, who two years ago produced a film warning of the spectre of civil war and genocide in Cote d'Ivoire, has come out again to appeal to the international community to act so that later it won't be tempted to say "we did not know". In a two-page appeal, the organisation calls for the instauration of an international police force on the entire territory, "and not only along the frontline", to protect the civilians; a round-table of political parties to negotiate durable solutions, and donors to condition any future aid on a climate conducive to durable peace.

For Prevention Genocides full statement please visit www.prevention-genocides.org

[ENDS]

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