A devastating locust migration and a year of poor rains have placed 3.6 million of Niger’s 11.7 million citizens at severe risk of famine. The UN estimates that 800,000 Nigerien children under the age of five need to be fed urgently, and relief efforts have been stepped up to deliver cereals and enriched milk to at-risk populations.
As the world learns of Niger's crisis, the August 2005 issue of ADF e-news offers stories of hope that show the positive and creative steps that two Nigerien community-based organizations - the Koulbaga Gardeners Cooperative and the Women's Mutual Credit and Savings Society (MECREF) - have taken to enhance food security and provide some of Niger's poorest citizens with sustainable access to economic opportunity.
We also present information on three new ADF projects that have been designed in close partnership with community-based agricultural producers and pastoralist associations to help at-risk communities enhance their food security and develop effective responses to Niger’s current crisis.
