USD 11 million allocation from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to meet the urgent needs of people threatened by food and nutritional insecurity and refugees in Mali

(Bamako, May 27, 2024). The United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and
Emergency Relief Coordinator, Mr. Martin Griffiths, has allocated US$11 million from the Central
Emergency Response Fund (CERF) for a rapid response to help people threatened by food and nutrition
insecurity and refugees in Mali.

This allocation will enable the humanitarian community to provide emergency food and nutrition
assistance to 287,915 vulnerable people and to respond to the multi-sectoral needs of 38,732 refugees in
the regions of Ménaka, Gao, Mopti, Bandiagara and San.

"Funding for the humanitarian response is at an all-time low. This allocation breathes new life into the
vital assistance we are trying to provide in the northern and central regions. It also serves as a reminder
that the humanitarian situation in Mali and the central Sahel must remain an international priority," stated
Alain Noudéhou, UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Mali. In this context of
chronic underfunding, "we hope that this allocation will have a catalytic effect in mobilizing more flexible
funding, particularly for the refugee response," he added.

A total of four projects will benefit from this allocation, which will help provide multi-sectoral support
through food assistance (implemented by WFP), the distribution of emergency food production and
livestock kits (implemented by FAO), the care of children suffering from severe acute malnutrition
(implemented by UNICEF), and the protection and multi-sectoral care of refugees (implemented by
UNHCR).

The CERF allocation of $11 million is intended to increase the level of funding for humanitarian emergencies in a context where, as of May 2024, only 13% of the funding required for the 2024 Humanitarian Response Plan has been mobilized.

Note to Editors: Established by the United Nations General Assembly in 2006, the Central Emergency
Response Fund is a humanitarian funding mechanism managed by OCHA that enables a more rapid and
effective response to the vital needs of populations affected by natural disasters, armed conflict, or
underfunded crises.

For further information, please contact:

Ms Ramatoulaye Moussa Mazou, OCHA Mali, Tel. +223 92414491
ramatoulaye.moussamazou@un.org
OCHA press release are available at www.reliefweb.int/country/mli
United Nations Nations Unies