Highlights
• UNICEF and WHO supported the Ministry of Health (MoH) roll out a national Measles Rubella vaccination campaign, reaching approximately 88 per cent of children nation-wide aged 9 months to 14 years.
• UNICEF supported the procurement of required anthropometric equipment. The equipment has been provided to the Swaziland National Nutrition Council to strengthen community monitoring of malnutrition and improving the identification and response to child malnutrition at health facilities, schools and in affected communities.
• Monitoring of cases of diarrhoea is on-going, to date 5,139 cases were reported and UNICEF is supporting the strengthening of case management of diarrhoea among children through the Integrated Management of Newborn and Childhood Illnesses (IMNCI) strategy.
• Over the past month, 7,692 children in the two most affected communities have access to clean water through trucking; this brings the total number of people provided with safe water in 2016 by UNICEF to 25,192.
• Preliminary results of the Swaziland vulnerability assessment report conducted in May-June, indicate an estimated 308,059 people are currently in need of food assistance. This figure is projected to rise to 414,834 people between June 2016 and April 2017.
• A comprehensive Child Protection assessment is currently being conducted on the drought’s impact on vulnerable populations, specifically, child protection concerns. The final results are expected to be released in August 2016.
Situation Overview & Humanitarian Needs
The Swaziland Vulnerability Assessment Committee (SVAC) released preliminary results of the drought situation in the country. The VAC report confirms the drought’s prolonged devastating impact. An estimated 308,059 people are in need of urgent food assistance while 414,834 people require livelihood support. The VAC findings will inform the development of implementation plans for different Emergency response sectors.