Cyclical drought, food insecurity, cyclones, floods, disease outbreaks, and complex emergencies present significant challenges to vulnerable populations throughout the Southern Africa region. Between FY 2007 and FY 2016, USAID’s Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA) and USAID’s Office of Food for Peace (USAID/FFP) provided humanitarian assistance in response to a diverse range of natural and manmade disasters. Examples include droughts, floods, and food insecurity throughout Southern Africa; cyclones in Madagascar and Mozambique; complex emergencies in Comoros, Madagascar, and Zimbabwe; droughts in Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, and Zimbabwe; locust outbreaks in Madagascar; disease outbreaks in Zimbabwe; refugee returns in Angola; and earthquakes in Comoros and Malawi.
Between FY 2007 and FY 2016, USAID provided nearly $1.2 billion to assist disaster-affected populations in Southern Africa. The total includes nearly $986 million from USAID/FFP for food assistance, comprising U.S.-purchased food, locally and/or regionally purchased food, cash transfers for food, food vouchers, and related activities, as well as nearly $171 million from USAID/OFDA for interventions in agriculture and food security, economic recovery and market systems, health, humanitarian coordination and information management, logistics support and relief commodities, nutrition, protection, shelter and settlements, and water, sanitation, and hygiene.
In the last decade, USAID responded to 61 disasters in Southern Africa. USAID also deployed humanitarian teams to the region, including one Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART). USAID deployed a DART to Zimbabwe in 2009 to respond to a complex emergency generating significant humanitarian needs. USAID also activated a Washington, D.C.-based Response Management Team to support coordination and response efforts.