Emergencies
See how UNICEF is supporting humanitarian assistance to affected populations
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The challenges
Cameroon is affected by three complex humanitarian crises: the Lake Chad basin conflict, violence in the North-West and South-West (NWSW), and the impact of over 250,000 refugees from the Central African Republic (CAR) in the East, Adamawa, and North Regions.[1]
Additionally, people continue to grapple with difficult conditions emerging from epidemics and climate change-induced natural hazards. Floods are a recurrent phenomenon in Cameroon, mostly impacting the Far North and Littoral Regions. Climate change has exacerbated the frequency and severity of these floods. Between July and September 2024, floods affected almost 460,000 people, resulting in 38 deaths, the destruction or damage of 56,084 houses, the loss of 5,510 heads of livestock, and the destruction of nearly 5,510 hectares of agricultural land.[2]
Over 2.1 million people are on the move in Cameroon, either as internally displaced persons (IDPs), as returnees or refugees.[3]Family separation due to displacement destroys the community support systems essential for the prevention of protection risks in the absence of social protection services.
Cameroon’s population is predominantly young, with half of it under the age of 19. Children face high risks of violence, forced and early marriages, abuse, exploitation, and family separation, and they have significant psychosocial needs. Due to insecurity and population movements, many children have been forced to flee their villages, often witnessing or becoming victims of violence. This exposure leads to high levels of stress and trauma, which have severe negative impacts on their cognitive and emotional development. The ongoing crises in Cameroon have increased the risks of gender-based violence and resulted in grave violations of children’s rights. Over one million children in Cameroon require humanitarian child protection support.
The health system in Cameroon faces an uphill battle against outbreaks of cholera, Mpox, and polio, primarily in the West, Littoral, Far North, North-West, and South-West Regions. Insufficient access to clean water, sanitation, and health services fuels recurrent cholera outbreaks, especially in urban and peri-urban centres with inadequate waste management and urban crowding.
Conflict continues to be a major cause of food insecurity and malnutrition. The violence disrupts markets and food and nutrition services, which negatively affects food consumption and nutrition patterns, including the quality of diets. Approximately 400,000 children aged 6 to 59 months were expected to suffer from wasting in 2024, including nearly 147,000 cases of severe wasting and 248,000 cases of moderate wasting.[4] The situation is most severe for refugees in the East and Adamawa Regions, and IDPs and refugees in the Far North Region.
The various shocks have led to a decrease in income, making it difficult for crisis-affected populations to access basic social services. Poverty is a major factor preventing access to education and health services. Meanwhile, attacks on education continue, especially in the North-West and South-West Regions. Over one million children need support for education in emergency contexts.
Humanitarian actors persist in addressing the diverse needs of crisis-affected people in Cameroon. However, security threats, inadequate infrastructure, bureaucratic impediments, and significant funding gaps have created barriers to reaching children and families in need.
In 2024, UNICEF requires $70.5 million to reach over 1.3 million vulnerable people, including 1 million children. UNICEF will support access to education in emergencies, treatment for malnutrition, access to safe drinking water and sanitation, primary healthcare and immunization, and psychosocial support services. The highest levels of resources will be dedicated to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), child protection, and education interventions.
UNICEF will enhance localization and accountability to affected populations in its humanitarian response, improve emergency preparedness, expand its field presence, and prioritize community engagement and gender equality. UNICEF and partners will implement a targeted and multi-sectoral approach to address diverse needs effectively.
[1] UNHCR, displacement figures : Microsoft Power BI accessed on 8 November 2024.
[2] Overview of floods in the Far North as of 18 October 2024, OCHA.
[3] As of September 2024, 2,117,942 persons were displaced in Cameroon, including 1,036,775 internally displaced persons (IOM, OCHA),658,544 returnees (former IDPs) (IOM, OCHA), and 422,623 refugees and asylum seekers (UNHCR).
[4] Integrated Phase Classification for Acute Malnutrition (IPC AMN) analysis, conducted in 32 departments, 4 regions, and refugee sites (Central African & Nigerian) in Cameroon in January 2024 with financial and technical support from UNICEF.
1,900,000 Children in need of humanitarian assistance
3,400,000 People in need of humanitarian assistance
2,182,910 Forcedly displaced
Heavy rains from July to September 2024 caused flooding in several localities in the Far North. According to the Regional Delegation of Health, 60,777 households, including 123,441 children under 5 and 26,591 pregnant women were severely affected by the floods and at least 17 persons died due to drowning or the collapsing of houses. As of 13 September OCHA reports that 1,678 heads of livestock were lost and 13,471 hectares of agricultural land were destroyed.
The solutions
As at September 2024, UNICEF responded to the floods in the Far North, including through the distribution of 1,430 WASH kits, the installation of 19 tents to provide temporary learning spaces and the provision of essential health supplies.
Almost 25,000 children identified with severe wasting received life-saving treatment in UNICEF-supported health facilities.
Some 65,698 people benefited from protection interventions, including case management of children victims or at risk of violence, abuse and exploitation, Mental Health and Psychosocial Support, and GBV prevention, response and risk mitigation activities.
In the Far North 3,680 out-of-school children were enrolled in catch-up programs while in the North-West and Sout-West, 13,767 children continued to access non-formal education through the Radio Education Program.
Almost 112,000 people were reached with safe drinking water, appropriate sanitation facilities, critical WASH supplies and social and behavioural change programmes.
Particularly for the floods in the Far-north region, life-saving treatment in UNICEF-supported health facilities was provided to a total of 35,910 children (53 per cent girls) identified with severe wasting, which is 32 per cent of the planned target. Performance indicators met sphere standards specific to the treatment of severe wasting with an 81 per cent recovery rate, 13 per cent default rate and 3 per cent death rate. UNICEF collaborated with partners, primarily local ones, to enhance the early detection and referral of children with severe wasting, particularly in hard-to-reach areas in the Far North, NW and SW regions. Alongside screenings conducted by community health workers, 18,380 mothers and caregivers were trained on the family Middle Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC) approach and were given MUAC tapes to screen children at home and within communities. Early detection ensures that children are referred for treatment before the case becomes critical and has also been associated with shorter hospitalization periods.
UNICEF also supported the malnutrition preventive services aimed at improving the quality of children’s diets and addressing micronutrient deficiencies. Nearly 43,000 young children (51 per cent girls) aged 6 to 23 months received micronutrient powders to boost the nutrient content of their meals. This was paired with counselling and support on the use of local foods for appropriate dietary diversification through home visits and cooking demonstrations in community-based mother support groups. Additionally, 31,000 pregnant women and adolescent girls received iron and folic acid supplements in antenatal care clinics to prevent anaemia and ensure improved birth outcomes for both mother and child.
UNICEF needs $3,422,880 to expand its emergency response to the most vulnerable households affected by floods in the Far North in 2024.
UNICEF supported initiatives to improve the quality of services delivered to beneficiaries by training health workers. In the NW and SW regions, 50 health workers learned the integrated management of severe wasting and how to provide counselling and support for infant and young child feeding in emergencies (IYCF-E). Additionally, 123 community health workers were trained in community screening for wasting and IYCF-E counselling techniques. In the Far North region, in the Hina, Mokolo and Kousseri health districts that are most affected by insecurity and population displacement, 75 health personnel also received training on integrated management of severe wasting and the use of the family MUAC approach.
Some 530 WASH kits, accompanied by key messages on good hygiene practices, were distributed to 30 households in Mayo-Sangué, Mayo-Tsanaga, in July and to 500 households in Yagoua, Mayo-Danay, in September.
UNICEF is targeting the most vulnerable 1,300 households in the Maga sub-division with a three-month multi-purpose cash response, using the defined household monthly Minimum Expenditure Basket (MEB) transfer value of 57,000 XAF.
The education response plan involves an immediate response and a long-term rebuilding effort. The immediate response aims to quickly get children back to school and mitigate protection risks by setting up temporary learning spaces with tents and teaching and learning materials. The long-term strategy, “Building Back Better”, involves rehabilitating schools over the next year to make them resilient to future flooding and climate-related risks. This includes constructing schools on stilts and ensuring adequate WASH and the building of educational communities’ capacities on the design of sound and contextualized risk-reduction plans.
UNICEF prepositioned two Acute Watery Diarrhoea (AWD/cholera) kits, that can treat over 200 severe, moderate or mild cases in the Far North and North regions.