Fatoumata, 67 and her family moved several times to escape from armed attacks. Originally from Sigue-Raguin, she fled the first time to seek safety in Foubé. But the executions and threats continued and they had to flee from Foubé to Kaya.

"The armed men have chased us away from our homes and killed our loved ones. That’s why we fled and came here. We don’t have any food, we don’t have a roof over our head, we have nothing at all. We are asking for assistance." She said.

"We left yesterday and arrived here today. We haven’t eaten anything since the sun rose. 

Just the day before yesterday, 6 people were caught and killed while they were on the road. After this, the attackers went to… I don’t remember where, but so many people have been killed. 

We were all filled with fear so we immediately took to the road and by the grace of God we were able to escape. Our wish is to settle down in peace and receive some food or any other assistance. What we need the most is some assistance and a place where we can stay. All we are praying for now is to receive some assistance." Fatoumata added.

Date: 21 January 2020
Location: Kaya - Center North Burkina Faso
Photo: Tom Peyre-Costa/NRC
"The armed men have chased us away from our homes and killed our loved ones. That’s why we fled and came here. We don’t have any food, we don’t have a roof over our head." says Fatoumata, 67. She and her family have moved several times to escape armed attacks. Photo: Tom Peyre-Costa/NRC

NRC in Burkina Faso and Niger

The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) set up operations in Burkina Faso and Niger in 2019 to serve those affected by the crisis sweeping through the two countries.

 

A total of

248,868

people in need received our assistance in 2022.

 

Humanitarian overview

Burkina Faso has experienced an unprecedented rise in violence and skyrocketing humanitarian needs since 2019 due to attacks by non-state armed groups and the besiegement of several towns entrapping up to 600,000 civilians in 2022. As of December 2022, the country registered around 1.9 million internally displaced people (IDPs), a staggering 21-fold increase over the past three years. Mounting security challenges and social tensions have created massive discontent in the population, leading to two military takeovers in January and September 2022. Displacement figures are expected to continue to increase throughout this year.

In Niger, one of the world’s poorest countries, in the Sahel, a rise in cross-border attacks targeting armed forces and community leaders has led to a deterioration of the security situation and forced displacement. In addition to the 376,809 internally displaced people, conflict in neighbouring countries has driven a quarter million refugees to seek safety in Niger resulting in significant humanitarian needs that the state has found difficult to address.

  • 48,722
    people benefited from our education programme
  • 32,402
    people benefited from our food security programme
  • 59,603
    people benefited from our shelter programme
  • 90,197
    people benefited from our camp management programme
  • 31,613
    people benefited from our ICLA programme
  • 40,294
    people benefited from our WASH programme

 

NRC's operation

In March 2019, NRC opened a country office in Niger. Due to the emergency needs across the border in Burkina Faso, NRC began operations there in July 2019 focusing its response in the Centre North region and later expanding in the Sahel and North Region. In Niger, NRC has strengthened its responses in Tillabery and Maradi regions and expanded operations in Tahoua region through educational programming. The joint country office has started its splitting process to increase response, advocacy, and program development capacities in the two countries.

 

NRC Livelihoods and food securityLivelihoods and food security


Our livelihoods team are:

  • supporting targeted households with income generating activities and reducing negative coping mechanisms
  • supporting people living in displacement with negotiating access to land and distributing seeds and agricultural tools
  • improving access to food and non-food items for the most vulnerable internally displaced people using the standard food ration value per household, through distribution of multi-purpose cash and food
  • distributing small animals for livestock recovery
  • distributing agricultural input and tools enabling households and communities to start rebuilding their lives

 

NRC Shelter and settlementsShelter and settlements


Our shelter teams are:

  • providing essential household items including kitchen sets, bedding, clothes, and mosquito nets
  • providing complete shelter solutions either through temporary or transitional models
  • conducting site-coordination activities, especially site planning, to enable the installation of shelters and minimum basic services, delivered by NRC or in coordination with other actors
  • advocating on issues related to the establishment of new sites
  • constructing durable houses to contribute to the local resettlement of internally displaced people
  • contributing positively to the shelter cluster on global and local issues

 

NRC Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH)Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH)


Our WASH teams:

  • promote appropriate sanitation and hygiene in schools and communities and rehabilitate WASH infrastructures
  • drill and install solar powered water systems in sites housing internally displaced people and host communities
  • construct school latrines, family latrines and emergency latrines in sites housing internally displaced people
  • sensitise communities on hygiene practices and the prevention of communicable diseases
  • distribute Covid-19 kits to communities and put in place handwashing facilities

 

NRC EducationEducation


Focusing on education in emergencies, we are:

  • supporting the formal system to increase hosting capacity for internally displaced children
  • providing adapted learning conditions to ensure the retention of students in schools
  • conducting awareness-raising campaigns within the schools to promote inclusive education, enhance social cohesion and peaceful cohabitation between displaced and host community children
  • distributing education kits to improve the learning conditions of students
  • constructing semi-permanent school blocks and repairing existing classrooms
  • working to improve access to education in areas where schools are forcibly closed by armed groups, while protecting children from harm and promoting safe and inclusive learning environments
  • providing vocational trainings for marginalised youth while promoting apprenticeships, mentoring and career guidance
  • initiating the Better Learning Programme in targeted schools to support out-of-school children who have experienced trauma
  • building the capacity of teachers and community members on the newly introduced Better Learning Programme

NRC Information, counselling and legal assistance (ICLA)Information, counselling and legal assistance (ICLA)


We are assisting affected communities to:

  • access information on the legal and civil documentation processes
  • obtain the civil and identity documentation necessary to access rights and services
  • understand and protect their housing, land and property right
  • organise capacity-building sessions for local authorities and civil documentation officials on issues pertaining to land and civil documentation
  • lead the housing, land and property rights working group to build capacity and advocate with authorities, humanitarian actors and other stakeholders.

 

Protection from violence


Our site management teams are:

  • providing protection to internally displaced people living in temporary sites
  • working with other organisations to open appropriate sites for internally displaced people and host communities
  • conducting appropriate site assessments to identify protection needs for internally displaced people and local communities

 

About nrc in Burkina Faso

Established
2019
International staff
20
Areas of operation
North, Centre-North, Sahel (Burkina Faso), Maradi, Tillaberi and Tahoua (Niger)
National staff
191

Contact

Country Director

Hassane Hamadou

Phone

+226 65524302 / +227 964 90 330