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SWAZILAND ANNUAL REPORT 2010

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Cover picture: Three-year-old Thembelihle about to eat her lunch of maize porridge and split pea stew at Mkhatsini NCP

This picture: A child playing at an NCP

3

2010 In Review The year 2010 marked a period of significant

change for WFP Swaziland. As part of the new

Country Strategy, WFP provided more technical

support in the areas of food security and social

safety-nets as part of its core programming.

This shift was in line with WFP‘s global

commitment to provide more comprehensive

food assistance and not just food aid to host

governments.

Despite the global financial downturn,

significant progress was made by the Pro-

gramme and partners in Swaziland. During

2010, WFP partnered with the Ministry of

Health (MoH) and Swaziland National

Nutrition Council to improve food support to

patients on anti-retroviral therapy and

tuberculosis treatment through the new Food by

Prescription programme. WFP purchased

fortified corn-soya blend (CSB) for the Ministry

of Health to implement the supplementary food

initiative. The major milestone achieved under

this health initiative was that supplementary

food was adopted as part of Swaziland's

treatment protocols thus ensuring proper use of

the commodity in relationship to patient care.

This was a recognition that nutrition is an

integral part of a patient‘s recovery and return

to health.

Halfway through the year, WFP handed over

some 500 of the 766 Neighborhood Care Points

its supported to the National Emergency

Response Council on HIV/AIDS (NERCHA).

With support from the Global Fund, NERCHA

was able to provide funding to a local NGO to

continue the orphaned and vulnerable child

(OVC) feeding programme during the latter

part of 2010. WFP also handed over 72 pri-

mary schools in the Lowveld to the Ministry of

Education to be incorporated into the Govern-

ment supported school meals programme. WFP

maintained its support to 265 Neighborhood

Care Points reaching 12,000 children a month

with two meals a day.

Capacity development among WFP

counterparts was a priority in 2010. Technical

support was provided to the Swaziland

Vulnerable Assessment Committee (SVAC) to

conduct the annual vulnerability assessment.

A Vulnerability Assessment Mapping Officer

was also provided to the Deputy Prime

Minister's National Disaster Management

Agency (NDMA). WFP also honoured a

request made by the Secretariat of the

Swaziland Country Coordination Mechanism

(CCM) for a nutritionist to work in

collaboration with actors to develop the

Round 10 Global Fund Proposal.

Cost efficiency continued to be a core theme

throughout the year . WFP worked with

interested partners to reduce the delivery cost

of food assistance delivery without

undermining the quality of various

interventions. One example of technical

support provided includes the hiring of an

independent consultant that facilitated a cost—

benefit analysis for the Ministry of Education

(MoE) to better understand the nutrition and

cost implications of various food baskets. The

consultant worked with a task force that had a

broad range of government, UN and NGO

representation. This assessment provided

Government with sound data to make informed

decisions on setting standards for social safety-

nets like school meals that could be budgeted

from year to year while realizing cost savings.

WFP staff also continued to assist the

Ministry of Agriculture through several working

groups during the year such as the Food and

Nutrition Security Forum and Food-for-Work

policy task force. A consultant was also

provided to the Ministry to work on the

Comprehensive African Agriculture

Development Plan (CAADP) providing a

detailed social safety-net intervention for the

CAADP Investment Plan under Pillar 3.

New partnerships also emerged in 2010. A

strong partnership between Peace Corps and

WFP resulted in strengthening food security

activities of both organizations as well as HIV/

AIDS and nutrition awareness. Finally, WFP

renewed its commitment to support the

Government of Swaziland and the United

Nations to Deliver as One in Swaziland.

Karla Hershey

Representative and Country Director

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Table of Contents

I— OPERATIONAL OVERVIEW

Food Security in Swaziland —2010 in brief …………...5

Fighting AIDS and TB ………………………………………….7

Promoting agriculture development……………………...8

Strengthening Capacity: assessments/monitoring….9

Health & Nutrition Assistance……………………………...10

WFP advocates for social safety nets……………………..11

II— PARTNERSHIPS

Implementing Partner phase out…………………………...12

Innovation in data collection: US Peace Corps ………..12

Fundraising and Advocacy : Walk the World…………..13

HIV and AIDS: Wellness Centre(s)………………………...13

Nutrition: Action Against Hunger/EGPAF………..…….13

III— 2010, 2011 & BEYOND

WFP and the Millennium Development Goals………...14

Country Strategy (2011-2015)………………………………..15

IV — FUNDING, ADMINISTRATIVE COST MANAGEMENT & DELIVERING AS ONE

Human Resources and Administration ………………….16

Funding, Finance and Resources…………………………...18

5

Operational Overview In 2010 WFP continued supporting the

Government of Swaziland to address the

challenges of HIV/AIDS and natural

disasters in the country through the third

year of the relief and recovery operation

(PRRO 10602). However, much of the

support consisted of technical assistance in

place of programme implementation as the

office shifted away from food aid and

towards food assistance in line with WFP‘s

corporate strategic objectives.

Upon agreement with Government and

partners, WFP phased out and handed over

the food for education activity and the

relief assistance to targeted households

component to Ministry of Education (MoE)

and the National Disaster Management

Agency (NDMA), respectively . The

Ministry incorporated all the schools that

WFP previously supported during the lean

season into their national school feeding

programme. The NDMA likewise took full

responsibility for the households WFP

formerly provided relief to.

In addition, WFP scaled down the number

of Neighbourhood Care Points (NCPs) and

orphans and vulnerable children it

supports and handed approximately 500

of the centres to the National Emergency

Response Council on HIV/AIDS

(NERCHA) for continued assistance

through the Global Fund. WFP was

requested to continue to provide food to

265 NCPs that are located in the most food

insecure areas of the country.

Also , WFP, together with the Ministry of

Health, redesigned the supplementary

feeding programme for ART, TB, PMTCT

and MCHN clients. The new programme

follows an evidence-based ‗Food by

Prescription‘ approach and targets only

malnourished clients and their families.

A Malnutrition Baseline Survey was

conducted to provide the Ministry of Health

and WFP with unique data on the

nutritional status of ART and TB clients to

support the programme. A scaling down of

food-based interventions reduced the

number of Field Level Agreements that

were signed with NGOs and instead WFP

took on responsibility for delivering the

food to the NCPs and health centres.

Orphaned and vulnerable children enjoying their lunch Mkhatsini Neighbourhood Care Point

Food Security in Swaziland

―2010 in brief‖

Swaziland‘s food security situation

improved slightly in 2010 as there was a

reduction in the number of food insecure

people when compared to last year. A total

of 160,989 Swazis were found to be

vulnerable to food shortages of a varying

magnitude by the Swaziland Vulnerability

Assessment Committee (SVAC, 2010).

The focus of the SVAC 2010 assessment

was on livelihoods and the extent of vul-

nerability in rural communities.

The reasons for the reduction in vul-

nerability are many-fold. One of them is

the increase in the production of the sta-

ple cereal, maize, which rose by six per-

cent to 75,068MT from 70,672 MT pro-

duced during the 2008/2009 farming

season. Swaziland‘s domestic consump-

tion requirement of maize is 104,700 MT.

This means Swaziland experienced a

shortfall of an estimated 30,000 MT. This

shortfall was expected to be met through

commercial imports and food aid provided

by Government.

The increase in production was attributed

to intensified efforts by the Government of

Swaziland and its partners to improve

agricultural yields. These included input

subsidies and improved delivery of

Government services, such as tractor hire.

However, erratic and extreme weather

conditions and other difficulties continued

to pose challenges for farmers, with

prolonged dry spells and flooding

characterizing the season in some parts of

the country.

During the 2009/10 season, land under

maize production was at 52,445ha, from

60,355ha recorded in 2007/08. One of the

reasons for this, as noted by SVAC, is that

farming costs are prohibitive for farmers,

which discourages them from planting

resulting in less total area planted, thus

reducing yields.

Despite this, household access to basic food

stuffs improved in 2010 because of the

stability in commodity prices, attributed

chiefly to the low inflation rate.

However, the SVAC noted that the

country‘s poor economic performance

over the past three years would result in

fewer resources being available for social

services and investment in agriculture.

This could further increase households‘

vulnerability in historically food insecure

regions.

WFP has taken this into consideration in

the Emergency Preparedness Plan and El

Nino Contingency Plan of the United

Nations Country Team (UNCT) in

Swaziland.

Orphaned and vulnerable children at a care point

6

Fighting AIDS and TB

―Technical Assistance‖

Following a needs assessment of the

technical support required to integrate

food and nutrition (F&N) into the Round 10

Global Fund proposals, WFP was asked to

assist the Country Coordinating Mechanism

(CCM).

In the past, F&N was included in country

proposals, but without adequate considera-

tion of the gaps and needs to be addressed.

Costs for procurement and distribution

were also neglected.

In response, WFP provided the CCM with a

HIV/Nutrition Specialist, Sara Bernadini,

to supply the team with technical

assistance with F&N for the Round 10

Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria

(GFATM) Country Proposal for Swaziland.

Ms. Bernardini was lead Consultant for the

HIV proposal on F&N. The Consultant‘s

role mainly concentrated on the budgeting

and rationalization for F&N in the HIV

proposal which had three major

components: Prevention; Treatment, Care

& Support; and Impact Mitigation. WFP

also provided a Senior M&E Assistant,

Nana Dlamini, to assist with the Impact

Mitigation component of the HIV proposal.

The technical support consisted of

including appropriate activities in the

workplan, writing the narratives and

ensuring the F&N component was included

and budgeted for in the HIV and TB

Proposals. Additionally, the Consultant‘s

Technical Assistance was requested by the

TB Proposal Development Team in order

to assist them to adequately rationalize and

effectively introduce food and nutrition

interventions.

Due to under-expenditure of funds from

Rounds 4 and 7 of the GFATM, WFP was

invited by the Swaziland National Nutrition

Council (SNNC) to submit a proposal to

implement a food assistance programme

for Prevention of Mother-to-Child

Transmission (PMTCT) clients. The

proposal was approved and WFP became a

sub-recipient to the GFATM, receiving

funds amounting to US$360,000 that will

cover activities in 2011.

Memorandums of Understanding between

WFP and the Ministry of Health and

between WFP and the National Emergency

Response Council on HIV/AIDS

(NERCHA) have been developed in

collaboration with the Legal Office at HQ,

and with assistance from other HQ

divisions. These MoUs align WFP‘s

financial systems with those of the GFATM.

7

8

Promoting agriculture development ―Technical Assistance‖

WFP’s Deputy Executive Director for Hunger Solutions, Sheila Sisulu (centre) flanked by the Minister of Agriculture, Clement Dlamini and Deputy Prime Minister, Themba Masuku during her CAADP mission

In March 2010 Swaziland‘s Comprehensive

Africa Agriculture Development

Programme (CAADP) Compact document

was signed by key Government ministries

and stakeholders. Following the signing of

this key document , WFP has continued to

support the Government to complete the

next phase of the CAADP process, the

development of an Investment Plan.

Among the guests at the CAADP Compact

signing ceremony and accompanying

Roundtable discussions was the WFP

Deputy Executive Director for Hunger

Solutions Ms Sheila Sisulu. During the

Roundtable discussions stakeholders

agreed that there was a need to strengthen

the good work that has already been

undertaken by the CAADP Country Team

including the draft Investment Options

document outlining the strategic direction

for resource mobilisation. Areas that were

identified as needing strengthening

included incorporation of nutrition and

social safety nets into the food security and

nutrition framework and a detailed

agriculture sector analysis to inform the

investment options.

WFP later received a request from the

Ministry of Agriculture to assist with the

completion of the Social Safety Net

component of the Investment Plan, and

obtained funding for a local Consultant to

undertake this task from July to

September 2010. The Consultant worked

under the supervision of the CAADP

Country Team focusing on stakeholder

consultation and preparing the social safety

net chapter which focused on the school

feeding programme.

Food and Nutrition Security Forum

In response to a request from the Ministry

of Agriculture, in July 2010 WFP hired a

Food Security and Social Safety Nets

Coordination Consultant to provide

technical assistance to the Ministry of

Agriculture to establish a Forum which will

advise Government and non-state actors on

food and nutrition security issues. Through

meetings with key focal points and

technical working group meetings, the

Terms of Reference for the Food and

Nutrition Security Forum were finalised, a

membership list was agreed upon and a

workplan for 2011 was drafted which

outlined the key issues to be addressed in

the short term.

The Ministry of Agriculture took the lead in

the process, while WFP provided advice,

administrative support and funding. The

purpose of the Forum is to provide a

coordination mechanism for actors working

in the field of food and nutrition security.

In doing so, the Forum will address issues

surrounding policy and provide a

platform for information sharing. WFP

will be part of the Permanent Secretariat of

the Forum and provide backstopping

assistance and support where necessary.

Strengthening Capacity ―Assessments & Monitoring‖

During 2010 WFP continued to provide

financial, technical and capacity building

support to the Swaziland Vulnerability

Assessment Committee (SVAC) and

participated in the national vulnerability

assessments.

WFP funded a VAM officer post in the

SVAC unit under the National Disaster

Management Agency (NDMA) with in the

Deputy Prime Minister's Office for a year.

Among the tasks of the VAM officer were:

Co-ordination with relevant stakeholders

on issues of vulnerability analysis and

assessment at the national and regional

level; taking a lead role in preparation for

the annual rolling vulnerability assessment

and analysis; and liaising with relevant

stakeholders on national early warning in-

formation

To enable the SVAC team to share

information with partners more easily and

to compliment previous capacity building

support, WFP also donated a software-

enhanced laptop and a personal computer

to the SVAC and set up internet access for

the unit‘s staff . WFP continues to mobilize

resources to support the NDMA and SVAC

where possible and this will be a key focus

area for capacity development in 2011

through the UN Development Assistance

Framework (UNDAF) with other UN

partners.

WFP continued administering the various

Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) tools

within its operations. Central to this is Post

Distribution Monitoring (PDM) - a

systematic investigation to monitor the

perception that both beneficiaries and non-

beneficiaries have of a WFP operation.

Malnutrition Baseline Survey

The Ministry of Health (MOH) through the

Swaziland National Nutrition Council (SNNC)

conducted a Malnutrition Baseline Survey in

September/October 2010. The survey was

funded by WFP and received technical support

from WFP and its partners.

The aim of the survey was to determine the

prevalence of malnutrition or wasting in adults

initiating antiretroviral (ART) and tuberculosis

(TB) treatment in the country. The MoH

viewed gathering nutritional status data for

patients on ART and TB treatment as an

important first step in integrating nutritional

care programmes within the health sector.

The Malnutrition Baseline Survey informed the

design of the new Food by Prescription pro-

gramme, which will provide integrated nutri-

tion support to clients enrolled in the ART and

TB treatment programmes.

Table 1: Preliminary results— ART and TB severe

and moderate acute malnutrition rates

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

35.00%

40.00%

45.00%

50.00%

ART TB

Moderate Acute Malnutrition

Severe Acute Malnutrition

"n= 257" and "n=111"

Health & Nutrition Assistance “Food for Hope”

WFP and the Ministry of Health (MoH) are

working together to support the

introduction and implementation of a

national Food by Prescription initiative.

Part of the preparation process for

implementation involved a comprehensive

analysis of the situation in the health

sector. The analysis was undertaken in

order to identify the limits and challenges,

as well as existing prerequisites to

implement a Food by Prescription project

efficiently. This included the undertaking

of a nutrition survey to evaluate the

nutritional status of health system clients

on anti-retroviral and tuberculosis

treatment.

In early 2010, the MoH required WFP‘s

technical assistance to design and conduct a

Malnutrition Baseline Survey (September—

November 2010) at health facility level

among people living with HIV and TB.

Implementing an effective nutrition survey

requires an in-depth analysis of the context

where the study will be conducted, careful

definition of survey groups and survey

team, as well as efficient data collection and

elaboration of the data base system.

Government engaged all the main actors in

Nutrition and HIV and TB areas including

WFP, SNAP, National TB Control

Programme (NTCP), Health Management

Information System (HMIS), and UN

agencies, EGPAF as well as other NGOs,

who are currently contributing to the

planning and preparation of the survey.

The survey was completed and analysis

results were used to prepare the improved

Food By Prescription programme .

The programme is implemented country-

wide with WFP providing food assistance

to a total of 11 hospitals and health centres

enrolled in Food by Prescription in various

parts of the country. The hospitals and

health centres receiving WFP food

assistance are as follows:

Dvokolwako, Good Shepherd, Hlathikhulu,

Mankayane, Matsanjeni, Mbabane,

Mkhuzweni, Nhlangano, Pigg‘s Peak,

Raleigh Fitkin Memorial and Sithobela.

In the course of one year, WFP will

provide over 3,000 ART/TB(DOTS)/

PMTCT patients with a monthly ration of

10 kilograms of micronutrient fortified corn

-soya blend (CSB). CSB is normally

consumed as a porridge and takes just 5-10

minutes to cook in pre-boiled water. One

may add sugar and oil after cooking it.

The client‘s family will also receive a take-

home ration comprised of 36 kg of cereal,

5 kg of pulses and 2.5 litres of vegetable oil

(5 litres every 2 months), which is enough

to last a family of six for one month. This

translates to over 19,000 beneficiaries that

WFP will reach with food assistance.

Food as part of ART/TB treatment is used

until the client reaches an appropriate

weight. The Food by Prescription

programme is designed to improve the

health and nutritional status of individuals

on ART and TB treatment and improve

their adherence and treatment outcomes.

WFP has worked with the Swaziland

National Nutrition Council (SNNC) of the

Ministry of Health to influence health

policy to influence health policy to include

nutritious food in the treatment protocols

endorsed by the Ministry.

10

11

WFP advocates for social safety nets

“National School Meals”

In keeping with WFP‘s efforts to shift from

food aid to food assistance, by mid-2010

WFP had handed over its emergency lean

season school feeding operations

(September to April) to the Ministry of

Education (MoE), which is now providing

food to virtually all primary schools across

the country. The Government‘s school

feeding programme compliments the Free

Primary Education initiative that was

introduced in 2010, beginning with grades

one and two.

To assist the government to deliver the

programme more cost effectively, the

Ministry of Education requested WFP to

help in developing a standardized national

school meals programme .

As part of the process, WFP hired an

independent consultant to assess the food

and non-food costs of various food baskets

for a period of five years beginning in 2011.

The target groups for the school meals

programme were children in public pre-

primary (early childhood education centres

and neighbourhood care points), public

primary (Grades 1 7), and public

secondary/high schools (Forms 1 5).

A National School Meals Task Force was

formed with members from government

ministries, UN agencies, and NGOs.

The primary objective was to oversee the

costing exercise and recommend to

Government the preferred food basket.

As a result of this highly collaborative

exercise, the Task Force agreed to assess

three nutritious food baskets: 1. Fortified

corn-soya blend (CSB) meal; 2. Stew of

maize, pulses and vegetable oil; and 3. Stew

of maize alternated with rice, and pulses

and vegetable oil.

The final report submitted to the Ministry

of Education in April 2010 identified option

2. Nutritious stew of maize, pulses and

vegetable oil as the preferred school meal

food basket for all grade levels. One reason

cited for the selection of this food basket

was because members felt this meal,

while not the most cost-effective when

compared to CSB, would prove the more

palatable meal on a day-to-day basis.

From June 2010, WFP was requested to

support the MoE to include the school

feeding programme as a social safety net

into the Comprehensive African

Agriculture Development Programme

(CAADP). WFP facilitated coordination

between nutrition actors, the Ministry of

Agriculture and MoE to produce a final

input for Pillar 3 of the CAADP Plan.

Pupils queuing up to be served a meal as part of the School Meals Programme

12

WFP has trained Peace Corp Volunteers

(PCVs) on establishing permaculture

gardens in primary schools, at

neighbourhood care points, and amongst

households and communities in selected

areas throughout the country; as well as the

implementation of its new Food by

Prescription programme.

The goal of this partnership initiative is to

reduce hunger and malnutrition in a

country where levels of chronic

malnutrition are soaring at 50 percent for

children 5 years and under (SVAC 2009).

The volunteers also participate in routine

data collection exercises to help improve

the oversight of WFP‘s activities and ensure

the service provided is consistent and

delivers the intended impact.

The innovative component of these

‗routine exercise‘ is that PCVs are using cell

phones to update WFP via ―sms-ing‖

real-time data on a routine basis. The data

is collected using the well-known Frontline

SMS software package. The data serves to

―red flag‖ WFP when pipeline breaks are

about to occur so that food shortages, for

example, can be avoided and/or rapidly

addressed to ensure beneficiaries are not

made to go without.

The WFP Country Office also benefits from

a Third Year Peace Corps Volunteer

working on HIV/AIDS and nutrition

issues, who joined the Mbabane-based

team in 2010.

COOPERATING PARTNERS

During the period January to June 2010,

WFP signed field level agreements with

eight cooperating partners:

Africa Co-operative Action Trust

(ACAT),

Adventist Development and Relief

Agency (ADRA),

Alliance of Mayors‘ Initiative for

Community Action on AIDS at the

Local Level (AMICAALL),

Conserve Swaziland,

Lutheran Development Services (LDS),

Save the Children,

Swaziland Farmer Development

Foundation (SFDF),

World Vision.

The NGOs listed above were implementing

various food assistance programmes in the

traditional WFP operational areas of the

Lowveld and Lubombo Plateau, as well as

selected urban centres where health centres

and neighbourhood care points are located.

However, as a result of the prioritization of

programme activities, and in line with the

shift from food aid to food assistance, from

June 2010 WFP phased out its partnerships

with the Cooperating Partners and

began direct distribution of food

commodities to beneficiaries.

WFP & US PEACE CORPS

In 2009, WFP in Swaziland and the United

States Peace Corps (PC) joined hands and

are now working together to reduce hunger

by merging technology with on-the-ground

solutions.

Partnership

“Solving Hunger Together”

13

Partnership

“ Solving Hunger Together”

―The challenges faced by OVC need the

combined efforts of everyone to ensure a

bright future for these children ,‖ she said

WFP & NORTH STAR ALLIANCE

WFP rekindled its partnership with North

Star Alliance in 2010 to provide support to

the latter in the establishment of a new

Wellness Centre for truck-drivers in the

Matsapha Industrial Site. The original

Wellness Centre located at the Ngwenya/

Oshoek border has been in existence since

2006 and provides front-line prevention

and treatment services to transporters,

sex workers and transport community

members . WFP also provides storage

facilities, communication support and

other assistance to North Star Alliance for

its activities in the country under a

Cooperative Agreement signed in 2010.

WFP & ACTION AGAINST

HUNGER / EGPAF

In 2010, Action Against Hunger emerged

as a major partner to WFP in nutrition

issues, playing a key role in carrying out

the Malnutrition Baseline Survey of

October 2010 and in the design of the

Food by Prescription programme,

particularly the infant feeding component.

Also, WFP and the Elizabeth Glasier

Pediatrics AIDS Foundation (EGPAF)

advocate together for policy and

programmes that promote good nutrition

in the country, especially among

vulnerable groups. Activities like this help

to minimize the need for food aid and

thus ensure long-term solutions to hunger

can be found.

WFP & ESICOJENI FOUNDATION

In August 2010, WFP joined its private

sector partner, Esicojeni Foundation, in

the hosting of the global fundraising and

advocacy event, End Hunger, Walk the

World.

The walk, which began and ended at

Somhlolo Stadium in Lobamba, was

attended by over 3,000 people including a

representative of His Majesty King Mswati

III, Cabinet Ministers, Parliamentarians,

Members of the Diplomatic Corps, officials

from Government, UN and NGOs.

In her remarks at the occasion, WFP

Country Director Karla Hershey

acknowledged the long-standing

partnership between her organisation and

Esicojeni Foundation. She also expressed

gratitude for the support that the Walk the

World initiative has received over the past

six years.

WFP Country Director, Karla Hershey with the Deputy Prime Minister, Honourable Themba Ma-suku at the Walk the World 2010 event held in Lobamba

14

WFP Swaziland and the MDGS

“2010 in Review”

People/Beneficiaries Key Figures

MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOAL 1 : Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger

160, 989 hungry people in Swaziland

10,878 women reached by WFP through targeted food distribution

MDG 2: Achieve Universal Primary Education

70,577 school children received schools meals from WFP

48 percent were girls

MDG 3: Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women

99,436 of WFP beneficiaries were women or girls

475 women were in leadership positions in WFP food management committees

MDG 4: Reduce Child Mortality

33,087 children under 5 were assisted in WFP operations

MDG 5: Improve Maternal Health

1,474 vulnerable women received nutritional support from WFP through maternal child health interventions

MDG 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases

52,175 people affected by HIV and AIDS and/or TB received WFP food assistance

MDG 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainability

7,060 people received WFP food as an incentive to build community assets, attend training and build resilience to shock and preserve livelihoods

MDG 8: Develop a Global Partnership for Development

8 non-governmental organizations worked with WFP

15

2011 & Beyond

“From Food Aid to Food Assistance”

The WFP Country Strategy for Swaziland

outlines WFP‘s approach and interventions

that will best contribute to Government‘s

efforts in addressing hunger and

malnutrition from 2011 2015. The Strategy

is also a defining measure towards realizing

the objectives outlined in WFP‘s corporate

Strategic Plan (2008 2013), as it moves

from a ―food aid‖ to ―food assistance‖

organization.

The extensive process of preparing the WFP

Country Strategy for Swaziland began in

early February 2009 when WFP

participated as a member of the United

Nations Country Team in carrying out the

Complementary Country Analysis, an

initiative that served as the basis for the

UNDAF 2011 2015.

The Country Strategy aligns with the new

UNDAF, with food and nutrition security a

significant component under Pillar 2:

Poverty Reduction and Sustainable

Livelihoods. The Strategy also follows

Government‘s commitment to the priorities

put forward in the National Development

Strategy and the 2015 Millennium

Development Goals, implemented through

the Poverty Reduction Strategy and Action

Programme (2007 2011).

The development process involved an

extensive literature review and numerous

consultations conducted by an independent

consultant with high level officials from

government ministries at national and local

levels, UN agencies, NGOs, donors,

beneficiaries and other stakeholders

concerned with eradicating hunger and

malnutrition.

In 2009, WFP in collaboration with

Government carried out a Community and

Household Survey and a Food and

Nutrition Security study to assess the

country context and future challenges. The

results from these assessments also

contributed to the final strategy.

A Technical Expert Consultative meeting of

relevant Government, UN agencies and

NGO stakeholders was held on 14 January

2010 to review, discuss and refine the

drafted Country Strategy. On 9 February

2010, a stakeholder meeting was held to

present the revised Strategy to government

ministries and all stakeholders for final

endorsement. The strategy was adapted by

Government at that time.

Vision Statement and Priorities

WFP and Government‘s shared vision for

Swaziland is a country that is free from

chronic hunger and its debilitating impacts

on human potential and national

development. WFP Swaziland‘s mission

(2011 2015) is to strengthen Government‘s

capacity to break the cycle of chronic

hunger in the country.

Two priorities for WFP include:

1. Support for the protection and restora-

tion of livelihoods of people affected by

economic shocks, climate change and/or

HIV and AIDS; and

2. Support the development of human

capital.

HR & Administration

“Ensuring cost-efficiency”

STAFFING REVIEW EXERCISE (SRE)

WFP Swaziland conducted a Staffing

Review Exercise in May 2010 to align

staffing levels to the operational

requirements faced by the office. The SRE

was necessitated by the critical resource

shortfalls faced by the Country Office (41.6%

resourced). As staff costs represent 77 per-

cent of direct support costs, there was a need

to reduce expenditure by 31 percent.

Table 1: Staff Complement before and

after SRE (as at April and July 2010)

Gender Statistics as at January 2011

*From July 2010 to January 2011, four staff members resigned while one was re-assigned.

REDUCTION IN OPERATIONAL COSTS WFP disposed of four of its vehicles to

further reduce operational costs, the sale of

which generated a total amount of US

$51,874 for the Country Office. The vehicle

sales were open to the general public and

conducted through sealed bids.

Males 11

Females 11 Total 22*

STAFF TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT

WFP Swaziland facilitated and funded

training for 17 staff members in the past

year, which prioritized relevant on-the-job

training to develop staff skills and

competences. The workshops were

conducted in various locations including

Swaziland, South Africa, Kenya, Italy,

Mozambique, Uganda and Ethiopia.

Three staff members were assigned on

temporary duty (TDY) to back-stop

colleagues in WFP offices in Rwanda,

South Africa and Mozambique during the

course of 2010. WFP Swaziland generated

a total cost-saving of about US$22,000 by

releasing these staff members to provide

support to other WFP offices.

SECURITY

To ensure the security of WFP premises

and staff, the Field Office was relocated

from Siphofaneni in the Lowveld to Siteki

in the Lubombo Plateau. The office move

enhanced staff presence and visibility

within the operational area, and has

ensured close monitoring of activities.

The Country Office secured about US$

18,000 funding from Headquarters for the

relocation , which included installation of

burglar bars, a fire alarm system, transport

costs and computer network services.

Security measures were further enhanced

to comply with the Minimum Operating

Security Standards (MOSS) of the UN

System. Bomb blast film was installed on

office windows at a cost of US$ 4,620. A

perimeter fence was also erected at the

Siphofaneni warehouse for US$3,400.

Contract Types Before

After

International Staff 2

1

Service Contract 20

16

Fixed Term 11 9

SSA 3 0

Interns 0 0

Total 36 26

Logistics

“ Creating Solutions”

As a result , the Extended Distribution

Points (EDPs) at Siphofaneni and

Ndzevane were upgraded to fully-fledged

warehouses. This involved reinforcement of

concrete slabs and ensuring the availability

of other warehouse materials necessary to

store a larger quantity of food commodities

than in the past. The two warehouses now

have a combined capacity of 2,100 mt.

Transporters collect food from the two

EDPs for direct distribution to WFP

beneficiaries in the operational area.

Also, WFP suspended it support to HIV/

AIDS and TB patients to revamp the

programme into a new Food by

Prescription activity, to ensure that food is

prioritized as integral to the treatment

process. Beneficiaries receive an individual

ration of Corn Soya Blend and a family

ration of cereals, pulses and vegetable oil.

To facilitate this, WFP had to pre-package a

consignment of maize and pulses from the

original 50 kg packaging to the required 36

kg and 5 kg bags, respectively, to be

distributed to beneficiary families in

hospitals and health centres. The pre-

packaged food commodities have been pre-

positioned at hospitals and health centres

in readiness for the implementation of the

new Food by Prescription activity.

WFP logistics also assessed the availability

of structures to serve as food storage and

distribution centres in the 11 selected

sites of the new Food by Prescription

programme. Although most have the

required space, some need assistance in

this regard. WFP has received donor

funding to construct four prefabricated

structures for this purpose in early 2011.

By early 2010, WFP Swaziland was

struggling to generate sufficient funding for

its activities in Swaziland to implement the

ongoing relief and recovery operation

(2008-2011).

As a result, an agreement was reached with

the Government in May 2010 to prioritize

key activities and suspend the remainder in

order for WFP to save costs and be able to

meet its obligations to beneficiaries in a

consistent and efficient manner.

WFP warehousing was one of the key

sectors affected by the need to prioritize

and save costs. After eight years of

maintaining a Central Warehouse as the

main Transshipment Point for its food

commodities in the centralized industrial

town of Matsapha, WFP did not renew its

lease from August 2010.

This followed the decision to refocus WFP‘s

attention to its main areas of operation,

namely Siphofaneni and Ndzevane.

Maize cereal stored at Lawini warehouse in Mpaka

Funding, Finance & Resources

“Maximising resources”

By the end of 2010, WFP Swaziland had

managed to raise only 41.6 percent (US$

14,908,465 ) of the resources required to

implement the ongoing relief and recovery

operation (May 2008– April 2011). For

2010, donor contributions amounted to

US$2,179, 218.

The reduction in the beneficiary caseload

and commodity tonnage enabled WFP to

maximise the available resources to ensure

its beneficiaries (mainly orphaned and

vulnerable children) receive a full ration of

the food basket: cereals, pulses and

vegetable oil as well as nutrient-fortified

Corn Soya Blend each month since July

2010.

Also, WFP revised its budget and extended

the relief and recovery operation for eight

months so that its implementation now

ends in December 2011.

Table 2: Reduction in Monthly Operational Costs - 2010 (in US Dollars)

-10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 60,000 70,000 80,000 90,000

100,000

Expenditure

Expenditure

WFP Swaziland‘s Corporate Profile

“ Fighting Hunger Worldwide”

Global Mission Statement

The World Food Programme (WFP) is the

food assistance arm of the United Nations

System. WFP is mandated to provide food

assistance to save lives in refugee and

emergency situations, to improve the

nutrition and quality of life of the most

vulnerable people at critical times in their

lives, and to help build assets and promote

self-reliance of poor people and

communities. WFP concentrates its efforts

and resources on the neediest people and

countries. Its assistance is guided solely

by need and is targeted to those most at

risk from the consequences of food

shortages, following a sound assessment

that considers the different needs and

vulnerabilities of the affected population.

WFP Swaziland Mission/Vision

WFP and Government‘s shared vision for

Swaziland is a country that is free from

chronic hunger and its debilitating impacts

on human potential and national

development.

WFP Swaziland‘s mission (2011 2015) is to

strengthen Government‘s capacity to break

the cycle of chronic hunger in the country.

Two priorities for WFP Swaziland include:

1. Support for the protection and restora-

tion of livelihoods of people affected by

economic shocks, climate change and/or

HIV and AIDS; and

2. Support the development of human

capital.

WFP’s Key Programmes in 2011

WFP is implementing two main

programmes prioritised in the ongoing

relief and recovery operation

(PRRO106020:2008-2011):

Food by Prescription—food

assistance is provided to vulnerable,

food insecure people on anti-

retroviral (ART) , tuberculosis (TB)

and prevention of mother-to-child

transmission (PMTCT) treatment

programmes. Patients receive an

individual supplementary ration of

nutrient-fortified Corn Soya Blend

(CSB) as well as a take-home family

ration of cereals , pulses and

vegetable oil.

Support to orphaned and

vulnerable children (OVC) in

neighbourhood care points

(NCPs) — OVC receive two hot

meals daily: a breakfast of Corn Soya

porridge and a full lunch of cereals,

pulses and vegetable oil as part of a

comprehensive package of care and

support at the centres. Other partners

provide basic lessons, skills and HIV/

AIDS awareness training.

WFP is the world's largest

humanitarian agency fighting hunger

worldwide. Each year, on average, WFP

feeds more than 90 million people in more

than 70 countries.