Early harvests improving food availability in bimodal zones

Download Report

August marks the beginning of the main harvest in the bimodal southern zone, where the main rainy season was characterized by average to above-average rainfall, which allowed for the normal development of crops. The expected production should be average to above-average. Most poor households in these areas, who will begin accessing food from their harvests, are expected to meet their essential food and non-food needs without resorting to negative coping strategies. Thus, the majority of households will face Minimal (IPC Phase 1) outcomes until January 2025.
Although the rains were delayed in starting in the central north and northern parts of the country, they are now abundant and favorable for crops. Recent weather forecasts predict heavy rains across the entire country in the coming months. Poor agricultural households, who have depleted all their food reserves—as is typical during the lean season—are forced to adopt typical negative coping strategies, such as reducing meal frequency, reducing portion sizes, and consuming less-preferred foods, as food prices remain very high and beyond their purchasing power. These households are expected to experience Stressed (IPC Phase 2) outcomes, with some in Crisis (IPC Phase 3) until the start of the next harvest in September. The Savanes region, which hosts a large number of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs), as well as poor households affected by terrorist group violence, is expected to remain in Crisis (IPC Phase 3).
In the Savanes region, frequent incursions by jihadist groups maintain a sense of fear among the local population, especially in the Kpendjal and Kpendjal-Ouest prefectures. Fearing reprisals, people avoid venturing into remote areas to carry out agricultural activities and income-generating activities such as hunting, gathering forest products, fishing, or herding livestock in pastures. Poor households, displaced persons, and refugees, who have lost much of their livelihoods, are the most affected during this lean season. However, their food security situation is expected to improve during the harvest period, with Stressed (IPC Phase 2) outcomes prevailing in this region.
Basic foodstuffs remain available in the markets, but at significantly higher prices compared to the five-year average due to reduced food availability in the markets and the effects of high global commodity trading costs. For example, in the markets of Cinkassé and Ogaro (Kpendjal-Ouest), the price of white maize in July was 25 percent and 89 percent higher than the five-year average, respectively. With such high prices, households will struggle to access enough food to meet their nutritional needs without resorting to negative coping strategies, as their purchasing power is severely weakened by civil insecurity.

Recommended citation: FEWS NET. Togo Key Message Update August 2024: Early harvests improving food availability in bimodal zones, 2024.

This Key Message Update provides a high-level analysis of current acute food insecurity conditions and any changes to FEWS NET's latest projection of acute food insecurity outcomes in the specified geography. Learn more here.