Project profile — Improving Household Food Security - West Bank and Gaza - UN Consolidated Appeal 2012

This is one of the projects that make up the United Nations' 2012 Consolidated Appeal Process (CAP) for the West Bank and Gaza. The initiative aims to help 3,000 vulnerable families in the West Bank and Gaza protect their livelihoods, maintain their food security and improve their ability to be resilient. Activities include: establishing rainwater cisterns to protect access to water, improving income generation through agriculture-based initiatives like bee-keeping and improving the health of livestock for herding families.

The expected intermediate outcomes for this project include: strengthening the food security of 3,000 male and female-headed livestock-farming families in the West Bank and Gaza. This will be achieved through maintaining or improving agricultural capacity for 2,400 vulnerable households, including 9,600 children, 2,400 women and 800 girls and boys of school age; establishing 200 rain water cisterns, improving income-generating opportunities for 500 women-headed households, and targeting 1,000 households for training in animal health and hygiene.

Results achieved as of February 2013 include: (i) distributing pregnant ewes to 200 households in Gaza and to 220 households in the West Bank; (ii) providing training on sheep flock management in Gaza; (iii) establishing home garden units and distributing seeds, seedlings and providing training for garden management activities for 180 households in Gaza and 300 in the West Bank; (iv) distributing 370 chicken units consisting of one cage, one rooster, 16 hens and three 50kg sacks of feed; distributing 250 rabbit units consisting of one buck, five does, one cage and three sacks of 50 kg of feed and providing training on animal health care, site selection and general maintenance to households in Gaza; (v) establishing rooftop gardens for 180 households in Gaza and 300 in the West Bank; (vi) building 120 cisterns to collect water for families in the West Bank; and (vii) providing training in dairy processing to 53 women’s associations in the West Bank and Gaza. These results have contributed to improving food security, or access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food, for vulnerable households and to increasing access to water for irrigation.