UN OCHA Regional Office for West and Central Africa

The West and Central Africa region is the epicentre of a fast-growing crisis with unprecedented levels of armed violence and insecurity. Millions of people are being driven to the fringes of survival due to the confluence of conflict, deep poverty, demographic pressures, urbanization, weak governance, chronically high food insecurity and malnutrition, and the impact of climate change. OCHA focuses on strengthening humanitarian coordination and response preparedness through its country offices and its Regional Office for West and Central Africa (ROWCA), which has been based in Dakar, Senegal, since November 2003. To mitigate the impact of natural disasters and other emergencies, ROWCA works closely with UN Resident Coordinators, Humanitarian Country Teams, national and regional organizations, and Member States. To develop and foster regional coordination networks, ROWCA engages with Governments, external partners and regional organizations, such as the Economic Community of West African States and the Economic Community of Central African States.