United Nations humanitarian agencies have stepped up their relief efforts in the West African country of Benin, where more than 20,000 people have been displaced or affected and numerous farms destroyed by floods.Mosquito nets, water purification tablets, blankets, tents and mats are being distributed and assistance is being provided with water and sanitation and with maternal health care in the wake of the floods.
The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) is providing 3,000 chlorine tablets for water treatment and 1,000 mosquito nets, and is also funding a health awareness campaign and water and sanitation activities, UN spokesperson Marie Okabe told journalists today.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has also donated blankets, nets, mats and tents, while the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) plans to spend up to $100,000 on health care.
A UN Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) team is in the country to help local authorities deal with the floods, which follow some of the heaviest rainfall in Benin – beset by floods every wet season – in recent years. The UN Development Programme (UNDP) is also spending $100,000 to coordinate the overall relief effort.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said it was also monitoring the situation, particularly to ensure that widespread outbreaks of meningitis do not occur.
The bands of rain have moved northwards across Benin in recent days, with flood waters subsiding in the southern cities of Cotonou and Porto Novo and heavy rains and high rains in the north. 
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