status
report
United
Nations Coordinates International Response to Tsunami
“The past eleven days
have been among the darkest in our lifetime. But they have also
allowed us to see a new kind of light. We have seen the world
coming together. We have seen a response based not on our differences,
but on what unites us.”
–
Kofi Annan, UN Secretary-General, Jakarta, January 6, 2005
In response to the widespread
destruction caused by the massive earthquake and resulting tsunamis
that hit large areas of Southeast Asia on December 26, 2004, the
UN is coordinating an unprecedented international relief effort
involving a broad coalition of UN agencies, governments, and aid
organizations.
UN efforts include:
• Emergency aid distribution within the first 48 hours
of the disaster and continued relief operations by UN agencies
such as United Nation Children’s Fund (UNICEF); the World
Health Organization (WHO); and the United Nations Development
Program (UNDP) which all had existing operations on the ground
in the nations impacted by the tsunami;
• Coordination of air and logistics operations for the
transport of relief goods and personnel by the UN Joint Logistics
Centre (UNJLC), using transport assets provided by the militaries
of the US, Australia, India, Malaysia, and Singapore;
• Ground assessments of damage by UN country teams and
the UN Disaster Assessment and Coordination division (UNDAC).
Between $3 and $4 billion have
been pledged from over 45 countries for the emergency and recovery
phase of relief efforts. UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Jan Egeland,
said on January 4, “I’ve never ever had this kind of
a response. From the United States to the European Union to the
countries in the region, we had an immediate promise and pledge
of full support… The US could not have been more proactive.”
Millions of people continue to
need assistance in the areas hardest hit and most difficult to
reach. The UN estimates that 150,000 more people could
die if they do not receive access to safe drinking water and if
a disease outbreak occurs. As a result, the UN Secretary
General has traveled to the region to launch a flash appeal. For
more information, please go to www.reliefweb.int,
the website for the UN’s office of humanitarian relief coordination
(UNOCHA).
UN
Launches Flash Appeal for Aid Contributions
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan launched an emergency
appeal for $977 million, the largest ever by the UN for a natural
disaster, on January 6, 2005 at a high-level international conference
in Jakarta:
• The appeal reflects UN and NGO efforts to plan and
implement a strategic, efficient, and coordinated response to
the needs of some 5 million people. The appeal responds to urgent
needs of communities severely affected in Indonesia, Maldives,
Myanmar, Seychelles, Somalia, and Sri Lanka for the next 6 months.
• Programs focus on keeping people alive and supporting
recovery with water, food, medicine, and shelter, ranging from
the $185 million for feeding 2 million people to $71 million
to boost logistics, transport, and communications for the entire
humanitarian effort to reach remote areas, to $26 million for
replacing lost fishing boats and rehabilitating livelihoods.
• Some of the funds for the flash appeal have already
been pledged and any surpluses will go toward the long-term
recovery effort.
• The appeal will take place in three phases: a donor
alert (already issued); the flash appeal (launched January 6);
and long term recovery, the costs of which may run much higher.
Other Recent Developments on the
Ground:
• Despite the phenomenal
progress being made, remoteness and lack or destruction of infrastructure
has impeded speedy relief operations in Indonesia. In Aceh and
Sumatra, water, food, shelter, and health care are reaching more
people but no death tolls can yet be confirmed.
• In Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, the Maldives, and Somalia,
tremendous progress has been made to reach the basic needs of
millions of victims.
• Preventing, detecting, and responding to outbreaks of
respiratory and waterborne diseases is top priority; WHO estimates
such outbreaks could kill another 150,000 people. Several countries
have reported an increase in isolated cases of respiratory and
diarrheal diseases.
• WHO is developing rapid disease surveillance and early
warning system to detect outbreaks of diseases. WHO teams have
already been mobilized to areas worst affected by the tsunami.
• In response to reports of child smuggling, UNICEF is registering
unaccompanied children and providing psychological support and
limited accommodation of children in need.
• The UN has called on local and national officials to clamp
down on the few cases of trafficking of child survivors to prevent
it from becoming a bigger problem.
UN agencies working to bring
relief to the victims include:
United Nations Office
for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has
been coordinating the relief operation involving many UN agencies,
governments, NGOs, and international organizations.
United Nations Fund for Children (UNICEF) estimates
1.5 million children have been hit by the disaster. UNICEF has
opened centers to register unaccompanied children, provide psychological
support and accommodation. The agency has sent tons of supplies
to Sri Lanka, Indonesia, India, the Maldives, and Thailand, including
water, shelter equipment, clothing, oral re-hydration salts, and
medical supplies.
United Nations Development Fund (UNDP) released an initial
$500,000 in emergency funds within the first 48 hours. Technical
staff has been deployed to the most affected countries and areas
with the aim of helping the UN and government authorities to analyze
recovery and development needs.
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
is airlifting 3,500 lightweight tents from its regional warehouse
in Dubai for up to 100,000 people in Aceh. 20,000 kitchen sets,
plastic sheeting for 20,000 families and 100,000 blankets will
be airlifted from the agency's central warehouse in Copenhagen.
World Food Programme (WFP) immediately responded
by committing an initial $1.5 million to the most urgent food
aid needs for hundreds of thousands of tsunami victims in Sri
Lanka, Indonesia and Thailand, including thousands of tons of
rice, biscuits, and water. WHO has provided millions of water
purification tablets and emergency health kits containing basic
medical supplies for more than 2 million people.
World Health Organisation
(WHO) has released $1 million to assist in the relief
effort; however WHO anticipates needing at least $40 million for
immediate relief efforts. WHO is helping to reopen urgently needed
medical facilities and is putting into place disease surveillance
and warning systems.
International Strategy
for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) is working to ensure that
every coastal country around South and Southeast Asia has an effective
tsunami warning system in place by early 2006. This need will
be discussed at World Conference on Disaster Reduction to be held
in Kobe, Japan, 18-22 January.
United Nations Populations
Fund (UNFPA) has allocated $1 million for rapid health
assessments, hygiene needs, and health supplies, including emergency
obstetric care. UNFPA has called for increased security to minimize
attacks because sexual abuse, trafficking, and exploitation are
already issues in the region.
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