OCHA adds 500 free humanitarian symbols to communications tools and services

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian affairs (OCHA) has created a set of 500 freely available humanitarian icons to help relief workers present emergency and crisis-related information quickly and simply.

South Asian farmers helped to share "climate smart" knowledge

25 Apr 2012 10:17

By Nita Bhalla

NEW DELHI (AlertNet) - A new initiative to spread information on adapting to climate change across South Asia will encourage farmers, scientists and policy makers to share effective ways of dealing with the impacts of global warming.

South Asia is home to one fifth of the world's population and is vulnerable to climate extremes, experiencing seasonal floods, cyclones and droughts that ravage vast swathes of agricultural land each year.

ABOUT THIS PUBLICATION

The women whose works are presented in this publication are teachers, trainers, resource-persons and leaders—disaster recovery and development efforts should not reduce them to mere victims. disaster and development professionals, researchers, scholars and organizations partnering with grassroots women can use these case studies as examples, for ideas or for advocacy efforts.

In brief

Programme purpose: Support the ten National Societies in the South American Region to effectively operationalize the Inter American Plan 2007 - 2011.

Programme summary:

2008 was a transition year for the Federation Secretariat in South America. After the establishment of the Zone office, the Regional Representation for South America reduced its personnel to 16, revised budgets and plans in line with adjusted capacities and support, and implemented the decision to create a second Regional Representation

16 January 2009

Period covered by this Final Report: 10 October 2007-10 October 2008;

Appeal target (current): CHF 3,231,507 (USD 2.7 million or EUR 1.9 million)

Appeal coverage: 77%;

Appeal history:

- Preliminary appeal launched on 10 October for CHF 3,231,507 (USD 2.7 million or EUR 1.9 million) for 12 months to assist 193,000 beneficiaries.

- Appeal launched on 17 October as above with minor adjustments to the operation.

- Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF): CHF 200,000 (USD 170,000 or EUR 120,000).

Summary: The one-year operation

The five countries of the Southern Cone - Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay - are highly exposed to a combination of factors such as floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, droughts, health emergencies, densely populated urban areas, political instability and internal disturbances that exacerbate the vulnerabilities of large poor and marginalized populations. This situation, combined by high levels of inequity and lack of access to basic services, makes communities more vulnerable and sets a major humanitarian challenge, which is addressed

The project was initially approved in 2006 by ADB with a loan of 50.97 million USD. However, high inflation has increased the cost of civil works, materials, and labor. Additional damage to rural infrastructure caused by typhoons in 2006 and 2007 has contributed to significant cost overruns.

This 2009-10 support plan inherits the approaches from the planning for 2008-2009 but scales down some activities so that they are more aligned with the pace of development of the organizational and personnel capacity of Vietnam Red Cross (VNRC) to implement this programme along with other initiatives of in-country partners as well as other national society priorities.

Activities around disaster planning, organizational preparedness, community preparedness, disaster response, avian influenza preparedness and awareness raising, community-based first