Summary
While current UNICEF activities inside Afghanistan are severely constrained, they have not stopped totally and delivery of some supplies from outside is still possible. UNICEF is mobilizing and positioning personnel, facilities and materiel to assure delivery of coordinated humanitarian assistance to displaced populations who arrive at or cross Afghanistan’s borders; to channel supplies through limited tracks still open in the north-east, and to preposition stocks and technical personnel in anticipation of a capacity to deliver assistance through humanitarian corridors as and when they open.

UNICEF is also assuring sub-regional coordination of its activities through the office of the newly-created Special Representative of the Executive Director for assistance to Afghan children and women in Afghanistan and in neighbouring countries, who also acts as an advocate for humanitarian access to vulnerable children and women without discrimination. The Special Representative works closely with the Regional Humanitarian Coordinator and counterparts in UNHCR and WFP to ensure collaboration and mutual support among the agencies.

UNICEF operates on the shared UN agency assumptions of numbers of affected populations as indicated in the Donor Alert to Support an Interagency Emergency Humanitarian Assistance Plan for Afghans in Afghanistan and Neighbouring Countries (September 2001), launched by the Secretary General on 27 September, namely a currently vulnerable population of 5.3 million Afghans, a projected additionally vulnerable population of 2.2. million, totaling 7.5 million. Projections assume that 2.2.million of them will be IDPs and 1.5 million refugees.

UNICEF is seeking US$36 million as part of the inter-agency alert. These funds will be used to focus on special programme interventions to save lives of children from diseases such as measles and diarrhoea, to protect them from malnutrition, from harsh winter conditions, to ensure access to safe water and sanitation, to provide learning and safe spaces for recreational opportunities as a means of restoration of normal life and measures to deal with child trauma through psychosocial activities.

Ensuring close coordination with other partners, humanitarian assistance will be well targeted bearing in mind UNICEF’s capacities and availability of funding.

In this programme, UNICEF has adopted a modular approach which has the advantage of providing rapidly additional supplies for assistance whenever the movements of Afghan populations increase in specific geographic areas. Pre-positioning of one response module in each of the countries is simply to be ready for both cross border operations and refugee influx.

Introduction

The global crisis precipitated by the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States of America has focussed renewed international attention on Afghanistan. Conflict and the fear of conflict have combined to drive a new and potentially huge displacement of Afghans towards the borders, especially towards Pakistan and Iran, with some potential for displacement towards the northern borders also. This new crisis dramatically compounds the already disastrous humanitarian situation in Afghanistan. Emanating from years of war, drought, poverty, hunger and displacement, there is potential for an even more catastrophic humanitarian crisis with the onset of the freezing temperatures of the Afghan winter. Access to the millions of acutely vulnerable Afghans within the country is an urgent imperative, but almost impossible under the conditions that prevail today. However, an unparalleled international resolve could create conditions for rapid change in Afghanistan that could not have been imaginable just two weeks ago.

Like other international agencies operating in Afghanistan, UNICEF has recently had to severely curtail its activities, but these have not ceased totally. Despite depleted stockpiles, immunization activities go ahead in many locations and limited provision of health kits, essential drugs and non-food support to IDPs have continued.

In the days leading up to 11 September, UNICEF Afghanistan was finalizing plans for an accelerated winter programme focussed on vulnerable children and women, particularly internally displaced and internally stuck populations (ISPs). Supplies and equipment on order will now primarily be used for Afghans who reach the borders of the country.

While the situation is evolving rapidly and there is a complex range of scenarios upon which to build preparedness plans and provision of humanitarian assistance, UNICEF is endeavoring to accelerate critical emergency assistance to vulnerable children and women wherever possible in Afghanistan and on the borders of neighbouring countries. It also seeks to modularize, as far as possible, its material inputs so that they can be moved quickly where opportunities for action present themselves, and utilized in different locations as opportunity and demand dictate. While all countries surrounding Afghanistan have closed their borders, most have indicated their willingness to facilitate UN and other humanitarian agencies to provide humanitarian assistance to refugee populations/populations displaced to the borders through the creation of small camps or to facilitate deeper cross-border assistance should conditions permit.

ELEMENTS OF UNICEF’s STRATEGIC APPROACH

a) Regional coordination through decentralized loci of operations

The centre of regional operations is in Islamabad, which coordinates with UNICEF country programmes in Afghanistan and its five neighbours. In conjunction with other UN partners, UNICEF is establishing small offices and logistics centres on the borders of Afghanistan that can facilitate rapid, monitorable assistance to border-located populations, but which could also be used as and when humanitarian corridors are opened into Afghanistan.

The evacuated expatriate heads of UNICEF offices in Herat, Mazar-I-Sharif, Qandahar, Kabul and Jalalabad are locating, in teams with other UN agency counterparts, to appropriate locations in neighbouring countries, which are closest to their posts within Afghanistan, so as to undertake joint border assessment and to assure coordinated humanitarian action.

b) Humanitarian assistance to vulnerable children and women on or near Afghanistan’s borders

UNICEF is cooperating with governments in Pakistan, Iran and Turkmenistan, and with international agencies, especially UNHCR, WFOP and IOM, to assure humanitarian assistance to displaced and refugee Afghans in camps within Afghanistan or across its borders. In each bordering country, UNICEF is part of coordination mechanisms overseen by governments and in which UNHCR has a lead coordinating role for overall assistance to, and protection of, refugees.

Agreed areas in which UNICEF is charged with either a technical coordination role and/or an implementation support role for refugee/border displaced children and women, in collaboration with international and local partners, include:

Pakistan: The government is leading coordination efforts. UNICEF fields of action include: Child health care and immunization and provision of emergency health kits, essential drugs and oral rehydration salts; therapeutic child feeding; water supply (according to UNHCR/OXFAM standards) and sanitation, protected learning environments (coordination and implementation); care for unaccompanied children separated from their families (in cooperation with ICRC and other partners). Limited non-food items (blankets, children’s clothing) will also be provided. Should circumstances increase vulnerability of Pakistani children due to displacement and/or violence, humanitarian assistance from available UNICEF resources on the ground will be diverted to such children.

Iran: The government is leading coordination efforts, while the Iranian Red Crescent is the principal implementing partner. UNICEF is coordinator of the water supply and sanitation technical group and member of the health group, which is led by WHO. UNICEF is committed to direct support of inputs into immunization and emergency health care, therapeutic feeding, basic education, protection of unaccompanied children and water supply/sanitation.

Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan: UNICEF will assure interagency coordination of support to immunization programmes, it will provide health kits and support therapeutic feeding. Support for the care and protection of unaccompanied children and for limited non-food items (tarpaulins, blankets, clothing) will be provided as appropriate.

In all locations, given the similar characteristics of vulnerability of populations displaced to borders, IDPs well within Afghanistan, internally stuck populations and other vulnerable groups, a modular approach to procurement of material assistance is adopted, as previously stated, to assure maximum flexibility in deployment and use of such assistance, as changing circumstances dictate.

c) Prepositioning and preparedness for access through humanitarian corridors and for return to in-country operations for vulnerable Afghan women and children

An agency such as UNICEF, with a mandate that intersects both humanitarian and development axes to promote the best interests of the child, must consider the likelihood of a possible resumption of activities within Afghanistan, and consider preparedness activities for such an eventuality. A combination of cooperative local authorities, changing administrative control structures within Afghanistan, and neighbouring governments who may be willing facilitate cross-border assistance, may permit resumed provision of humanitarian assistance in areas of Afghanistan within a foreseeable future. While UNICEF will stockpile materials and hold technical capacity on standby in all its border facilities, the most likely areas for relatively early creation of humanitarian corridors or progressive resumption of activities within Afghanistan (and initially through the primary deployment of national staff and national partner organizations), lie in the northwest to northeast regions of Afghanistan. Stockpile materials and humanitarian assistance are primarily to ensure the survival and protection of children through the sub-zero winter months, but educational supplies will also be on hand to facilitate ongoing/early resumption of educational activities where possible.

UNICEF's RESPONSE INSIDE AFGHANISTAN TO DATE

UNICEF has been supporting the provision of essential drugs to treat common childhood diseases, vaccines and cold chain equipment, safe drinking water, upgrading of sanitation facilities, and is providing technical guidance to governments and partners in the various sectors, e.g. health, water and sanitation, education.

Before September 11 2001,UNICEF was gearing up for an accelerated winter survival programmes, but now programmes are limited by availability of stocks within the country, while materiel on order has been diverted to Pakistan for humanitarian activities along the border and local partners. On 23 September, a National Immunization Day was held as planned for polio vaccination, and hundreds of thousands of children were vaccinated despite the adverse conditions. The concern now is to extend such programmes to displaced people along the borders, so as to cut the risk of the cross-border transmission of the wild poliovirus from Afghanistan to neighbouring countries. Pakistan in order to prevent cross-border transmission of the wild poliovirus.

UN COORDINATION

Overall: UNICEF currently has MOUs in place with UNHCR and WFP for cooperation at the field level in emergencies. Within the UN contingency planning exercise, UNICEF in each country has taken on roles and responsibilities reflecting the priority needs of children and women. UNICEF has appointed a Special Representative of the UNICEF Executive Director to oversee a common regional response, which will be particularly important for co-ordination with OCHA, UNHCR and WFP, who have also established regional approaches.

Pakistan: UNICEF is co-ordinating with the Ministry of Refugees (SAFRON) and UN agencies and are coordinating refugee assistance with UNHCR, WHO and WFP in the areas of health, water and sanitation, education and logistics. UNICEF will deliver its assistance through its Quetta and Peshawar provincial offices for the potential influx of refugees. There will be a need for additional logistics and programme staff to cater for the increase in activities.

Central Asian Countries: UNICEF is working within the UN Country team, with NGOs and government authorities with a clear understanding of the roles and responsibilities to deliver assistance within the areas of health and nutrition, water and sanitation, education and psychosocial support. The implementation will be initiated from Turkmenistan, which at present, is the only country whose border remains open for cargo entering into Afghanistan. WFP has an ongoing logistics operation in Turkmenistan for supplies in transit to Afghanistan and both agencies are planning to collaborate on logistics operations. In Turkmenistan, the temporary office will be set up near Gushgy the main border crossing with Afghanistan. Another possible border crossing is at 110 km from Mazar el Sharif. In Uzbekistan, subject to confirmation that cross border operations could be conducted, the office will be located near Termez, a good base for a humanitarian operation due to its airfield, warehouses and logistic facilities. Similar arrangements will be made for operations from Dushanbe in Tajikistan.

Iran: It has been agreed by the UN Country Team that under the overall co-ordination of the government, WFP will co-ordinate food; UNHCR will co-ordinate shelter; WHO, in collaboration with UNICEF, will co-ordinate health, and UNICEF will co-ordinate water and sanitation. The Government of Iran and the Iranian Red Crescent Society have a strong capacity to address the crisis, and the UN efforts will complement government efforts.

The Government of Iran has indicated that it is ready to support a large-scale international assistance programme for Afghans inside Afghanistan. In line with this, seven sites have been identified along the border, ranging from 2 to 10km inside Afghanistan. UNICEF is working closely with the IRCS and UNHCR in planning and coordination of all ongoing programmes for existing Afghan refugees in Iran. If required, WFP will provide assistance with storage and transportation of UNICEF. Additional staff, vehicles, security and telecommunications equipment will be required to support implementation of programme activities.

OVERALL OBJECTIVES

The overall objectives of UNICEF's interventions are:

To provide a package of basic services: health and nutrition, water and environmental sanitation, basic non-food assistance, education and psychosocial support;

To advocate for the care and protection of children according to international standards and humanitarian principles including aadvocacy against any violence against children, as well as any exploitation, targeting or recruitment of children and awareness raising of landmines.

To ensure safe and continuing access for the delivery of humanitarian assistance to children, regardless of the location, nationality, religion, gender, or ethnicity; advocate for "children as zones of peace" and humanitarian cease fires where possible.

STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIVES

1. Health and Nutrition

With an increasing number of children going into camp situations or overcrowded urban areas, measles and ARI are major threats. UNICEF plans to support a massive immunization campaign including measles. This will also be linked to vaccination against polio in conjunction with vitamin A. Malnutrition rates in Afghanistan are increasing as demonstrated by growing attendance of supplementary feeding centres in camps and drought-hit districts. Support will be provided for supplementary and therapeutic feeding. Obstetric emergencies, complications of pregnancy and delivery, are also major concerns to be addressed. Female health workers will be trained on the management of obstetric emergencies and delivery kits will be made available to pregnant women.

UNICEF will, therefore, provide basic health care services for women and children through:

• Support to a massive measles plus (measles, polio and vitamin A, TT for pregnant women) campaign to reach all displaced children at/on the borders and the children in host communities.
• Provision of emergency health kits (including essential drugs such as for treatment of malaria and tuberculosis), clean delivery kits, hygiene kits, ORS, basic clinical equipment, therapeutic and supplementary food including high energy/protein biscuits, blankets and winter-proof tents for temporary health clinics. Messages on good health and nutritional practices including breast-feeding and safe motherhood will also be provided.

2. Water and Environmental Sanitation

To prevent water-borne diseases such as diarrhoea, the provision of safe drinking water in camps as well as in neighbouring communities remains a priority, given the fact that drought has significantly reduced water availability and quality. Sanitation facilities and hygiene education will always be combined to water supply.

UNICEF will, therefore, ensure the initial provision of safe water supply and sanitation for children and women through:

• Provision of clean drinking water and sanitation facilities though installation of hand pumps, construction of wells in some areas, and construction of pit latrines.
• Provision of purification tablets, water containers, soap, shovels for excreta and solid waste disposal; and
• Dissemination of key messages on water handling, safe disposal of excreta and solid waste, as well as hygiene messages on water-borne diseases.

As some locations for possible refugee settlements are in arid areas, if no other solution can be found, water will be provided through water trucking. Where surface water is available, locally produced slow-sand filters will be provided for water treatment, rather than depending on trucking.

3. Education and Protection

The potential for child separation as families flee in situations of displacement will be addressed through appropriate tracing and re-unification mechanisms. Psychosocial support and counselling will be provided for traumatised children. Protecting children and communities against landmines will be a priority through awareness raising campaigns, particularly in Afghanistan and Tajikistan.

UNICEF will, therefore, continue/restart basic education for children to ensure the protection, care and well being of children and women through:

• Provision of winter-proof tents for use as recreational/play-area, classroom; and
• Provision of school-in-a-box, recreational and Early Childhood Development kits.
• Once the immediate needs have been alleviated, basic education services in collaboration with communities and camp,
• Identification, registration and medical screening of unaccompanied children and the registration of all parents who have lost their children;
• Identification, protection and mainstreaming of children with special needs; and
• Provision of psychosocial rehabilitation kits and trauma support services for children and their caregivers.

4. Non-Food Needs to Counter Winter Threats

Children remain the most vulnerable during the winter season which will exacerbate the negative effects of displacement, as demonstrated last winter. Warm clothing and shoes for children, blankets, tents and shelter material will be made available. Coordinating interventions with UNHCR, WFP, and NGOs in the camps will be emphasized.

UNICEF will, therefore, prevent the death of children and women due to freezing and exposure to winter-related threats to survival through:

• Child focussed relief and survival supplies such as blanket, warm clothes and shoes, plastic sheeting, tents and fuel for heating to be used IDPs in Afghanistan and health, education and child friendly environment for those displaced in neighbouring countries.

FUNDING REQUIREMENTS

UNICEF programme amounts to US$ 36,000,000 for which urgent donor support is needed to take ongoing activities to a scale commensurate with the magnitude of the crisis and to ensure the timely provision of essential basic services in all the affected areas. UNICEF has adopted a modular approach which has the advantage to provide rapidly additional supplies/assistance whenever the movements of Afghan populations increase in specific geographical areas. UNICEF requires US$ 10 million to order and pre-position supplies, set up appropriate logistics systems in co-ordination with WFP, and deploy operational and technical staff to augment existing offices, as required.

Overall Budget by Sector

Sector	Budget (US$)
Non-Food and Shelter	10,000,000
Health and Nutrition	10,400,000
Water and Environmental Sanitation	7,000,000
Education and Protection	3,300,000
Logistics	5,300,000
Grand Total	36,000,000

Annex 1

Country Specific Plan: The Islamic Republic of Iran

BACKGROUND

The Islamic Republic of Iran hosts the world’s largest refugee population with more than 2.5 million refugees (2.3 million Afghans and 200,000 Iraqis).

Only 5 per cent of the refugees live in camps and the rest in towns and villages in virtually every part of the country.

Policies towards refugees have become more restrictive the past few years as the country faces economic problems, and despite efforts to repatriate Afghan refugees their number increased by at least 200,000 over last year.

UNICEF provides basic health and education services to Afghan refugees in non-camp settlements. 15 health posts were established in the 5 provinces with the highest proportion of Afghan refugees, providing services to some 190,000 people. In addition, literacy classes were set up benefiting 6,000 girls and women, and will be doubled this year to benefit an estimated 12,000 girls.

POSSIBLE SCENARIOS

As a result of the unfolding emergency, it is anticipated that an additional 300,000 Afghans -- mainly coming from Afghanistan western (Herat) and southern (Kandahar) provinces might flee their country and enter into Iran. Some 150,000 are expected to be children.

The Government has repeatedly announced since the beginning of the crisis that it will not accept additional Afghan refugees. The 900 kilometers long border with Afghanistan has been officially closed since 16 September and additional military forces deployed to the area. The Iranian Government has however indicated that it is ready to support a large-scale international assistance program for Afghans as long as camps are established and relief provided within Afghanistan. The Government will facilitate access of international agencies to camps as well as the movement of emergency supplies including for cross border operations;

The Ministry of Interior Office for Aliens and Migrants (BAFIA) and UNHCR have identified a total of seven sites inside Afghanistan along the Afghan border, five of which are adjacent to the northern-eastern province of Khorassan and two to the southern and impoverished province of Sistan and Baluchestan. The identified IDP camp sites are supposed to be within 2 to 10 kilometers inside Afghanistan Details on exact locations are expected by Sunday 23 September. The other criteria that have been used for the selection of these sites are 1) the proximity of water points and 2) the safety of IDPs and aid personnel.

Although the Government’s position is not to allow access of Afghan refugees into Iran, it is likely that some will manage to pass through the porous border. The international community should therefore be ready to assist Afghans both on the Afghan side of the border and inside Iran. Hence UNICEF and other agencies should be ready for a comprehensive operational response that mixes:

• Cross-border operations to support Afghan IDPs who would be regrouped into camps along the Iranian border;
• Support to Afghan refugees inside Iran;

The Government of Iran and the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS) will take the lead role for emergency assistance both inside Iran and on the Afghan side of the border. The IRCS is mandated by Government to provide emergency response for the first three months of an emergency before it phases out, with an extension of the period as required. The IRCS has the capacity to cater for the emergency needs of a population of 200,000 with its maximum response capacity is however for up to 1 million people. UNICEF support will be additional and complementary to the response of Government and the IRCS, and in close collaboration with UNHCR and other UN agencies both outside and within Iran. The Government may open the door to other international NGOs if additional international support is required.

UNICEF PLANS

UNICEF will provide the following services to 300,000 Afghan refugees/IDPs:

Health and Nutrition

In collaboration with the Ministry of Health, the Iranian Red Crescent Society (ICRS), UNHCR, WHO, MSF France and other international NGOs, UNICEF will:

• Ensure basic health and nutrition needs are being met by providing emergency health kits for 300,000 for 3 months, hygiene kits, ORS, high energy/protein biscuits
• Provide measles and polio vaccination for immunisation of children, tetanus toxoid immunisation of pregnant and lactating women, and establish mobile immunisation teams
• Disseminate messages on safe health and nutritional practices, including breastfeeding and safe motherhood

Water and Sanitation

In collaboration with ICRS, MSF France, UNHCR and NGO partners, UNICEF will:

• Ensure the initial availability of water and sanitation for Afghan children and women by providing safe drinking water through installation of handpumps, bladders, jerry cans, and water tankering as necessary.
• Provide chlorine and purification tablets [with user instructions in local language], soap and hygiene messages
• Install latrines and conduct hygiene education activities

ICRS has committed to provide 300 water trucks (10,000 litres) for immediate use, UNHCR will provide 40,000 jerrycans for 100,000 and MSF France will meet the needs of 60,000 people in Tehran and 30,000 people in Khorassan Province.

Education and Child Protection

UNICEF will work closely with Government institutions such as the Literacy Movement Organisation and Welfare Organisation, IRCS, UNHCR and NGOs to:

• Support registration: Provide technical assistance to ensure that the preliminary registration of asylum seekers carried out by IRCS, UNHCR, and BAFIA includes breakdown according to gender, age group, women headed families, accompanied/unaccompanied children.
• Support trauma counselling: Training of Master Trainers on trauma counselling of the Welfare Organisation (social workers, psychologists, etc), health workers, Literacy Movement Organisation teachers, and NGOs.
• Support tracing and family reunification: provide technical assistance for tracing in order to reunite an estimated 15,000 unaccompanied children with their families.
• Advocacy for the protection of child rights: Promote and widely disseminate the CRC, international humanitarian law and other relevant international standards for the protection of children; monitor and document, with emphasis on gender issues and, advocate to draw attention to any serious child rights violations.
• Mine awareness: support mine awareness training for around 50,000 refugees with the help of 30 local experts.
• Support basic education: Once the immediate needs have been alleviated, basic literacy programmes along with recreational activities and Life Skills training will be provided to about 50,000 children, with an emphasis on girls’ participation. UNICEF will support training courses run by LMO for qualified people within the refugee community.

Country Specific Plan: Pakistan and Afghanistan

BACKGROUND

One of the most acute humanitarian crisis is unfolding for vast numbers of Afghan children and women. There are currently 5.3 million people affected, the majority of whom are children and women, of this, there are more than 1 million IDPs. The UN posits that another 2.2 million could be affected in the next few months, including the potential for nearly 1 million refugees to seek refuge in Pakistan. Joint planning by the UN and between UNICEF Country Offices is essential to address the scale and scope of the disaster.

The causes are the inter-linked circumstances of conflict, displacement, drought and extremely severe weather (minus 20 C at times). Hunger, famine, freezing and even death by related illnesses are probable for vast numbers of children and women. Coping mechanisms of most families has been almost completely eroded leaving them absolutely destitute and without any assets or sources of mutual support. There is also an approximate amount of US$13 million unfunded non-food requirements for IDPs within the existing consolidated appeal for Afghanistan. Of the total amount in the 2001 CAP (US$332.6 million), less than half (43%) has been provided so far.

Following the developments of 11 September 2001, particularly because of the disruption of basic assistance and the potential of increasing displacement, the threat to children and women is even more precarious, and the need for concerted humanitarian action more absolute, in one of the most difficult situations anywhere. If assistance is not provided to severely affected populations still in their places of origin, many children and women will not survive and potentially large numbers of families will live their own villages to seek support. All international staff of the UN and NGOs have been evacuated from Afghanistan. An edict prohibiting communication outside the country has been passed. This has virtually brought humanitarian programmes to a halt.

Pakistan is a host to over two million Afghan refugees, the Government has recently taken specific measures such as the closure of the Afghanistan border and blockage of the shipment of goods and fuel to Afghanistan in response to the request from the US Government for co-operation. This is despite the fact that Pakistan is the only country in the world that recognizes the Taliban Government.

POSSIBLE SCENARIOS

In Afghanistan, the number of displaced persons will increase, especially in October and November, if assistance does not reach people in their places of origin.

The current situation in Pakistan could easily trigger increased insecurity leading to large-scale violence such as anti-US demonstrations and even cross-border fighting between the Taliban regime and the Pakistan Army, leading to displacement of civilians. Therefore the potential for increasing numbers of Afghan refugees seeking refuge in Pakistan and numbers of Pakistani’s directly affected by the humanitarian crisis requires special planning.

The joint Afghanistan/Pakistan plan is for 300,000 displaced population inside Afghanistan; UNICEF assistance to 250,000 refugees and up to (500,000 Pakistan children and women who also could be affected.) NB: these numbers have been set NOT on the basis of the totality of needs which is far greater, but on basis of what the staff considered achievable with extraordinary efforts.

UNICEF PLANS

For Afghan IDPs

UNICEF Afghanistan had expected to deliver survival supplies directly to IDPs in camps in in Afghanistan, rather than pre-positioning these supplies. Since international staff is being relocated outside Afghanistan, implementation will depend on remaining national staff (both UN and NGO) as well as local authorities. National staff in sub-offices were expected to arrange with commercial trucks and IDP camp managers to transport these supplies from the border and distribute them in the camps. However, given the issuance of an edict prohibiting communication between Afghanistan and outside world, efforts are being made by UN to obtain a permission for national staff to use of the telephone line of the local authority to make detail arrangements of supply delivery and distribution. Since the major border points in Pakistan and Iran are closed, cross-border transportation of supplies though these conventional transportation routes is currently extremely difficult. Development of a strategic logistics plan, therefore, is under way to divert supply delivery from the border points of other neighbouring countries such as Turkmenistan and Tajikistan. For this purpose, UNICEF will pre-position the critical supplies near the borders of Pakistan, Iran and other neighboring countries, as feasible, to maintain readiness to immediately deliver supplies into Afghanistan as soon as an opportunity arises.

Very shortly, the winter snows will constrain access even more. The strategy for Afghanistan is to access children and women cross-border from neighbouring countries, to directly deliver to IDP camps. If no access into Afghanistan is possible, it is expected that IDPs will move to border areas and a system of "pick-up" working with NGOs will be organised.

Because of the high degree of uncertainty of the situation and uncertainty of the funding, the programme will be modularized and implemented in steps, maintaining flexibly as the situation permits.

For Afghan Refugees

According to the assumption of Afghanistan UN Country Team, it’s expected that an outflow of refugees would go into Pakistan (up to 1 million) where assistance would be provided primarily by UNHCR.

UNICEF is actively engaged in contingency planning with the Ministry of Refugees (SAFRON) in Pakistan, and is active in the UN contingency planning effort. UNHCR has requested UNICEF to expand provision for immunization for arriving refugees (the polio national immunization days will begin 23 September), measles; and supporting extra services in primary health care, water and sanitation. Additionally, UNHCR has also requested UNICEF to expand its education programmes for refugees.

UNICEF Pakistan will work and coordinate closely with UNICEF Afghanistan. The Education Officer of UNICEF Afghanistan will ensure the education activities for Afghan refugee children is appropriate and consistent with these UNICEF Afghanistan has been supporting inside Afghanistan. Since UNICEF Afghanistan will deploy staff at Quetta and Peshawar to strengthen cross-border operations, they are expected to coordinate closely with the Provincial Offices of UNICEF Pakistan in respective locations. Flexible approaches in sharing telecommunication and logistics systems and other resources, be it for Afghan IDPs or Afghan refugees may be taken, according to changing situations and needs.

For both Afghan IDPs and Refugees, assistance will be:

Non-food Assistance: The provision of blankets, warm clothes and shoes for children, plastic sheeting/tents, fuel for heating. These materials will be provided directly to IDP camps. Non-food items can be distributed via IDP camp committees, trucking companies, local NGOs in as many camps as possible under the supervision of local staff if UNICEF international staff is not available. Provision of these essential non-food assistance is considered critical for the survival of children in IDP camps during the winter months.

Health: Health intervention will be continuation of immunisation (under on-going country programme for which additional funds are not required) especially measles; provision of essential drugs, particularly for ARI; drugs and basic equipment to address common illnesses and for maternal and child health services at the clinic level; basic drugs will be provided to some hospitals to take care of the referrals, particularly for children and pregnant women. Assistance will be delivered to health facilities using health staff in Afghanistan, and through NGOs and local health authorities in Pakistan.

Nutrition: Therapeutic and supplementary feeding programmes exist in many IDP camps in Afghanistan. For displaced children in camps, UNICEF will strengthen existing nutrition programmes by providing technical guidelines and supplementary and therapeutic foods, through partners who have been trained previously, once access improves. Once international staff return to Afghanistan, these activities will be taken to scale through international NGOs.

Water and Sanitation: Basic supplies such as jerry cans, buckets and soap will be delivered to the IDP camps using the strategies outlined above. National staff will work with the Rural and Rehabilitation Department and local water groups at IDP camps to ensure appropriate use of chlorination tablets and materials, handpumps, and oversee the construction of latrines and providing hygiene education. When access improves, activities will be expanded to include the provision of safe drinking water by drilling wells, installing handpumps/chlorination where safe water is critically needed, and provide tankering if no alternative exists. In Pakistan, UNICEF through its provincial offices has agreed to work with UNHCR in Peshawar/ NWFP, and Quetta/Balochistan, in collaboration with local water authorities and local NGOs to provide water and sanitation services, particularly for temporary schools and unaccompanied children centres.

Child Protection and Education: With large scale displacement, either as refugees of IDPs, the expectation is that the numbers of unaccompanied children may increase. In Afghanistan, the strategy is to ensure the cross-border services when they start and even “pick-up/drop off” delivery of supplies incorporates components to identify unaccompanied children and refer them. This will be exceedingly difficult given the current situation, but as access improves, and particularly when international staff are able to return to Afghanistan, this will be a priority. Restarting educational services will also be vital at this stage. In Pakistan, education for refugee children will be a priority, requiring school supplies and training of teachers, which UNICEF will provide and temporary classrooms, which will be the responsibility of UNHCR. UNICEF will provide safe play and learning areas for Afghan children.

For Pakistani IDPs/ISPs11 Internally Stuck Persons = other vulnerable groups in their places of origin

In principle, the key strategy of UNICEF Pakistan in support of Pakistani IDPs/ISPs will be to accelerate, adjust and increase ongoing programme activities to meet the needs of the affected Pakistani children and women.

Health and Nutrition: Apart from the provision of measles vaccinations and other vaccines, essential medical supplies such as emergency health kits, essential drugs, and ORS, supplementary feeding for under 5 (to be discussed with WFP) and pregnant and lactating women is also essential part of health and nutrition intervention. To ensure effective and quality health services, capacity building of relevant personnel in management of emergency situations, including training of staff in tertiary care centers to cope with emergencies, psychosocial counselling etc. will be emphasized. If demands exist, mobile basic health services will be arranged.

Education: Use of existing school structures for IDPs/ISPs will be encouraged to ensure that the primary-school-age children continue learning. This will be supported by the provision of education materials in a form of school-in-a-box. Teachers will be trained to identify signs of trauma among children and oriented to provide basic learning under unstable situations. Early childhood development elements will be integrated in the notion of "safe environment for children" where young children and mothers can also benefit. Adolescents, if they are literate, will be mobilized as temporary teachers.

Water supply and sanitation: Maximum use of existing structures and rehabilitation of these for water supply will be emphasized. However, where water sources are scarce, especially in drought-hit areas, installation of water pumps both Afridev and locally made "Lalpump", which is very cost effective but useful only in the areas having electricity will be an alternative. Pit latrines and trench latrines (men and women latrines will be separated) will be constructed along with the provision of hygiene education. Support will be also provided for hosting communities that might suffer from considerable environmental damages by the influx of IDPs.

Country Specific Plan: Tajikistan, Uzbekistan & Turkmenistan

BACKGROUND

The common border shared by Afghanistan with Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan is approximately 2200 km.

Tajikistan currently has 15,000 IDPs and refugees. Continued drought has had a devastating effect on the livelihoods of the population, prolonging displacement. Lack of investment in health and education has meant that many children do not have access to these services.

Turkmenistan is sparsely populated and its borders with Afghanistan remain relatively porous and is also affected by drought.

Uzbekistan has also insufficient funds to invest in infrastructure so that the water, sanitation, health, education and social welfare systems have also substantially deteriorated.

After making a comprehensive assessment, UNICEF developed in August 2001 a Recovery Plan for Women and Children Affected by a Worsening Drought Situation in each of the above three countries.

Tajikistan and Uzbekistan have both supported politically and militarily the Afghan forces fighting the Taliban regime in recent years. In northern Afghanistan there are large populations of ethnic Tajiks, Turkmens and Uzbeks who may try to seek asylum in the countries with which they have close ethnic, cultural and extended family ties.

POSSIBLE SCENARIOS

Though the UN Country teams in the three countries have tried to clarify Government positions on access for refugees from Afghanistan, Tajikistan has so far refused access, and neither Uzbekistan nor Turkmenistan has yet taken an official standpoint although it seems that goodwill is there. A major contribution from the governments in the three countries will be the authorization for cross-border operations by the UN Agencies. The respective UNCT in each country will determine among themselves how best to cooperate under the coordination of their respective Resident Coordinators. In the meantime pre-positioning of essential goods is a priority as we are not sure of the feasibility of many airlifts to some of these countries once the conflict starts or just before it starts.

Therefore, contingency plans are under development for Cross-border emergency support to IDPs in Afghanistan located close to Central Asian border (similar cross-border support exists already through other organisations in Tajikistan and WFP in Turkmenistan) and the provision of emergency relief supplies and assistance to the arriving Afghan refugees in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

The UN in these countries is therefore planning humanitarian assistance programmes for up to 100,000 vulnerable people in each country bordering Afghanistan, (including 30,000 women and 30,000 children).

For both refugees and IDPs, UNICEF is essentially looking at services for children and mothers, which are very much within UNICEF’s Core Corporate Commitments and the MOU with UNHCR. UNICEF has an important role to play in the health, education and psycho-social interventions.

It should also be noted that in view of the extreme poverty that exists along the southern borders of the three Central Asian Republics, any influx of refugees will cause a serious burden on the host communities, with the potential to cause tensions in these countries. Thus, population movement into the Central Asian countries should not be seen solely as a refugee issue.

COORDINATION AND BASE OF OPERATIONS

The UN Country Teams in the three countries involved are developing joint contingency plans that include all activities proposed in this document.

UNICEF has initiated strategies for inter-agency co-ordination in areas of primary concern to UNICEF and identify partners, in particular UN agencies and NGOs, for interventions in the areas of health, nutrition, education, child protection, and water and sanitation. The scope of many existing partnerships is being extended to address the newly-emerging needs.

In the three countries, temporary offices will be set up near the border with Afghanistan. All temporary offices will be equipped with satellite phone connections, computers, cars, trucks etc. (for details see budget). Shared warehouse accomodation is available in several of the locations, and warehouse facilities are being contracted where space is not currently available to UNICEF.

The Tajik capital Dushanbe however is only 140 km away from the border. It also has storage facilities which have been used for several years by UNICEF for its on-going emergency/country programmes. From the Uzbek border, Mazar el Sharif is only 70 km away and the road is in good condition. Current plans are that an office will be located near Termez, where WFP and UNHCR have a very big logistics centre. In Turkmenistan, there have already been discussions about shared facilities between UNICEF and WFP, which has been managing a cross-border operation from Turkmenabad since June 2001. In Turkmenistan, the temporary office will be set up near Gushgy the main border crossing with Afghanistan where warehousing capacity exists.

For refugees inside Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, the implementing partners are UNHCR (and other UN Agencies), local and international NGOs, the national sectoral Ministries, and the Afghan refugee communities. Apart from UNHCR and the Afghan refugee communities, these are all partners involved in the current Country Programmes. Discussions are underway with the key international NGO partners, vis-à-vis their capacity, whilst the high levels of unemployment amongst social sector staff in all countries should make expansion of local capacities straightforward.

UNICEF PLANS

Water and Environmental Sanitation

• Provision of water purification tablets, water containers, soap, shovels for excreta and solid waste disposal; and
• Dissemination of key messages on water handling, safe disposal of excreta and solid waste, as well as hygiene messages on water-borne diseases.

As many of the locations for possible refugee settlements are in arid areas, water will be provided at first through water trucks and subsequently through shallow and deep-wells (depending on the local situation). Where surface water is available, locally produced slow-sand filters will be provided for water treatment, rather than depending on trucking.

Once immediate needs have been addressed, the following activities will be undertaken:

• Construction of an adequate number of traditional pit latrines;
• Installation of hand pumps or other appropriate solutions to provide safe drinking water;
• Coordination of a system of solid waste disposal; and
• Development of ongoing hygiene education activities for all groups.

Health and Nutrition

The primary objective of the proposed interventions is to provide basic health care services for women and children through:

• Provision of emergency health kits (including essential drugs such as for treatment of malaria and tuberculosis), hygiene kits, traditional birth attendant kits, mid-wife kits, ORS, basic clinical equipment, high energy/protein biscuits, blankets, winter cloths, boots and winter-proof tent for temporary health clinic;
• Provision of measles vaccines and OPV for immunisation of children; establishment of mobile immunisation teams;
• Provision of tetanus toxoid for immunisation of all women of childbearing age;
• Disseminate key messages health, nutrition and psycho-social/cognitive development issues including the importance of breastfeeding and safe motherhood as well as early stimulation practices.

Child Protection and Education

Establishment of safe environments for children for learning recreation and psychosocial support giving children, including disabled children, the chance to relax/express themselves before any educational activities start;

• Provision of winter-proof tents for use as recreational/play-area, classroom; and
• Provision of school-in-a-box, recreational and Early Childhood Development kits.
• Identification, registration and medical screening of unaccompanied children and the registration of all parents who have lost their children;
• Identification, protection and mainstreaming of children with special needs; and
• Provision of psychosocial rehabilitation kits and trauma support services for children and their caregivers.

Additional staff is also immediately needed in each country for preparedness, and implementation for water and sanitation, health, nutrition, education, psycho social trauma, and information activities and for operations and logistics.

Annex 2

Number of Estimated Beneficiaries by Sector and by Age

Sectors	Families	Children	Women
		< 5	> 5
Total population to be covered	192,000	97,000	478,000230,000
Non-Food/Shelter	20,000	258,750	176,0003000
Health	192,000	97,000	478,000230,000
Nutrition	-	254,250	--
Water and Sanitation	192,000	97,000	478,000230,000
Education	-	42,000	273,000-
Protection	-	173,000	-

For more information, visit the UNICEF website at http://www.unicef.org