In brief

Programme purpose: The Programme is designed to improve the capacity of the National Societies of Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius and Seychelles, to reduce the impact of disasters on vulnerable communities through Organisational Development and Disaster Management.

Programme(s) summary: Low coverage (31 percent) of the required budget severely slowed down the implementation of planned activities within the Sub-zone. A Disaster Management (DM) Delegate in Madagascar supported the NS in the development and implementation of Disaster Preparedness and Response (DPR) activities. Despite lack of funds, Statutes revisions have progressed significantly in Mauritius and Madagascar. Some of the National Societies (NS) are undergoing restructuring processes as part of organisational development programmes. Work advanced on the construction of the headquarters and warehouse of the Seychelles RC. The Seychelles NS also held its General Assembly and applied for intensified capacity building (ICB). The ICB application in Comoros was not approved and no additional funding has been received to date to support the NS's existing or additional programmes.

Financial situation: The total 2008 budget is CHF 1,318,091 (USD 1,150,166 or EUR 873,498), of which 31 per cent was covered. Expenditure overall was 88 per cent of funds received. The budget was revised after changes were made in Madagascar's disaster management programme, Mauritius' capacity building and the sub-office.

No. of people we help: 350 people benefited directly from secretariat-supported programme interventions during the reporting period. 700 people will benefit from activities planned for the following year.

Our partners: The National Societies of Canada, Spain, Germany, and France (through the PIROI (Plate-forme d'intervention régionale pour L'Océan Indien), have been operating predominantly through bi-lateral partnerships in the Sub-zone, but do rely on the Federation for coordination purposes. The Operating National Societies (ONS) in the regions are all represented on the National Disaster Committee of their respective countries. The Seychelles and Malagasy RC work closely with UN agencies such as United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), World Food Programme (WFP) and United Nation's Children's Fund (UNICEF) in disaster preparedness and reduction. The International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) provided support to the Comoros RC during the political conflict and continues to support dissemination activities in all the four National Societies. Following floods in early 2008, which killed three people, the Mauritius RC held a workshop to increase corporate partnerships in disaster response. The Federation continues to encourage the NS to develop local corporate and community based partnerships.