Nepal: Floods and Landslides - Oct 2009

Executive Summary

This country diagnostics assessment reviews the current disaster risk financing (DRF) landscape and enabling environment in Nepal, with a particular focus on risk transfer instruments—insurance, reinsurance, and capital markets.

INTRODUCTION

This publication is an initiative of the Regional Consultative Group (RCG) on Humanitarian Civil-Military Coordination for Asia and the Pacific. The RCG seeks to not only link the region with the Global Consultative Group on Humanitarian Civil-Military Coordination, but also to provide a learning platform for good practice. This publication focuses on Asia and the five priority countries in this region that are highly vulnerable to large-scale natural disasters: Bangladesh, Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal, and the Philippines.

DWIDP Concerns: Water Induced Disaster Prevention'

Background

Background

Almost all districts across the Far West face losses of lives and property every year due to natural disasters. However, the impact can last well beyond the immediate event. Humanitarian actors have observed that the duration of displacement varies depending on the intensity and type of disaster: displacement following inundation of rivers is generally short term, while displacement resulting from floods and erosion is generally longer term.

Nepal Context

Nepal lies between India and China, the giant economically growing countries in the world. Although there are immense opportunities for development, Nepal is still recorded as one of the least developed countries in the globe. It is a country of highly diverse and rich geography, culture and religions. Following the comprehensive peace process, Nepal has been witnessing rapid changes in social and political sectors. The state is going through the constitution making process.

Summary: CHF 307,240 (USD 302,858 or EUR 202,870) was allocated from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies' (IFRC) Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) on 19 October 2009 to support the Nepal Red Cross Society (NRCS) in delivering immediate assistance to 4,000 families with non-food relief items as well as to replenish disaster preparedness stocks distributed to the affected population.

In October 2009, heavy floods and landslides in mid- and far-western regions of Nepal affected more than 257,000 people (46,800 families).

The focus of this edition is on the Far and Mid-West Hill and Mountain region

Situation Summary

- As expected, between January and March the food security situation deteriorated in parts of the Mid- and Far-Western Hill and Mountain districts. This is primarily attributed to the poor summer crop production in November/December 2009. In highly and severely food insecure areas, households have depleted their food stocks and basic food prices have increased by 20 percent or more compared to the same time last year.

World rice prices dropped during 2010

Bangkok - FAO's estimate of global rice paddy production in 2009 now stands at 680 million tones, 1 percent below the 2008 outstanding harvest, with much of the reduction being on account of Asia, where crops were impaired by erratic monsoon rains and the resurgence of El Niño conditions.

In brief

This annual report focuses on the work of the Asia Pacific zone office in 2009 to provide leadership and guidance to the International Federation efforts to increase the impact of Asia Pacific national societies' humanitarian activities. 2009 has been a very busy but productive period as the zone office has responded to multiple disasters simultaneously, while carrying forward several new initiatives designed to increase the impact of its work with Asia Pacific national societies.

(Kathmandu/New York, 10 March 2010): Humanitarian agencies in Nepal today appealed for US$ 123.5 million to fund projects to assist more than 3.4 million vulnerable people across the country who are in need of life-saving assistance, including food aid, in 2010.

Nearly half of Nepal's districts are experiencing food shortages and the humanitarian country team estimates that nearly 2.5 million people face extreme food insecurity, mainly in the Midand far-western hill and mountain regions.

Strengthening preparedness and early warning systems to reduce the number of people affected …

JOHANNESBURG, 9 March 2010 (IRIN) - Rice producing Asian countries had to contend with poor rains in 2009, and now another season of low rainfall has been forecast for some of them, which has prompted concern whether the price of the grain could go up later in 2010.

This is the second of a four-part series on food security where IRIN asks, "Are we heading for another crisis?" In this report we look at the possible impact of the current El Niño on rice prices in Asia and we find it seems a bit unclear.

In 2009 the impact of El Niño - the periodic flow of warm sea water …

DISASTER RISK REDUCTION

From February 3 to 18, USAID/ OFDA regional advisor for South Asia Rob Friedman, along with nongovernmental organization (NGO) partners International Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and National Society for Earthquake Technology (NSET), conducted a fifteen-day field assessment in Central and Western regions in Nepal to monitor USAID/ OFDA-funded disaster risk reduction (DRR) programs and assess existing vulnerabilities in the country.

GLIDE no. FL-2009-000291-NPL

The International Federation's Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) is a source of un-earmarked money created by the Federation in 1985 to ensure that immediate financial support is available for Red Cross and Red Crescent response to emergencies.

Section 1: Emergency Response and disaster risk management

LWF Nepal has been on the forefront of carrying out emergency response and disaster risk management in Nepal. We respond and support emergency situations arising from both natural and human made disasters. Our emergency operations include life-preserving and life-sustaining interventions related to food, shelter, water and sanitation, especially in acute phases. We were also one of the first organizations engaged in disaster preparedness.

Situation Summary

- The recent completion of the major harvest period of the year has improved the overall short-term food security situation across the country.

In Nepal 3.7 million people are currently food insecure and each year an average of 1,000 are killed in natural disasters. In the south of the country 100,000 displaced flood victims returned home this year, while in the north tens of thousands left their infertile land to find work abroad. During the past 18 months the price of staple commodities has increased by up to 30 - 70 percent, and the government-owned oil corporation almost went bankrupt trying to maintain subsidized fuel costs.

Highlights:

- UN Central Emergency Response Fund gives US$ 6 million to address hunger in Nepal following winter drought

- Nepal ratifies the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol.

- The Ministry of Health and Population confirms two deaths due to H1N1 influenza in Nepal

- The Unified Communist Party of Nepal - Maoist lifts blockade of the Legislative Parliament after four months

CONTEXT

Political Developments

A Task Force of the three major political parties, established in early December to resolve the ongoing …