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In Brief
Appeal No. 05EA005; Operations Update no. 2; Period covered: 11 April to 22 May, 2005; Appeal coverage: 30.9%
Appeal history:
Launched on 31 March 2005 for CHF 2,235,000 (USD 1,925,894 or EUR 1,451,770) for six months to assist 70,000 beneficiaries.
Disaster Relief Emergency Funds (DREF) allocated: CHF 200,000 has been reimbursed.
The appeal budget is hereby revised from CHF 2,235,000 down to CHF 1,600,000.
Outstanding needs: CHF 909,082 (USD 731,060 or EUR 593,212)
Related Emergency or Annual Appeals: Afghanistan annual appeal 05AA045;
Severe winter appeal 05EA003
Operational summary:
The spring floods emergency appeal was launched as part of the coordinated Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement's contingency planning for floods in Afghanistan. The main focus of the appeal is the pre-positioning of non-food stocks in the five regions and mobilization of community-based first aid volunteers in communities threatened by flooding, as well as health and hygiene education.
Distribution of non-food items is carried out on the basis of needs assessments made by the Afghanistan Red Crescent Society (ARCS) staff in the regions, in view of the ongoing threat of flooding in various locations. So far, over one thousand flood-affected families have been assisted. Community-based first aid volunteers have been mobilized for deployment as needed, and the implementation of the hygiene component of the appeal is under preparation. This operation contains a strong national society capacity building component, specifically in the area of disaster management and logistics.
The threat of floods will remain high throughout the summer and more local flood interventions are expected to take place in the coming period.
The operational budget has been reduced from CHF 2,223,000 to CHF 1,600,000. Reductions have been made in the procurement of non-food items and construction of latrines, in view of the existing operational needs on the ground, as well as the funding outlook for the coming period.
Background
Since the beginning of the year, an extraordinary winter has hit Afghanistan, resulting in heavy snowfall, avalanches and landslides throughout the country. On 21 February, the Federation launched the 'severe winter emergency appeal' (05EA003) to support ARCS in assisting the internally displaced population in Kabul, which was particularly affected by the cold weather conditions.
Harsh winter was followed by spring rains, which, together with melting snow, caused concerns over potential flooding throughout the country. ARCS, the Federation and ICRC have elaborated a floods contingency plan in order to mobilize all available resources and prepare for response as floods occur. Subsequently, this emergency appeal was launched on 31 March focusing on the pre-positioning of non-food items for 2,000 families in each of the five regions - Kabul, Jalalabad, Herat, Mazar-i-Sharif and Kandahar - bringing the total number of potential beneficiaries to 70,000 individuals.
As part of response preparedness efforts, ARCS volunteers and staff are conducting ongoing field monitoring and assessments to determine specific needs in the regions. While pre-positioning is ongoing, some relief items have already been distr ibuted to the affected population, as elaborated below. In a follow-up to the severe winter emergency appeal, the Federation is continuing to provide technical support to the national society in disaster management issues and in the establishment of its logistics department.
One of the main constraints in the implementation of the operation remains the lack of efficient communication means, resulting in difficulties to gather accurate information through activity reports. Another great concern is the deterioration of the security situation throughout the whole country, which might hamper ARCS access to affected locations.
For further information specifically related to this operation please contact:
In Afghanistan: Afghanistan Red Crescent Society: Fatima Gailani (Secretary General), phone: +93 79 38 55 33 (mobile)
In Afghanistan: Afghanistan Federation Delegation contact Jamila Ibrohim, Head of Delegation, email: hod.kabuldel@wireless.ifrc.org phone: +882 168 980 2643 (sat phone) or +93 70 278 372 and +92 300 850 6861 (mob.), fax +873 716 238 228
In Geneva: Asia and Pacific Department, Jagan Chapagain, email: jagan.chapagain@if rc.org, phone: +41 22 7304316, fax +41 22 733 0395
All International Federation assistance seeks to adhere to the Code of Conduct and is committed to the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response in delivering assistance to the most vulnerable. For support to or for further information concerning Federation programmes or operations in this or other countries, or for a full description of the national society profile, please access the Federation's website at http://www.ifrc.org.
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