Attachments
Description of the Event
What happened, where and when?
On 02 November 2022 A peace treaty entitled Agreement for Lasting Peace through a Permanent Cessation of Hostilities between the Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (GoE) and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) was signed between the two parties, agreeing to a "permanent cessation of hostilities" to end the two-year Tigray War. Following the signature of the Agreement, humanitarian access to Tigray is slowly opening and it is critical to assess and scale up assistance in newly accessible areas, not only to save lives but to build confidence with local communities and returnees, authorities, and donors that assistance can be sustained at scale.
On 13 November 2022, the Ethiopia Disaster Risk Management Commission held a meeting with Implementing Partners to come up with modalities of discharging their respective responsibilities reaching out the Northern Ethiopia conflict affected population. The Ethiopian Government and Donor Partners reached on mutual agreement on emergency management upon the launching of full access to enclosed areas of the Northern Ethiopia and resume the multi-sectoral response operations on sense of urgency. On 28 November 2022, as many partners, ERCS raised a rapid situational report underlining ERCS actions limited by the access and security challenges which was slowly opening. Although the peace agreement was signed on 2nd November, access is only gradually opening up and is still sporadic. Indeed, on 2nd December, the UN's health body stated that "significant parts of the country" are still inaccessible with fighting still ongoing, and the peace agreement appears not to have halted the fighting entirely.” For instance, first UNHCR’s convoy effectively started early December, allowing humanitarian organisation real access only a week ago as stated in the UNHCR report published 9 December 2022. Aligned with the OCHA situational report on 6 December showing a gap in the response in the Country, the two-year conflict in Tigray has had a devastating toll on communities and people’s livelihoods, making it difficult to meet their basic needs, and civilian infrastructure, including health facilities, schools, roads, bridges, water and sanitation facilities, and electricity systems have been destroyed or severely damaged. Millions of people were displaced internally and by cross-borders and a result of the conflict, but there are signs that some internally displaced people are starting to return to their place of origin.
However, when they do return, many face challenges to find secure shelter or livelihoods and access to health or educational services all of which have a significant impact on the mental wellbeing of many families. Basic needs such as food, shelter, safe access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), basic lifesaving health services, and critical non-food items (NFIs) are urgent for all in the North and communities and returning IDPs need early recover support.