More than 100,000 persons are receiving essential relief items each day from IOM and its partners in the capital Port au Prince and other areas that sustained extensive damage from last week's devastating earthquake.
"Distribution at this time of great need can be a bit chaotic, but what is important is that we get the aid out to the people," says Vincent Houver, IOM's Chief of Mission in Haiti.
IOM, UN agencies, NGOs and the private sector are distributing essential non food items (NFIs) such as plastic sheeting and jerry cans to the displaced. After most acute needs are met, distributions will include building materials such as tarpaulins, cement, wood, tools, and ropes to help people fix their homes or build a more secure structure.
"Shelter strategies do not end with a tent. Tents are a short-term solution; we cannot expect people to stay in them forever. Homes need to be rebuilt," says Houver.
As of today, 508 makeshift settlements have been identified in the greater Port au Prince area. The 314 settlements assessed so far by IOM, the Government of Haiti and partners, indicate a population of 472,000 people.
The Government of Haiti is planning to establish six sites in greater Port au Prince, each able to accommodate a few thousand individuals. Earthquake victims will be relocated to these sites pending reconstruction efforts.
The temporary shelter sites must be closely linked to reconstruction efforts so people are not moved again. For this, IOM and its partners need strong and quick arrangements and the full support of the local authorities in order to keep residents informed of the process.
"These settlements cannot be built overnight. There are standards that have to be designed by experts. There is the levelling of the land, procurement and delivery of tents, as well as water and sanitation," explains Houver.
Partner governments and NGOs have committed to provide better shelter condition and services at existing settlements. The French Government will work on the large makeshift settlement at Champ de Mars, located by the presidential palace. The NGO Islamic Relief of USA and the French NGO ACTED have also confirmed they will take on other settlements.
Provision of tents remains an issue because the needs are so large and stocks in the region have been depleted. The Organization also needs shelter kits to distribute to those who can repair their homes or build more secure structures so they will not need to relocate.
On 21 January, IOM received 246 boxes of plastic sheeting, which will cover the needs of 2,460 families and 7,000 litres of bottled water from USAID.
As part of an initial appeal launched last week, the Organization is asking for US$30 million to provide emergency shelter, non-food assistance, track internal displacement and among other things, establish a food-for-work programme that would include rubble removal.
IOM has so far received pledges totalling USD 19,6 million from the US government (OFDA/USAID), Sweden, Canada, France, Finland, Korea, the UN's Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), the Clinton Foundation and Argos Cement Company of Colombia to support ongoing relief operations and future rebuilding efforts.
Private donations can be made to IOM through the IOM website at www.iom.int and in the United States at http://www.usaim.org/PROJECTHaiti.asp
For further information, please contact Niurka Pineiro, in Port au Prince, on Tel: + 509 3490 6678, email: niurkapineiro@yahoo.com, or Jean Philippe Chauzy or Jemini Pandya, IOM Geneva, Tel: + 41 22 717 9361/+ 41 79 285 4366, Email: pchauzy@iom.int and + 41 22 717 9486/+ 41 79 217 3374 Email: jpandya@iom.int respectively.