Indonesia: Earthquake and Mt. Merapi Volcano OCHA Situation Report No. 20

Ref: OCHA/GVA - 2006/0138
OCHA Situation Report No. 20
INDONESIA (Central Java and Yogyakarta) EARTHQUAKE and Mt. MERAPI Volcano

This report is based on information received from the UN Resident/Humanitarian Coordinator’s Office in Jakarta, Indonesia, and the UN team in Yogyakarta.

HIGHLIGHTS

1. Some 102,807 households have not yet received any form of emergency shelter assistance.

2. More assistance is required for the recovery of health facilities in Central Java.

3. "School/development" fees appear to be an issue, possibly preventing children from going to schools. The Provincial Department of Education and District Heads of Education are working to find the solution.

4. Replacement of tools and equipment damaged in the earthquake, provision of agricultural inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, water pumps, and repair of irrigation systems are needed for livelihood revitalization.

5. Equipment is needed to enable the communication between communities and health offices.

SITUATION

6. As of 20 July, the death toll stands at 5,778. The number of seriously injured stands at 37,883. 139,859 homes have been completely destroyed. 468,149 additional houses have suffered earthquake damage. All statistics come from the National Coordinating Board for the Management of Disaster (BAKORNAS PB).

General

7. The central and local governments have agreed on a cost-sharing scheme to complete the outstanding payment of rice and side-dish allowances to beneficiaries.

8. The National Technical Team for Rehabilitation and Reconstruction together with the provincial governments of Yogyakarta and Central Java are discussing the feasibility of increasing the housing reconstruction fund to IDR 15 million per house by distributing funds to only 30% of the total number of households with destroyed homes.

Yogyakarta

Bantul

9. The hygiene campaign needs to be strengthened to prevent communicable diseases in Bantul. At present, there are not enough effective communication tools between communities and the health office. This is mainly because radio stations were severely damaged during the earthquake.

10. Dengue fever cases in Bantul are on the rise.

Central Java

Klaten

11. The district government plans to reallocate funds from the district budget for housing reconstruction. The funds from the central government covers only 93,000 damaged houses – that is only 30 % of all damaged homes.

12. Trucuk sub-district needs assistance from international NGOs, particularly in terms of shelter and livelihood programmes. Only a few national NGOs are working in this area.

Mount Merapi

13. Mount Merapi volcano has been quiet since 12 July. The alert level has been reduced to the cautious level.

14. Taking advantage of the remaining momentum from the last Merapi response, the UN is exploring the possibility for one-day strategic workshop with stakeholders.

Dam assessment

15. The Joint UNEP/OCHA Environment Unit, in close cooperation with the European Commission's Monitoring and Information Centre, has received from the Indonesian Ministry of Public Works, a request for technical assistance to assess the integrity of four large (irrigation) dams in the Yogyakarta Earthquake affected area. The EC MIC will deploy two experts to assist the Ministry in their assessment activities.

CLUSTER UPDATE

Health:

16. The local government says that follow-up treatment is free of charge at the health facilities that treated patients previously. For new patients, only selected hospitals can provide free medical services.

17. Health facilities in Bantul have been benefiting from national/local government resources, help from UN agencies and NGOs. However, assistance is needed for the recovery in Central Java.

18. Methods of disposing expired and damaged medical supplies are being discussed. One possible way is through a cement factory in Bogor, which has proper disposal facilities.

19. Printed materials for public information on breast-feeding, wound care, disability and medical rehabilitation have been developed and will be distributed to the community. The tetanus immunization campaign will be broadcasted through public service announcements on TV and radio shortly.

20. No new outbreaks of disease in the disaster area have been reported this week. Tetanus is under control. Two new cases were found last week.

21. IOM has returned 4,829 people from 14 different hospitals in Yogyakarta, Bantul and Klaten to their home villages and helped 300 patients go back to hospital for follow-up medical care.

22. IOM has distributed 160 boxes of Basic Hygiene and First Aid Kits including two baby-kits to beneficiaries or members of their families who are pregnant or have babies up to six-months old.

23. IOM is planning to distribute baby kits for 208 pregnant women in four sub-districts of Bantul on Friday 28 July with assistance from the District Health Office in Bantul.

24. The first Phase of Mental Health Training, Training for Trainers (TOT) was held on 18 -21 July. Fifteen psychiatrists and five nurses participated. The second Phase of Training for General Practitioners and Nurses will follow on 1 August.

25. IOM is finalizing its health promotional leaflet on Wound Care and Disability Prevention and Rehabilitation that will be distributed soon in coordination with the health promotion sub-cluster working group.

26. Final Meeting on the Medical (Orthopaedic) Follow-Up Program in Solo was carried out successfully among key players like Solo Orthopedic Hospital, Moewardi Hospital, IOM and Handicapped International. Patient’s Database was given to IOM and Handicapped International by both hospitals in Solo.

Water and Sanitation (Watsan):

27. Public Works (PW) organized the Klaten Watsan Coordination Meeting on 26 July. 12 participants attended it. It has been decided that the meeting will be held every fortnight starting on 9 August.

28. PDAM will continue water trucking services:

29. Two Public Hydrants and one water bladder were phased out on 17 July.

30. 573 wells have been cleaned by PW Klaten and the activity is continuing. PW Bantul has provided data on well-cleaning, and PW Yogyakarta is preparing a proposal for well-cleaning. Other well-cleaning proposals from AAI, YKMI, Bina Bakat and YKY are being processed.

31. 1,970 toilets have been constructed or are under repair. Out of which 353 are individual household toilets and the others are communal facilities.

32. IRD supported by UNICEF plans to construct 100 school latrines. It will start by early August.

Food and Nutrition:

33. World Vision is planning to provide supplementary food through Posyandu. The programme will target 3,000 malnourished children in five sub-districts (Sewon, Jetis, Dlingo, Imogiri and Pleret) of Bantul District and five sub-districts (Gantiwarno, Trucuk, Cawas, Bayat and Prambanan) of Klaten District. Food provisions include porridge (MP-ASI) for children between 6 months to 24 months of age and biscuits for children between 24 months to 60 months of age. An assessment of the situation prior to the implementation of the programme will be completed this week. Distribution will begin the first week of August 2006 and last till November 2006.

34. UNICEF and HKI conducted a training on Vitalita distribution on Monday 24 July. It was attended by the participants from eight puskesmas in Bantul and 12 puskesmas in Gunung Kidul. Upon completion of the training, Vitalita will be distributed to 5,000 children under the age of five. The last training session was conducted on Tuesday 25 July for the 16 participants from Yogyakarta, Sleman and Kulonprogo districts. 27,000 sachets of Vitalita will be distributed to children under the age of five.

Education:

35. "School / development" fees appear to be an issue, possibly preventing children from going to schools. The Provincial Department of Education has come to an agreement with all district Heads of Education that if a family is unable to pay the fee (either because of the chronic poverty or earthquakes), it is suggested that schools coordinate to collect the fee from a “wealthier” family. Alternatively, the Provincial Department of Education will subsidize the cost.

36. Reconstruction of schools has started at a few sites. Bantul District Department of Education reported that 137 primary school buildings have plans for reconstruction in the near future.

37. Save the Children trained 800 teachers in educational complementary methods concerning teaching in 1) emergency preparedness; and 2) psychosocial awareness and strategies regarding how to deal with post earthquake problems in daily life.

38. 50 schools each in Bantul and Klaten received from Save the Children:

- 95 school-tents and 59 Kindergarten-tents

- 5 200 plastic mats for the primary schools and 1,690 for the Kindergartens

- 600 blackboards

- 400 Cooperative games kits

- 200 school kits

- 53 clean-up kits

39. Save the Children rehabilitated latrines and wells in the 67 schools in partnership with OXFAM/LPTP.

40. Save the Children rehabilitated a small bridge, assisted by PMI, to enable children to access school. They are currently seeking funds for temporary schools.

41. PMI, financed by Netherlands RC, distributed 3,000 school kits in Bantul in Kota YY, Sleman, Bantul, Gunung Kidul, and Kulon Progo. Distribution of 11,938 school kits will take place in Klaten shortly.

42. World Vision built five bamboo temporary schools in Bantul and provided seven school tents with watsan facilities, student furniture, text books, uniforms, and bags.

43. Japanese Government distributed 3,700 school tents in Bantul and Klaten, as district Dinas planned.

44. AMURT Completed construction of four temporary schools benefiting 542 children with basic teaching and learning materials and psycho-social program. 15 volunteers who assist in psycho-social program were trained for 30 hours, and 65 teachers in five schools were trained for three hours.

45. The construction of two temporary schools by AMURT is in progress and will be ready by 3 August. The construction of another four temporary schools will start by 1 Aug.

46. AMURT plans to start psycho-social programmes in four schools on 31 July, and to provide basic teaching and learning materials to six schools.

47. 63 schools in Bantul and 34 schools in Klaten received from UNICEF:

- 114 School tents

- 10,138 student backpacks with stationeries (Bantul) and 4,752 in Klaten distributed

- Rehabilitation/reconstruction of latrines and watsan facilities for 100 schools on-going

- 200 Blackboards and rulers

- 100 Recreation Kits

48. UNICEF identified additional 25 schools in Bantul (list to be finalized) and 13 schools in Klaten (1,920 backpacks) to receive backpacks and notebooks.

49. UNICEF is currently preparing for psychosocial support/emergency preparedness activities and the provision of temporary schools.

50. The Rapid Assessment of Learning Spaces has begun to assess current conditions of learning spaces at 2,600 schools in Bantul and Klaten.

Protection:

51. A one-day strategic planning meeting will be held on 27 July. The objective is to fill in the geographical and programmatic gaps as identified in the Who-What-Where mapping. This will enable organizations working within the four key areas of intervention (Child Protection, Gender, Psychosocial and Gender) to address the geographical and programmatic disparities and gaps identified in Klaten and to formulate the monitoring framework for the Cluster.

52. A total of 155 safe spaces for children, including 80 in Bantul and 75 in Klaten, have been established by international and national NGOs to date, while 13 mobile teams are operating in Bantul and seven mobile teams in Klaten. 249 vulnerable children have been registered by DepSos.

53. UNICEF is conducting a Child Protection Assessment with local authorities, and the Child Protection Working Group, to help inform programme direction and priorities within the sector. Data collection will be conducted at the sub-district level with the participation of local authorities and a wide range of both INGO’s and local NGO’s. Results from the assessment are expected to be released by 18 August.

54. Gaps remain in addressing the protection needs of elderly. There are no agencies within the Protection Cluster covering this need.

Early Recovery:

55. The Cluster has been preparing the strategic framework for both the Transitional Shelter and the Livelihood Working Groups. The framework includes the terms of reference, strategies, and identification of government partners. The framework documents will be finalized with the Working Group members shortly.

56. The Cluster organized the workshop on 26 July in Bantul to discuss the livelihood recovery activities by the governments and the organizations and agencies in cooperation with Ministry of Trade and Industry, and Ministry of Agriculture, Marine and Aquatic Resources.

Emergency Shelter:

57. The Emergency Shelter Cluster is now merging its planning and coordination functions with the Transitional Shelter Working group of the Early Recovery Cluster under an umbrella ‘Shelter Coordination Group’. Both Clusters have a joint meeting twice a week and they are co-chaired by IFRC, UNDP (or UN-Habitat), and the GOI Yogyakarta Department of Public Works.

58. As of 25 July, some 102,807 households have yet not received any form of emergency shelter assistance from known sources.

59. Distribution coverage of emergency shelter roofing materials has reached 69% of affected households. A further 98,933 tarpaulins are confirmed in the pipeline. Coverage is projected to reach 98% by 20 August when tents/tarpaulins confirmed in the pipeline are distributed. Given that additional inputs from national civil society and unknown international NGOs are assumed to be 20%. A hundred percent coverage is assured before the onset of the rainy season.

60. Final-phase planning currently focuses on coordinated in-filling of outstanding emergency shelter needs, coherence of public messaging for application of technical best practices, monitoring outcome and impact, and advocating to GOI on the implications of housing policy on transitional shelter provision.

61. The Cluster members are currently operational in 69 of the 71 earthquake affected sub-districts out of total 104 sub-districts in the two affected provinces.

62. A workshop “Two months on: working with Government Recovery Policy” will be chaired and co-chaired by Bappeda and Ministry of Public Works facilitated by OCHA on 2 August.

63. Recommendations on transitional shelter materials guidelines have been finalized under the facilitation of IFRC. Technical guidelines and standards are under production in poster form under facilitation of GMU as follows:

- Bamboo technical guidelines: completed

- Bamboo shelter construction: completed

- Key Messages: to be completed by 30 July

- Core Room construction: work in progress

64. Data capture for the “Shelter Security Needs and Vulnerability Assessment Survey” was completed on 10 July. The initial analysis is being undertaken with the Cluster Strategic Advisory Group. Preliminary findings should be available on 29 July.

65. A critical issue at hand is how the humanitarian community best integrates its transitional shelter solutions with GOI initiatives based on partial allocation of compensation grants. The Cluster continues to advocate with district authorities of Bantul and Klaten for transitional shelter policy that sees an overlap of emergency and recovery operations through newly established GOI sectoral focal points.

66. Coherent guidelines for permanent ‘core room’ shelter construction have been drawn up by Gajah Mada University with inputs of the Cluster members. The copy of the guidelines by the Ministry of Public Works is not yet available.

67. The implications for community mobilization in terms of brick-making and cash-for-work, and the assessment of self-recovery capacities and supply-side need further exploration and discussion.

The Full Report from the Shelter Cluster can be obtained from the ReliefWeb Website.

Agriculture:

68. A livelihoods assessment for Yogyakarta and Central Java will be conducted from 31 July to 4 August. The results of which will feed into a Strategic Planning Workshop with key stakeholders to be held on 7 and 8 August in Yogyakarta.

69. FAO completed a workshop on the agriculture damage assessment on 20 July. It was attended by senior officials of the Ministry of Agriculture from Jakarta and Agriculture Department officials, BAPPEDA Yogyakarta and Central Java, DPRD Klaten, BPTP Yogyakarta (Agriculture Applied Technology Research Center), UN agencies, Universities, and NGOs. Key recommendations from this workshop include:

1) the results of assessments from other organizations should be combined to develop strategies for the rehabilitation of livelihoods within the agriculture sector

2) agencies should quickly develop a common assessment/survey methodology that is comprehensive and could be implemented quickly

3) a national level workshop on agriculture with key stakeholders should be conducted to raise an awareness of the actual situation in the earthquake affected areas and to propose a common strategy for future recovery programming

4) a joint task force based in Jakarta that consists of the key stakeholders and donors, should be formed to coordinate with the existing agriculture sector group in Yogyakarta (includes FAO, provincial and district level Dinas Offices, NGOs and universities).

70. Damages to the agriculture sector were not identified as a serious problem as most of the crops were still growing in the field. However, this does not mean that agriculture damages are minor.

71. Key elements for revitalizing livelihoods are the replacement of tools and equipment damaged in the earthquake and also the provision of agricultural inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, water pumps, and the repair of irrigation systems.

72. “Multiple negative impacts” will cause a complex disruption of livelihoods activities. Necessary support must be provided quickly before the next rainy season through the provision of direct agricultural inputs to targeted farmers.

73. If no assistance is provided, approximately 1.5 million people will be faced with food security problems, and more than 150,000 farmer households will be trapped in a vicious circle of poverty

74. It is critical to develop livelihood strategies with key stakeholders that address the immediate needs of the affected farmer households.

Logistics:

75. The logistics cluster is in the process of closing down as agreed to by the Cluster Heads on 12 July.

76. Fleet currently consists of 86 trucks and 44 light vehicles operating at capacity.

77. IOM has delivered 17,000 tons of food and non-food items for a total of 93 organizations, including the Government, UN agencies and international and local NGOs.

COORDINATION

78. OCHA Yogyakarta holds regular Coordination Briefings at 8 am every Monday.

79. The schedule of the Coordination Meetings in Klaten is:

- Shelter Meeting: 14pm, Thursday in PU Klaten.

- NGO General Coordination Meeting: 16pm, Thursday in Bapeda Klaten

- Education Cluster Meeting – Central Java – Klaten: 10am, Friday in Dinas Pendidikan.

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