Please note: Updates now issue on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
- Umm Qasr port is now expected to be
open for cargo in mid-July, once difficult dredging work has been completed.
- Some ethnic tension continues in the
north of Iraq, fuelled in part by property disputes between current residents
and returnees. Kirkuk is a hotspot in the north, and Al Fallujah in the
northwest.
- World Food Programme's food pipeline
appears healthy, and distribution is under way. However, while OFF contracts
are being renegotiated, challenges remain in distributing some important
commodities, such as pulses.
- The Coalition Provisional Authority
has announced that April salaries will be paid by the end of next week
and May and June salaries will be paid by the end of the month.
- On 10th June, the Coalition Provisional
Authority suspended humanitarian flights into Iraq for 72 hours, while
procedures are put in place to stop non-humanitarian items being carried
on them.
- Since the early stages of hostilities,
the ICRC has collected a total of 15,146 "safe and well" messages
from Iraqi POWs and civilian internees.
- European Union's ECHO office opened in Baghdad this week, to implement €35 million of relief projects through EU NGOs, including CARE, Oxfam and Merlin.
DFID STAFF DEPLOYMENTS TO IRAQ
DFID now has six advisers working with the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in Baghdad. DFID advisers are working on humanitarian assistance and are seeking to link CPA up with Iraqi administrators, UN agencies, the International Committee of the Red Cross, relevant NGOs and the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Iraq. DFID also has three advisers seconded to the UK military in Basra, and two other staff in Basra liaising with the humanitarian agencies and the UK military based there.
DFID FUNDING
DFID has committed £115m to support work by humanitarian agencies in the current crisis and has £95m set aside for further contributions. A further £60 million was set aside by the Chancellor on 9 April for Departments to claim from HM Treasury for work in Iraq if and when needs arise. A list of approved funding to date is attached.
In addition, the Ministry of Defence has been allocated £30m by HM Treasury to help it carry out its humanitarian obligations under the Geneva Convention and the Hague Regulations.
DFID also provides 19% of European Community (EC) funding for Iraq. On 9 April the European Parliament approved the release of an additional 79 million euros from the Commission's Emergency Aid Reserve, increasing their total commitment to 100 million euros.
AGREED DFID EMERGENCY FUNDING FOR IRAQ
RED CROSS
International Federation of the Red
Cross £15,500,000
Support to pre-positioning stocks, deployment of delegates, as well as
disaster preparedness/response activities of the relevant National Societies.
International Committee of the Red
Cross £16,500,000
Support to pre-positioning stocks, deployment of delegates, emergency medical
support, water and sanitation, protection and assistance activities.
TOTAL RED CROSS £32,000,000
UN
World Food Programme £33,000,000
Support to enable the procurement, transport and distribution of foodstuffs,
including operational and logistical support. Support to the provision
of the United Nations Humanitarian Air Service and the United Nations Joint
Logistics Centre. Food pre-positioning for 250,000 for ten weeks. Upgrading
logistics and communications capacity.
United Nations Children's Fund
£9,000,000
Pre-positioning emergency supplies. Developing campaign for mine awareness.
Enhance capacity of field offices. Support to key activities in water and
emergency sanitation, routine immunisation and mine risk education throughout
Iraq.
United Nations High Commission for
Refugees £1,750,000
Winter kits for 350,000. Procurement of remaining kits for target caseload
of 600,000. Site identification and deployment of additional emergency
officers.
World Health Organisation £6,000,000
24 emergency health kits pre-positioned. Training on communicable diseases
and awareness for CBW. Need to preposition 76 additional health kits and
20 surgical kits. Strengthen WHO field operations, logistics and communications.
Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian
Assistance £900,000
Deployment of personnel to Country Teams and Larnaca. Deploy IRIN officers
to Cyprus, Turkey, and Jordan. Develop public information capacity. Support
of information, coordination and technology in Iraq and the region.
Office of the United Nations Security
Co-ordinator £600,000
Enhance current security structure with 1 Regional Security Coordination
Officer, 6 Field Security Officers, oversight and training.
Food and Agriculture Organisation
£1,500,000
Support to agricultural and poultry production in war-affected areas of
southern Iraq to boost food security and contribute to improving the nutritional
status of project beneficiaries in areas targeted.
United Nations Development Programme
£7,035,100
Emergency assistance in the electricity sector focusing on Central and
Southern Iraq. Work includes assessments and rapid rehabilitation.
United Nations Mines Advisory Service
£4,000,000
Support to mine clearance activities and mine action co-ordination
TOTAL FUNDING TO UN AGENCIES: £63,785,100
NGOs
Merlin £265,000
Emergency health, mobile units, rapid health assessments
International Medical Corps £220,000
Emergency Trauma care, primary care for under 5s and pregnant woman and
obstetric care
Save the Children UK £500,000
Health, non-food items and tracing
HelpAge International £150,000
Non-food items, shelter to elderly IDPs and their dependents
GOAL £305,834
Assistance and Primary Health Care to southern Iraq
BBC World Service Trust £390,600
Emergency radio programme & media audit BBC WST
War Child £613,133
Emergency bakeries programme
MedAir £295,565
Assistance to IDPs in northern Iraq
Mines Advisory Group £80,883
Mine action preparedness, mine marking and deployment of coordinators to
centre/south Iraq
4RS £105,673
Assistance to vulnerable women in northern Iraq
CARE £499,070
Rehabilitation of water, sanitation and health facilities in centre/south
Iraq
TOTAL NGO'S £3,425,758
GRAND TOTAL FUNDING AGREED: £99,210,858
(TOTAL FUNDING COMMITTED: £115,000,000)
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