Attachments
Glide n° OT-2021-000119-IRQ
The major donors and partners of the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) include the Red Cross Societies and governments of Belgium, Britain, Canada, Denmark, German, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Norway, the Republic of Korea, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland, as well as DG ECHO and Blizzard Entertainment, Mondelez International Foundation, and Fortive Corporation and other corporate and private donors.
The IFRC, on behalf of the Iraqi Red Crescent Society, would like to extend thanks to all for their generous contributions.
A. Situation analysis
Description of the disaster
Since autumn 2020, atypically low levels of rainfall across the eastern region of the Mediterranean basin have contributed to drought conditions in Iraq. In May 2021, water flowing into Iraq dropped from a peak of nearly 80 billion cubic meters per year in the 1970s to less than 50 cubic meters. In August 2021, the Iraqi Ministry of Water Resources, the World Food Programme (WFP), the Global Water Stress Index, and the European Commission’s Joint Research Center all warned that the unfolding water crisis will soon become an unprecedented crisis across Iraq. Authorities began issuing water shortage alerts as main water storage areas began depleting.
Later, in April 2022, the Iraqi Ministry of Water Resources warned that the country’s water reserve had halved since the previous year. The effects of climate change echoed throughout the country as the lack of rainfall significantly reduced water reserves along with water levels in the Tigris and Euphrates as both rivers already suffered from a decreased flow from upstream countries. The ministry predicted that, unless urgent action is taken to combat the looming droughts, Iraq’s two main rivers will completely dry up in the coming years.
In June 2022, the situation was further exacerbated: prolonged heatwaves, declining precipitation, numerous dust storms, salinization, and loss of fertile land have all accentuated the dire need for immediate action. Water scarcity and land degradation have affected crop yields, directly impacting Iraq’s food security. Downstream, seawater intrusion has destroyed 60,000 acres of agricultural land and 30,000 trees. Families living in the vicinity, mainly in the Basra governorate, were most affected. Internal displacement was recorded across 8 governorates as an estimated 3,000 families suffered from these environmental consequences.
Summary of current response
Overview of Operating National Society
IRCS dispatched 3 Mobile Health Clinics (MHCs) in Diyala, Ninewa, and Basra, which were operated by 18 staff members, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and data collectors to ensure the delivery of primary healthcare, in addition to free medication for individuals affected by drought-related diseases. Each emergency medical team was accompanied by a team of volunteers who provided awareness sessions. Further, over 48 volunteers were identified, trained, and mobilized to provide Psycho-Social Support (PSS) to affected communities.
IRCS set up four water treatment and desalination points in Basra and Diyala, in addition to an artesian well in Ninawa. Each of the above water sources fed into four water points which were rehabilitated by IRCS. On standby, two dedicated emergency response units/modules (KIT 5 and M15) were readily available to provide up to 20,000 individuals with water treatment, storage, distribution, and hygiene promotion in response to severe water outages in the foreseeable future.
Moreover, IRCS cash teams distributed a one-time multipurpose cash assistance of 100 USD to 1,500 households through a third-party Financial Service Provided (FSP) in order to meet the families’ most urgent needs. One-time food parcels were also distributed to 5,775 households.
Overview of Red Cross Red Crescent (RCRC) Movement in-country
IRCS Headquarters, in collaboration with the IFRC Iraq Country Delegation, provided weekly updates on DREF operation activities and maintained a regular flow of communication with the Federation. Coordination and consultation with Movement partners in-country have been made during the launch of the operation. The Movement partners present in Iraq include ICRC, German, Norwegian, Danish, Turkish, Qatar and Swedish Red Cross / Red Crescent national societies. ICRC supported IRCS during WASH interventions, especially in operating the Reverse Osmosis (RO) plants in Wassit, Al Muthanna, Babel and Al Qadisiyyah governorates, where school- based WASH activities were also implemented. The ICRC supported IRCS as its primary partner in its development and operations, with a focus on the “Safer Access” approach that promotes safer access to persons affected by conflict and other situations of violence, whilst minimizing risks for staff and volunteers.
Overview of non-RCRC actors in country
IRCS conducted field visits with local authorities and federal government service points. In addition, information- sharing and validation were closely maintained with the ministries of Health, Water Resources, and Agriculture, along with the Basra Water Directorate. Furthermore, several humanitarian actors were active in the country, such as United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UNFAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP), which maintained direct support to the government, in addition to Oxfam, which implemented a water distribution intervention.