The Federation's mission is to improve the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity. It is the world's largest humanitarian organization and its millions of volunteers are active in 185 countries.
In Brief
Operations Update no. 4; Period covered: 15 February to 12 March 2007; Appeal target: CHF 26.35 million (USD 21.83 million or EUR 16.56 million).
This Operations Update reduces the appeal budget from CHF 26.35 million to CHF 9.65 million (USD 7.97 million or EUR 5.88 million) and extends the time frame for an additional 12 months (up to 7 April 2008), to assist 189,535 people.
Appeal coverage (based on revised budget): 90.7%; Outstanding needs: CHF 900,093 (USD 743,879 or EUR 548,837).
Kenya Red Cross Society has also received in-country support (cash and in kind) amounting to KES 7.05 million (CHF 126,000)
Appeal history:
- Preliminary Emergency Appeal launched on 17 November 2006 for CHF 9,848,235 (USD 7,864,934 or EUR 6,157,653) for 6 months to assist 300,000 people.
- Revised Emergency Appeal launched on 7 December 2006 for CHF 26,352,005 (USD 21,832,647 or EUR 16,563,171) to assist 563,000 people for 4 months.
- Disaster Relief Emergency Funds (DREF) allocated: CHF 750,000 (USD 630,000 or EUR 470,000).
Operational Summary: The Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS) has played a vital role in bringing life-saving aid to over 300,000 people affected by the 2006 devastating floods. Its actions ensured emergency food and non-food needs of the displaced population have been largely met.
A recent assessment, undertaken by the National Society in cooperation with the Federation, local communities, local government authorities and relevant line ministries found that floodwaters have now receded in most areas and some families were able to return to their home villages. The cumulative effects of a decade of natural and man made disasters, however, have weakened community coping mechanisms. Back home, the conditions are as dismal as they were during the displacement. Many people continue to face daunting challenges and external support is necessary to help them regain control over their lives and strengthen their resilience to future emergencies.
Based on the recent findings, KRCS designed a plan of action for the recovery phase of the operation. The plan forms an integral part of this revised appeal and reflects the shift in focus from saving lives to helping restore livelihoods. It prioritizes the most vulnerable segments of the population and proposes action to assist 189,535 people Garissa, Tana River, Kwale and Ijara districts to rebuild their homes and secure a sustained access to food, safe water and adequate sanitation. Of these, some 9,000 households are still in camps, with relatives or friends and await resettlement to new lands.
The appeal timeframe is also being extended by 12 months (to 7 April 2008) to enable KRCS to implement the activities prioritized for the recovery phase and to complete others that had been planned under the emergency phase but have not been finalized yet. One such activity is the replenishment of depleted KRCS non-food item emergency stocks. In light of the extreme vulnerability of the country to climatic shocks, the prepositioning of emergency supplies close to potential disaster sites is important to ensure the National Society is well prepared to respond when need for such response arises again. The activity, hence, has been retained.
The Appeal budget has been revised downwards to CHF 9.65 million (USD 7.97 million or EUR 5.88 million) to reflect actual expenses incurred by the KRCS during the first four months of the operation and a new budget for the remaining 12 months of the recovery phase. The appeal coverage now (after the revision) stands at 90.7 per cent. CHF 900,093 (USD 743,879 or EUR 548,837) is still needed to enable KRCS to meet all set objectives.
This operation is aligned with the International Federation's Global Agenda, which sets out four broad goals to meet the Federation's mission to "improve the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity".
Global Agenda Goals:
- Reduce the numbers of deaths, injuries and impact from disasters.
- Reduce the number of deaths, illnesses and impact from diseases and public health emergencies.
- Increase local community, civil society and Red Cross Red Crescent capacity to address the most urgent situations of vulnerability.
- Reduce intolerance, discrimination and social exclusion and promote respect for diversity and human dignity.
Background
Large areas in Eastern, North-Eastern, Central, Western, Nyanza and Coast provinces of Kenya were flooded after unusually heavy rains wrecked havoc between October and December 2006. The unexpected climatic phenomena killed 144 people and affected over 700,000 people countrywide. Eastern regions, that are among the least developed in the country and had been suffering from successive droughts over the past decade, were hardest hit. The floods submerged entire villages and thousands of people were forced to move to higher grounds; estimates show that over 85,000 people were displaced. The floods destroyed many roads and bridges and most of North- Eastern Province was inaccessible for much of November and December 2006. For weeks, some 300,000 people, including 83,000 people in Ijara, were marooned as roads linking the areas were cut off or were rendered impassable. Fears of food shortages in the region added to the already devastating humanitarian situation.
For further information specifically related to this operation please contact:
- In Kenya: Abbas Gullet, Secretary General, Kenya Red Cross Society, Nairobi; email: gullet.abbas@kenyaredcross.org; telephone 253 20 303 593; fax 254 20 603 589.
- In Kenya: Esther Okwanga, Federation head of East Africa sub-regional office, Nairobi; email: esther.okwanga@ifrc.org; telephone 254 20 283 50 00; fax 254 20 271 27 77.
- In Kenya: Per Jensnäes, Federation head of eastern Africa regional delegation, Nairobi; email: per.jensnaes@ifrc.org; telephone: 254 20 283 51 24; fax 254 20 271 27 77.
- In Geneva: Amna Al Ahmar, Federation regional officer for eastern Africa, Africa department; email: amna.alahmar@ifrc.org; telephone 41 22 730 44 27; fax 41 22 733 03 95.
All International Federation assistance seeks to adhere to the Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO's) in Disaster Relief and is committed to the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response (Sphere) in delivering assistance to the most vulnerable.
For longer-term programmes in this or other countries or regions, please refer to the Federation's Annual Appeal. For support to or for further information concerning Federation programmes or operations in this or other countries, or for national society profiles, please also access the Federation's website at http://www.ifrc.org