Lao PDR: Floods - Humanitarian Country Team Information Bulletin No.4 (as of 19 October 2018)

Summary

• According to Government figures as of 15 October, which are similar to the ones reported in the last Information Bulletin of 5 October, 2,382 villages, 126,736 families and 616,145 people are reported to be affected by the floods.
  A total of 16,739 people remains evacuated from their villages. 1,779 Houses are reported as destroyed and 514 as damaged. 90,000 ha of paddy fields and 11,000 ha of other plantations have been destroyed, and 630 km of roads and 47 bridges have been damaged.

• The Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare will present the findings of the ongoing Post-Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) on damages, losses and recovery needs to the National Disaster Prevention and Control Committee on 23 October. The PDNA, which is facilitated by United Nations, World Bank and European Union covers the entire country, will develop a sustainable recovery strategy and sector plans of the Government and guide discussions on funding with development partners. The final report is expected to be available by end November.
  The PDNA will feed into discussions at the National Assembly, the Round Table Meeting and the Mid-Term Review of 8th National Socio-Economic Development Plan.

• Influenza-like illness, severe acute respiratory illnesses, diarrhea, and dengue fever remain priority public health concerns in Attapeu province. A second round of oral cholera vaccine immunization has been completed. 93 malnutrition cases have been reported in the camps, including 76 of Moderate Acute Malnutrition and 17 of Severe Acute Malnutrition.

• The Government has reported that all schools in Sanamxay are now operating. However, some students irregularly attend in some primary and secondary schools, primarily due to shortages of classrooms, teachers and school meals. Water, sanitation and hygiene facilities in 195 schools and 9 health centers have been damaged.

• The Humanitarian Country Team successfully received US$ 3.5 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to seed $ 42.7 million total requirements to provide humanitarian assistance to 110,000 households. This brings the total of resources mobilized towards the Disaster Response Plan to US$ 6.7 million. The CERF project will support the six hardest-hit districts in Khammouane province. Expected impacts are improved nutrition through cash transfers (WFP), the containment of disease and emergency healthcare (WHO), the distribution of seed packets to enable resumption of winter cropping for subsistence (FAO), and debris management to enable irrigated agriculture and resumption of health and government service, as well as education concerning unexploded ordnance in flooded areas (UNDP).