Glide No. DR-2007-000175-MDA
The International Federation's Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) is a source of un-earmarked money created by the International Federation in 1985 to ensure that immediate financial support is available for Red Cross and Red Crescent response to emergencies. The DREF is a vital part of the International Federation's disaster response system and increases the ability of national societies to respond to disasters.
Summary: CHF 248,198 (USD 230,791 or EUR 154,803) was allocated from the International Federation's Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) on 4 February to support the National Society in delivering immediate assistance to some 7,750 beneficiaries.
Extremely high temperatures and minimal rainfall during the 2007 summer led to widespread drought conditions in 28 of Moldova's 32 regions. Over 200,000 people were affected by drastically diminished harvests. The Moldova Red Cross Society, with the support of the International Federation, provided supplementary food assistance to 7,750 vulnerable families in 20 isolated rural farmsteads and villages. The food parcels were distributed to beneficiaries from large families, single-headed households and families with members with disabilities. The operation was completed by 30 May 2008.
The Netherlands Red Cross has contributed through its Silent Emergency Fund CHF 64,400 towards the replenishment of the DREF allocation for this operation.
The situation
Moldova, since its independence in 1991, one of the poorest countries in the region, had enjoyed steady economic growth up to 2007, with 4.8 per cent growth recorded in 2006. Difficulties before the 2007 drought included a high increase in energy prices and a ban on wine exports to the Russian Federation. The country's economy was based on the agricultural sector, which provides livelihood to two thirds of its population, mainly through subsistence farming on small plots. The inflation rate had risen to 13 per cent and 100,000 jobs had been lost.
In 2007, Moldova was struck by the most severe drought since 1946. Several regions in the country went without rain for four consecutive months. About 84 per cent of the total area of agricultural land was affected and the cost of lost production was estimated at some 300 million US dollars. The government of Moldova, responding to the drought, launched an international emergency appeal, joined by the United Nations. The appeal for 11.3 million US dollars met with a response of 90 per cent from the governments of Austria, Sweden, Netherlands, Norway, Finland and Italy, as well as from the European Commission's Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO). United Nations agencies involved were the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Food Programme (WFP), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
The UN system, in cooperation with the Moldovan government, as well as with civil society and non-governmental organizations, organized its response in three phases. In order to ensure that, after the drought planting would be possible, it distributed over 20,000 packages of seeds and fertilizers. To prevent livestock from dying, it provided 9,000 metric tons of fodder to 20,000 farming households during the winter. To allow for spring planting, corn seed was procured for more than 30,000 farming households. All in all, more than 135,000 people received assistance.