GENEVA [ACTED News] - In the aftermath of tropical storm Sendong in the Philippines, an assessment advisor was deployed on 13 January through the REACH initiative, in support of the Shelter cluster and shelter coordinator the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), with financial support from the European Commission Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Department. The advisor is assisting the IFRC-led shelter coordination activities in the Philippines in response to the current emergency, and will be joined by a geographic information systems analysis expert.
The Sendong storm has affected some 1.1 million people since it hit northern Mindanao from 16 to 18 December last year.
REACH is an initiative of the Geneva-based association IMPACT, implemented with ACTED and UNOSAT in the framework of a global agreement between the 3 organizations. REACH aims at facilitating planning by aid actors through the provision of assessment, database and mapping services in countries that are in crisis or at-risk of crisis.