Attachments
Summary of major revisions made to emergency plan of action:
Since launch of emergency appeal operation, most of planned activities under outcomes of disaster risk reduction, livelihood, health, WATSAN and strengthen National Society have been implemented.
The operational update seeks to extend the emergency appeal to 30 June 2018, to enable IFRC to support SLRCS in meeting the immediate recovery needs of communities and individuals most affected by Ebola and to support their transition to resilient communities. The extension until June 2018 is sought to ensure successful completion of some remaining activities. The key focus of capacity building during the extension period will be finance and logistics management strengthening, that will enable SLRCS to be in a better position to efficiently and effectively deliver programmes. Finance management strengthening activities will be based on the finance capacity assessment conducted in February 2017. Finance management strengthening is also supported by the British Red Cross, as they have a well-established in country delegation and commitment to longer-term presence in Sierra Leone. The extension period will also provide the opportunity to SLRCS/IFRC successfully complete the construction of the two warehouses in Bo and Freetown, that will enhance SLRCS’ logistics capacity.
The expenditure rate today of the operation has reached up to CHF 55,749,870 which represent 86.58% of the total budget and 93% of the total funding.
Description of the disaster
March - April 2014: Ebola outbreak first detected in Guinea; National Ebola Task Force established in Sierra Leone.
May 2014: First Ebola case reported in Sierra Leone near the border with Guinea.
June 2014: Emergency Appeal launched for 880,000 Swiss francs.
July 2014: IFRC Appeal revision no. 1 issued for 1.36m Swiss francs.
September and October 2014: Appeal revision no. 2 for 12.85m Swiss francs, followed by revision no. 3 for 41.1m Swiss francs.
March and June 2015: Appeal revision no. 4 for 56.8m Swiss francs, followed by Appeal revision no. 5 for 95.0m Swiss francs to extend from emergency to recovery phase.
April 2016: Appeal revision no. 6 for 90.5m Swiss francs for recovery activities.
July 2017:
November 2017: The revised Emergency Appeal no. 7 is launched on 4 July 2017 seeking a total of 64.3 million Swiss francs for 6.3m people.
An Operation Update is issued, and the Emergency Appeal is extended to 30 of June 2018 The IFRC has been supporting the Sierra Leone Red Cross Society (SLRCS) to deliver recovery assistance and support to Ebola Virus Disease (EVD)-affected populations (including EVD survivors, orphans and vulnerable children; affected households; and Red Cross and community volunteers). Changing needs within communities affected by Ebola and ongoing consultation with vulnerable populations have revealed a need to refocus recovery efforts. The revised appeal of July 2017, focused on health and care, including community-based health (CBH), psychosocial support (PSS), disaster risk reduction, food security and livelihoods, and National Society development. The goal of post-EVD recovery was to re-establish the conditions for a quick return to a healthy society, with viable livelihoods, psychosocial well-being, economic growth and overall human development that can foster inclusive and resilient communities.
Since the Ebola disease outbreak in 2014, the situation has evolved with a shift of focus from emergency response to preparedness and recovery. The planned activities within the period under review was to support a transition to routine, pre-Ebola services and increase efforts to restore livelihoods of Ebolaaffected communities, improve access to health services, and enhance the capacity of the NS, enabling it to respond to disasters in an effective and efficient manner.
The interventions implemented in 2017 within food security and livelihoods included reskilling and reintegration of 1,300 SLRCS volunteers that were involved in EVD operations and supporting vulnerable EVD affected communities in 8 districts, in crop and livestock production activities, to enhance community resilience. The reskilling and reintegration project supported the volunteers through provision of alternative livelihoods opportunities, enabling them to acquire new skills.
The summary includes key success features of the progress against outcomes to date.