Period covered by this Final Report: 14 April 2007 to 14 September 2008.
Appeal target (current): CHF 1,776,895 (USD 1.6 million or EUR 1.08 million);
Final Appeal coverage: 100%
Appeal history:
- This Emergency Appeal was initially launched on a preliminary basis on 3 April 2007 for CHF 1,118,250 (USD 819,673 or EUR 615,385) for four months to assist 5,000 people.
- Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF): CHF 65,000 was initially allocated from the Federation's DREF to support the national society to respond.
- A Revised Emergency Appeal was launched on 18 April 2007 for CHF 1,691,977 (USD 1,405,645 or EUR 1,035,011) for nine months to assist 9,000 people.
- Operations Update no. 5 revised the plan of action and budget to include water and sanitation, in light of funds available and information gathered during field operations.
- Operations Update no. 6 extended the operations timeframe till the end of June 2008, due to a delay in the arrival of the water and sanitation delegate. The shelter component was completed with spending below projected costs. As such, this allowed for a more comprehensive water and sanitation component to be included in the operations.
- Operations Update no. 8 further extended the operating timeframe for this appeal to the end of September 2008 and revised the budget upwards to CHF 1,776,895 (USD 1.6 million or EUR 1.08 million) to reflect additional funds received for this operation.
Summary:
Solomon Islands Red Cross Society (SIRCS), with support from the International Federation, responded to the earthquake and subsequent localized tsunami with rapid assessments and distribution of pre-positioned stocks to affected communities. An emergency appeal was launched for for CHF 1.67 million, later revised to CHF 1.77 million to include activities in distributions of non-food relief items, early recovery, health and water and sanitation.
Distributions of non-food relief items were completed successfully on 19 May 2007. Over 37,000 items including kitchen sets, tarpaulins, hygiene kits, clothes and tents were distributed to a total of 1,857 families. The shelter damage assessment, tools distribution and milling on both Kolombangara and Vella La Vella were completed by mid-January 2008. Please refer to previous operation updates for further information on these activites.
This report also details the final health activities carried out from July to September 2008 by SIRCS and the International Federation. A community-based health and first aid programme was undertaken in the 20 communities in Vella La Vella and Kolombangara Islands, where water rehabilitation activities were carried out during the second phase of the relief operation. The target population of the 20 communities was approximately 6,700 people in 1,173 households. The programme involved an initial two-day community training in each village, covering hygiene promotion and malaria awareness (using the participatory hygiene and sanitation transformation approach) as well as community-based first aid, followed by a one-day follow up visit.
Key lessons learnt include the importance of available pre-positioned stock that was instrumental in ensuring that communities received immediate assistance following the disaster, but the items were limited. The national society plans to explore opportunities to increase its pre-positioned stock level and capacity. In addition, The national society suggests that a terms of reference (ToR) agreement with the International Federation outlining its role and support during the emergency response stage would have assisted in providing clarification and coordination.
This interim final report is complete with regards to the implementation of activities.The interim financial report attached shows a final deficit of CHF 234, which will be rebooked into the disaster management project at the end of March 2009. The final financial statement will be issued on 30 April 2009.
Many partners have made contributions this appeal: American Red Cross, Australian Red Cross/ Australian government, Canadian Red Cross/ Canadian government, Finnish Red Cross, Hong Kong branch of the Red Cross Society of China, Icelandic Red Cross, Japanese Red Cross/ Japanese government, Liechtenstein Red Cross, Monaco Red Cross, New Zealand Red Cross/ New Zealand government, Norwegian Red Cross, Swedish Red Cross/Swedish government, United Arab Emirates Red Crescent as well as the Austrian and Israeli governments, and corporate and private donors.
The International Federation, on behalf of the Solomon Islands Red Cross Society, would like to thank all partners for their generous response to this appeal.