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Tajikistan

Tajikistan: Earthquake DREF No. MDRTJ001 Final Report

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The Federation's mission is to improve the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity. It is the world's largest humanitarian organization and its millions of volunteers are active in 185 countries.

In Brief

Period covered by this Final Report: 29 July to 30 October 2006.

History of this Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF)-funded operation:

- CHF 100,000 allocated from the Federations DREF on 4 August 2006 to respond to the needs of this operation, or to replenish disaster preparedness stocks distributed to the affected population.

- This operation was expected to be implemented in three months, and completed by 30 October, 2006. In line with Federation reporting standards, the DREF Bulletin Final Report (narrative and financial) was due 90 days after the end of the operation (by 30 January, 2007).

The International Federation undertakes activities that are aligned with its Global Agenda, which sets out four broad goals to meet the Federation's mission to "improve the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity".

Global Agenda Goals:

- Reduce the numbers of deaths, injuries and impact from disasters.

- Reduce the number of deaths, illnesses and impact from diseases and public health emergencies.

- Increase local community, civil society and Red Cross Red Crescent capacity to address the most urgent situations of vulnerability.

- Reduce intolerance, discrimination and social exclusion and promote respect for diversity and human dignity.

Background and Summary

In the morning and afternoon of 29 July 2006, two earthquakes hit Tajikistan. The earthquakes with a magnitude of 4.5 and 5 on the Richter scale affected seven settlements in Qumsangir district of Khatlon oblast. Later, in August and September 2006, several aftershocks in addition to the quakes stroke Qumsangir district increasing the number of affected settlements to ten.

The situation assessments conducted by the international agencies and a national emergency commission pointed that in total 21,057 people were affected by the quakes and 2,651 houses were partially and/or totally destroyed. The death toll remained to be three children. The relatively low number of casualties can be explained by the fact that the stronger earthquake took place during the day time.

Serious damage worsened the region's already poor infrastructure. Nine schools, four health centres and a central hospital, four transformers, 2 kilometres of electrical lines, a pumping station, a college building, a rest home, four shops and 20 administrative buildings were damaged.

According to the assessments conducted by the national emergency commission, the total cost of the damage was estimated at US $22 million.

Effective efforts were made by the Red Crescent Society of Tajikistan (RCST) in delivering adequate response to the quakes. The RCST disaster response team (DRT) in Kurgan-Tube region rapidly responded to the disasters through situation assessments, rendering first aid and distribution of non-food items from pre-positioned emergency stock.

The assessment result showed acute needs in shelter and construction materials. To meet the needs of the most vulnerable 200 families (1,000 people), the National Society appealed for and received from the Federation's Disaster Relief emergency Fund (DREF) CHF 100,000. The allocated funds were used for procurement of 200 construction tool kits (each consisting of a hammer, a saw, a claw, a pliers, a chisel, a meter, a level, a glass cutter, a brush, a sledgehammer, a jack plane and 2 screwdrivers), 200 tents and for reprinting of 3,000 information materials on three topics (diarrhea, hygiene and sanitation). Procurement of the goods was conducted in accordance with the Federation procedures.

The network of available trained Red Crescent volunteers was also utilized by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) for distribution of emergency items to the affected people.

As a result of the evaluation conducted in the affected areas, it was concluded that there is a general lack of disaster awareness and preparedness at the community level. This is a potential risk since at first hours of strike the communities have to cope with the consequences of disasters themselves. Therefore, the National Society decided to strengthen the capacity of the local communities by establishment, training and equipping of local disaster committees (LDCs) on site and to raise their awareness on disaster preparedness and response.

Coordination

Throughout the operation, the RCST and Federation maintained close coordination with the governmental and international non-governmental agencies through regular Rapid Emergency Assessment and Coordination Team (REACT) meetings. The Committee of Emergency Situations and Civil Defence (former Ministry of Emergency Situations), United Nations Disaster Risk Management Project (UNDRMP), Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) were the national society's major external partners in the operation.

For further information specifically related to this operation please contact:

In Tajikistan: The Red Crescent Society of Tajikistan, email: rcstj01@mail.ru, phone: 992372 24 03 74, fax: 992372 24 53 78

In Tajikistan: Elias Ghanem, Head of Delegation, email: elias.ghanem@ifrc.org, phone: + 992372 244296 or 245981, fax:+992372 248520

In Geneva: Sylvie Chevalley, Regional Officer, email: sylvie.chevalley@ifrc.org, phone: + 41 22 730 4276, fax: + 41 22 730 0395

All International Federation assistance seeks to adhere to the Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO's) in Disaster Relief and is committed to the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response (Sphere) in delivering assistance to the most vulnerable.

For longer-term programmes in this or other countries or regions, please refer to the Federation's Annual Appeal. For support to or for further information concerning Federation programmes or operations in this or other countries, or for national society profiles, please also access the Federation's website at http://www.ifrc.org