Attachments
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS
Turkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) announced on 3 April that, following damage assessments, settlements in Bingol, Kayseri, Mardin, Tunceli, Nigde and Batman provinces have been declared disaster zones due to the condition of buildings in the six provinces. On 1 April, the Minister of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change informed that 2.5 million citizens were hosted in temporary accommodation areas, and that the Ministry would prepare 100,000 additional containers to host at least 500,000 earthquake-affected citizens in those areas by May. Meanwhile, AFAD stated on 30 March that some 610,000 tents and 45,000 containers had been installed in 289 container areas in the affected region.
BACKGROUND
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Close to 22,500 aftershocks have been recorded since 6 February, of which at least 45 were between 5 and 6 on the Richter scale. The three-month state of emergency remains in place for the 11 provinces directly affected by the earthquakes.
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According to authorities, over 50,000 people have lost their lives in the earthquakes, of whom at least 6,800 are foreign nationals, most of them Syrians.
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The Turkish government is leading the response through the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority of Turkiye (AFAD) and provincial governors. The Turkish Red Crescent (TRC), local partners and humanitarian organisations are working alongside AFAD. The Presidency of Migration Management (PMM) is coordinating support to temporary settlements accommodating refugees and community members. The Ministry of Family and Social Services (MoFSS) offers protection and psychosocial services for women, children and other at-risk groups.
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UNHCR is providing core relief items (CRI) upon request of the Turkish government, including emergency shelter materials, tents, blankets, hygiene and kitchen items, solar lamps, heaters and winter clothes. UN agencies also support through in-kind and financial contributions through the UN coordination system.
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The UN inter-sector coordination mechanism for the earthquake response has been operating out of Gaziantep since 1 March. The Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) meets once a week in Ankara. UNHCR leads the protection sector and cash-based intervention technical working group, and contributes to other sectors with partners, NGOs and UN agencies in collaboration with the local authorities and provincial directorates.