Period covered by this Final Report: 16 January 2007 to 30 September 2007
Appeal target: CHF798,072 (USD 654,157 or EUR 495,696);
Final Appeal coverage: 37 %
Appeal history:
- CHF 54,000 was initially allocated from the Federation's Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) to support the National Society in responding by delivering assistance.
Summary: The Zambia Floods operation in Solwezi and Mpulungu operation was closed in December 2007 after assisting a total of 1,250 families provided with clean water from the seven constructed boreholes. The initial appeal target was 1,000 families and due to the increase in vulnerable, the National Society reached out to more families. In addition, a total of 2,030 pupils benefited from the sanitation facilities (Ventilated improved pit (latrines) constructed at the community schools. Zambia Red Cross Society (ZRCS) trained 28 volunteers in three districts who managed to reach out to the targeted population with hygiene promotion campaigns, as well as distributing liquid and granular chlorine for treatment of contaminated water.
The situation
In December 2006 and January 2007, Zambia experienced torrential rainfall, which caused flooding in the Northern and North-Western parts of the country. Localised flooding was more severe in Chavuma, Zambezi, Luangwa, Mpulungu and Solwezi districts. A report from the damage assessment conducted by the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit's Vulnerability Assessment Committee (VAC) in February and March 2007 revealed that flooding affected approximately 1.4 million people in 41 districts. The localised floods caused damage to houses, water supply and sanitation facilities, economic infrastructure such as bridges and roads. Part of the affected area was made inaccessible by road transport. The floods also caused significant destruction to crops, a situation that undoubtedly affected the food security in the affected provinces.
With support from the Federation, Zambia Red Cross Society (ZRCS) implemented the relief operation in collaboration with the government, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) such as Concern International, International Organisation of Migration (IOM), and the UN Agencies such as UN Office of Coordination and Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), World Food Programme (WFP), Food Agricultural Organisation (FAO), United Nations International Children Emergency Fund (UNICEF), World Health Organisation (WHO) and United National Development Programme (UNDP).
In the field, the District Disaster Management Committees coordinated the activities with ZRCS branches as the primary implementing partners. The main challenge was the timely compilation of quantitative information on the impact of the disaster, because the DMMU capacity was overstretched by the magnitude of disaster.
Red Cross and Red Crescent action
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies provided the initial funding support through a DREF allocation of CHF 54,000. This enabled the National Society to conduct field assessments and to provide the immediate relief assistance. With assistance of the DREF,
ZRCS conducted the following:
- Provided temporary shelter by distributing 380 tents in Solwezi and 400 in Mpulungu;
- Conducted community-based health and hygiene education and sensitization to avert cholera outbreak;
- Trained 40 volunteers in hygiene promotion activities and provided with protective clothing;
- Distributed 1,200 x 250ml bottles of domestic chlorine for water treatment;
- Distributed 100 x 25kg bags of maize meal in Mpulungu.
Due to the deteriorating situation, the increased needs prompted ZRCS to launch an appeal on 20 March 2007 through the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent, seeking CHF 798,072 for a relief operation to be implemented in six months. The appeal received a total of CHF 298,716 funding supports from Canadian, Japanese, Monaco and Swedish Red Cross Societies, with part of it from the Red Cross International Aid Trust Fund of Canada and Swedish Red Cross. Through a separate Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), some USD 50,000 was donated by the USAID to support the emergency water and sanitation activities in Luangwa district.
Contact information
For further information specifically related to this operation please contact:
In Zambia: Charles Mushitu, Secretary General, Zambia Red Cross Society, Lusaka; Email zrcs@zamnet.zm; Phone: Tel: +260.1.25.3661; Fax : +260.1.25.2219
In Zambia : Yawo Gameli Gavlo, Country Representative, Zambia Country Representation, Lusaka; Email yawogameli.gavlo@ifrc.org; Phone: Tel: +260.1.25.1365; +260.1.25.4074; Fax: + 260.1.25.22.99
In Operational Zone for Southern Africa: Françoise Le Goff, Head of Zone Office, Johannesburg; Email francoise.legoff@ifrc.org; Phone: Tel: +27.11.303.9700; +27.11.303.9711; Fax: +27.11.884.3809; +27.11.884.0230
In Geneva: John Roche, Operations Coordinator, Email: john.roche@ifrc.org; Phone: +41.22.730.4400, Fax: +41.22.733.03.95