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Pakistan: North Waziristan Displacements Situation Report No. 2 (as of 25 June 2014)

Countries
Pakistan
Sources
OCHA
Publication date

Highlights

  • The Government has imposed curfew on North Waziristan – Bannu road, as such, no new registrations have taken place since 24 June. The number of people displaced from North Waziristan Agency (NWA) remains at over 455,000 people, with more than 74 per cent of them women and children.

  • Humanitarian partners are supporting the Government in provision of life-saving assistance to the IDPs.

  • Blanket polio vaccination is being carried out to stop spread of polio to other regions. NWA is considered reservoir of polio as vaccination was banned in the area.

  • Priority needs remain food, shelter, health, water, sanitation, hygiene, nutrition, and protection activities. Urgent funding resources are needed to scale up the humanitarian response.

455,000+ Displaced from NWA as of 24 June

74 % Of the NWA IDPs are women and children

930,000 Pre-existing displaced people in KP and FATA in need of humanitarian assistance

1.6 m Registered Afghan Refugees

US$14.5m Pledged by donors

Situation Overview

The flow of people displacing from North Waziristan Agency have stopped following the Government re-imposed curfew on 24 June. As of 23 June, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) Disaster Management Authority (FDMA) had registered over 455,000 IDPs (36,700 families). Most of the displaced people have taken refuge in neighbouring districts of Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Karak, Dera Ismail Khan and Kohat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province; Bakkar and Fatehjang in Punjab Province and other parts of the country as well as to Afghanistan. Reports indicate over 14,000 people have reached Paktika and Khost provinces of Afghanistan, where they are receiving assistance from humanitarian partners and the Government.

The people who have moved to Bannu are facing hardships due to overwhelmed facilities. Only 27 families have opted to live in a Government-established camp in Bannu while the rest are reportedly staying with friends and relatives, rented houses or public buildings such as schools. IDPs are avoiding to go to the camp due to their cultural practices, lack of privacy and services in the camp.

The Government is providing cash assistance of US$120 to each registered family, while the Pakistan Army has commenced distribution of 4,473 tons of rations which will cover 40,000 families from today. Each ration bag contains 20 to 80 kg of wheat flour (as per size of the family), 5 litres cooking oil, 9 kg lentils and 1 kg each of dates and tea. The Pakistan Red Crescent Society, local NGOs, and some charity organizations are also providing assistance to the IDPs which includes food, health and shelter.

The humanitarian community, both UN and NGOs, are supporting the Government in provision of life-saving assistance in the affected areas by providing emergency health kits, non-food items and food packages. As of 24 June, the Government, supported by WHO, has vaccinated almost 251,434 IDPs with polio drops, while WFP is assisting the Government by providing food rations to the existing displaced families and prepositioning stock for the expected further displacements. Polio vaccination is offered to all those leaving the area. The Government has distributed cash relief of $120 to more than 3,184 families for their food and NFIs as of 25 June.

PDMA and FDMA held a meeting with partners and shared information on the existing situation. The authorities informed the partners that a daily situation report will be prepared and disseminated to inform about the latest figures on registration and response.

The Protection Cluster conducted an assessment in Bannu. The majority of the respondents complained of non-availability of transport, traffic congestion on check points, and long hours for waiting in hot weather for registration at Baka Khel in FR Bannu. The harsh hot weather severely affected women and children, thus causing serious ailments. Reportedly, 96 per cent of the population has left the area, while 4 per cent of the respondents indicated that they were split and one person is left in the area of origin to look after the property. Ninety five per cent of the IDPs were registered, but they complained about lack of information about registration. Women and children reported psychosocial stress and fatigue and that women are not receiving any special assistance according to their individual needs.

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs: To learn more about OCHA's activities, please visit https://www.unocha.org/.