ReliefWeb

SITUATION OVERVIEW

As a result of heavy rain showers in the interior and southern sections of Suriname, various areas, in particular the Districts of Brokopondo, Sipaliwini, Marowijne, Para, Saramanna, Coronie and Nickerie have been severely impacted by flooding, and some are still under water. The Government of Suriname has therefore, via the OFFICIAL GAZETTE No. 55 OF THE REPUBLIC OF SURINAME, PRESIDENTIAL DECREE of 25 May 2022 P.B. no. 12/2022, declared the affected areas in the districts of Brokopondo, Sipaliwini, Marowijne, Para, Saramacca, Coronie and Nickerie to be disaster areas.

The weather forecasts of the Meteorological Service as well as of the World Meteorological Service indicate that the effects of weather phenomena such as "La Niña" will still be noticeable until after May 2022, which means that it should not be expected that the somewhat current levels in Suriname will decrease significantly in the short term, but on the contrary may rise in the coming weeks. On the basis of precipitation measurements and the weather forecast for the coming months, rain is expected to continue. It is also expected that the water level in the area below the Brokopondo dam will not significantly fall any time soon, partly because of the need to continue to discharge water over the coming period.

As a result of the high water level in the affected areas, economic and social life has been disrupted.
All inland areas are affected by rotting of earth crops on the farmlands and therefore food supply and food security are at risk and will remain in danger for an unpredictable period. Many schools are not accessible to teachers and children because of the high water level, though efforts to re-start teaching have been initiated using temporary facilities, to minimise the learning gap.

The distribution of relief goods is not sufficient and will not be able to reach everyone; the capacity of the available resources in the districts of Brokopondo, Sipaliwini, Marowijne, Para, Saramacca,
Coronie and Nickerie to restore the areas have been exceeded and the districts are therefore no longer able to provide the necessary assistance with their own resources.

The Suriname Government therefore made the decision to have a coordinated approach to the crisis and to take exceptional measures in order to assist the inhabitants of the aforementioned areas, clearly define the impact areas, and in the context of a structured approach to assistance, seek aid from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) and other aid organizations of the United Nations.