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Panama: Central America & Mexico Migration Crisis - Emergency Appeal No. MDR43008 - Country Operational Strategy

Pays
Panama
+ 11
Sources
IFRC
Date de publication
Origine
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Panama Funding requirement: CHF 3.4 million
IFRC Secretariat Funding requirement: CHF 18 million
Federation-wide funding requirement: CHF 28 million

TIMELINE

January - May 2021: 32,797 people crossed the dangerous Darien jungle route, bordering Colombia, twice the number from the same period in 2021 (15,949 people).

Since 11 July 2022, no buses have transported migrants to the border with Costa Rica due to prior clashes with protesters while transporting the migrant population. Due to the closure of the PanAmerican highway, the Migration Reception Station of San Vicente in Darien Province has sheltered more than 900 people on the move, exceeding its capacity by more than 300%.

July 23, 2022: UNICEF reported that 7,282 migrant children and adolescents entered Panama through the border with Colombia from January to June 2022, up from 4,366 from the same period in 2021.

29 July 2022: Seven National Societies decided to scale-up their response, and together with the IFRC, launch an Emergency Appeal to support the National Societies of Central America and Mexico for CHF 18 million to assist 210,000 people for 12 months. CHF 1 million was allocated from the IFRC’s Disaster Response Emergency Fund (DREF) to kick-off the operation.

Aug 2021: IFRC Secretary General visits the Darien Gap.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EVENT

Severity of humanitarian conditions

In Panama, transit routes tend to be dynamic and in a highly changing context. The month of June marked the peak of migratory flows in 2022 that have irregularly entered Panama through the Darien Gap (bordering Colombia), at a total of 15,633 people, of which 2,254 (14%) were children and adolescents. As of June 30, 2022, 48,430 migrants had entered through the Darien so far this year compared to the 26,216 registered persons during the year-earlier period, reflecting an increase of 85%. As in 2021, the trend of transiting through the national territory with the aim of following the migratory route to the north of the continent continues; in this regard, to date, only eight people have submitted applications for recognition of refugee status in the country. In addition to the increase in migrants reported between January and June 2022, since June 27, 2022, a series of protests by various sectors throughout the country have been escalating, leading to temporary closures, limiting access to the North and South vehicular corridors, as well as the Panama-La Chorrera and Panama-Colón highways, due to increases in the price of food, fuel, and medicines, among others. After many weeks of negotiations between the authorities and protesters, a humanitarian corridor was established on July 16, allowing the transfer of 4,268 migrants to the border with Costa Rica.

1. Impact on accessibility, availability, quality, use and knowledge of goods and services

The current situation - including new routes of entry, delays in transfers to Chiriquí and the departure on foot of migrants from the community of Canaán Membrillo and the San Vicente and Lajas Blancas Migratory Reception Stations (ERM by its Spanish acronym) - has made it difficult for the field team to reach migrants in the Darién region. The road blockade has hindered access to fuel for the maintenance of water treatment plants as well as for the transportation of goods and services to meet the basic needs of the migrant and host population.

2. Impact on physical and mental well-being

The facilities at San Vicente ERM are unable to meet the current needs due to ongoing refurbishment work, and the increase in the number of migrants in transit exceeds the local response capacity. The current conditions of migrants have increased levels of tension, anxiety, and stress, which led to the activation of a Code Blue at the ERM on July 13, 2022, requiring all humanitarian actors on the ground to suspend care and evacuate.

3. Risks and vulnerabilities

Since the last week of June, massive protests have been taking place nationwide in Panama as a result of citizen dissatisfaction with the high cost of the basic food basket, medicines, and fuel. Due to the protests, there have been road blockades (on the Inter-American and Pan-American highways), that paralysed cargo and passenger transportation, resulting in a generalised shortage of food and basic supplies. The road closures have also posed a challenge for the continued operation of the controlled migratory flow through the national territory, as on several occasions buses with migrants leaving Darien for Chiriquí (the border region with Costa Rica) were stranded on route. As a result of the road closures, on the night of July 11, several buses with migrants moving towards the ERM of Los Planes de Gualaca (Chiriqui) were stopped and vandalised while trying to follow the route defined within the controlled migratory flow. Although the authorities were able to negotiate the safe passage of buses and the movement of migrants from the San Vicente ERM (Darien) to Chiriqui, the caravans of July 19 and 20 have been stranded on the route (53 buses with more than 2,500 people). Under current conditions, interprovincial point-to-point transit can take up to 48 hours.

• The disruption of supply chains due to road closures has had a direct impact on access to the supplies needed to promote hygiene (soaps, kits, etc.), as well as basic medical supplies.

• Changes in the dynamics of the host communities have generated a lag/delay in previously agreed activities.

• The increase in migratory flows, added to the long stay of migrants in the ERMs, has generated a greater demand for attention; this is causing exhaustion in the teams and volunteers.

• Road closures have prevented the incorporation of all teams in the field, resulting in a decrease in key personnel.

• The usual procurement and purchasing processes, including delivery times from suppliers, are causing delays in the immediate response.

• The increase of migrants “in transit” who are affected by the road closures creates another context of need on the route which was not contemplated in the scenarios.

Situation in Darien

The facilities at San Vicente ERM continue to operate below capacity due to ongoing conditioning work. The current conditions of the migrants have caused increased levels of tension, anxiety, and stress, which led to the activation of a Code Blue at the ERM on July 13, so that all humanitarian actors present in the field had to suspend care and evacuate. This is the fourth instance of Code Blue being declared so far in 2022, while no such security incident had been recorded last year.

In response to the overcrowding in the San Vicente ERM and the community of Canaán Membrillo, as well as food shortages and the lack and/or delay in mobilisation to Chiriquí, the authorities temporarily reopened the Lajas Blancas ERM7 to attend to migratory flows as of July 14.

Finally, a new canoe route was identified through the community of Zapallal (on the Pan-American Highway); it is estimated that this route is used daily by groups of up to 30 migrants, who are staying in the community's Catholic church.

The current situation - including new routes of entry, delays in transfers to Chiriqui and the departure on foot of migrants from the community of Canaan Membrillo and the ERM San Vicente and Lajas Blancas - has made it difficult for the field team to count migrants in the Darien region. The National Border Service (SENAFRONT by its Spanish acronym) manages the official statistics; in addition, humanitarian actors in the field collect data through their operational teams.