ReliefWeb

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In Brief

Appeal No. 17/2004; Operations Update No 9; Period covered: 11 February 2005 to 19 April 2005. Appeal coverage: 98.5% (click here to go directly to the attached Contributions List, also available on the website).

Appeal history: Initially launched on 27 July 2004 for CHF 2,767,360 (USD 2,193,457 or EUR 1,802,246) for six months to assist 180,000 beneficiaries. The appeal budget was revised down in operations update no. 7 to CHF 2,026,765 due to bilateral donations, local fundraising and partnerships together with the contributions to the appeal enabling the full plan of action will be implemented, reaching more beneficiaries in the rehabilitation phase than originally planned. As outlined in operations update no. 7, the appeal was extended to nine months.

The appeal is now being extended to 11 months (27 June) to ensure proper implementation of the rehabilitation and capacity building phase.

Outstanding needs: CHF 30,319

Related Emergency or Annual Appeals: Nepal Annual Appeal 2004 (01.58/2004) and Nepal Annual Appeal 2005 (05AA048)

Operational Summary: The armed conflict and the unstable political situation in the country continued during the operation. The King announced a state of emergency was announced on 1 February, dissolving the previous government. Since then strikes and transport blockades have been frequent in various parts of Nepal and this has delayed the implementation of the rehabilitation phase of the operation. Roads were closed nationwide for much of February, while in March there were regular strikes and blockades in various distric ts. In the beginning of April a nationwide blockade again severely disrupted traffic. This has affected delivery of construction materials from suppliers to building sites for the Red Cross. The restocking and pre-positioning of relief goods were carried out using Red Cross vehicles.

In the rehabilitation phase the Nepal Red Cross is assisting 1,800 families by supplying material for the reconstruction of their homes. A further 783 houses were completed during this reporting period bringing the total

to 966 while a further 410 are partially completed. Vegetable seeds are being distributed for the new season to support production crops for consumption and/or income generation. All of the replenishment of relief stocks has been done and the pre-positioning of goods at regional and zonal warehouses has been finalized.

The time period for this appeal was initially extended by three months to the end of April. Due to the severe and regular disruption of transportation during February, March and the beginning of April the time period is being extended to the end of June.

The Nepal Red Cross, through coordination and cooperation with local INGOs and UN agencies, has been able to deliver more relief assistance than planned. Local donations have also made it possible to revise the budget and ensure that rehabilitation and capacity building activities can continue even if the original appeal budget was not fully funded.

The emergency relief phase of the operation was completed in the beginning of November. Over 30,000 families have received family packages and 1,000 vulnerable families received food items covering their mid-term need.

Food assistance was also given to families in the emergency phase of the flooding. The district branches were responsible for raising funds and in-kind food items in the first response phase. By the end of October 15,000 families had received water purification liquid, meeting the target of the appeal, though outside the planned time frame. This was due to difficulties in obtaining enough liquid from the sole supplier in Nepal.

The impact of the Nepal Red Cross disaster preparedness activities in relation to the emergency response has been reviewed in a participatory three-country action learning process led by the Federation's South Asia regional delegation. The report on the review can be obtained upon request.

The Federation and Nepal Red Cross have used a cash transfer system for many years and pledge-based reporting will therefore be provided directly by the national society.

Background

Heavy rains which began in early July 2004 resulted in widespread flooding and landslides, affecting 800,000 people in 25 of Nepal's 75 districts with 185 people killed.

Parts of southern Nepal were submerged for over two weeks. There were numerous landslides in the hilly region with many homes swept away. At the height of the disaster, 37,000 families were displaced. A total of 68,000 houses were destroyed or damaged. Infrastructure such as schools and roads and bridges were severely affected in the flood-hit districts.

The situation normalized by the end of October and all displaced persons returned to their homes or found alternative accommodation. The rehabilitation activities under this appeal are assisting families who continue to face proble ms due to loss of livelihoods/homes.

Operational developments

The work to reconstruct houses of families affected by the disaster is ongoing. The rehabilitation phase started with the identification of families to receive assistance. This assistance is being provided in the hills and plains of 12 districts. The Nepal Red Cross is providing materials and technical support for the construction. By mid-April 966 houses had been completed (783 in this reporting period) and 410 more are under construction. District chapters are mobilizing volunteers for the implementation and monitoring of the rehabilitation activities.

For further information specifically related to this operation please contact:

Nepal Red Cross Society, Kathmandu, Badri Khanal, Executive Director, email: badri@nrcs.org, phone: +97.71.427.0650 fax: +97.71.427.1915.

Federation Office, Kathmandu, Karin Hakansson-Furga, Federation Representative, email: ifrcnp01@ifrc.org, phone: +97.71.428.5843, fax: +97.71.428.6048.

For regional overview, contact Bob McKerrow, Head of Regional Delegation, South Asia , New Delhi. Phone: +91.11.2685.8671, mobile: +91.98.1000.1534, email: ifrcin02@ifrc.org

In Geneva: Hiroto Oyama, Regional Officer, Asia Pacific Department +41.22.730.4273, e-mail: hiroto.oyama@ifrc.org, or Nelly Khrabraya, +41.22.730.4306, e-mail: nelly.khrabraya@ifrc.org

All International Federation assistance seeks to adhere to the Code of Conduct and is committed to the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response in delivering assistance to the most vulnerable. For support to or for further information concerning Federation programmes or operations in this or other countries, or for a full description of the national society profile, please access the Federation's website at http://www.ifrc.org

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