ReliefWeb

Summary: CHF 193,944 was allocated from the IFRC’s Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) on 20 September 2013 to support the Benin Red Cross Society in delivering assistance to some 7,000 beneficiaries.

Benin was affected by devastating flooding in September 2013 that displaced about 10,000 people in the municipalities of Malanville and Karimama districts. The Benin Red Cross Society (BRCS) targeted its assistance to the most affected population in the affected villages and some internal displaced persons (IDPs) in temporary camp sites established by the government of Benin.

The IFRC provided DREF to support BRCS assistance to the affected target population by distributing non-food relief items (NFI) to 600 families most affected in 15 communities and camps sites in Karimama and Malanville districts. The NFIs distributed include shelter kits, kitchen sets, soap, sleeping mats, buckets, blankets, mosquito bed nets and jerry cans. To support the response activities, 50 Red Cross volunteers were trained in community sensitization techniques and subsequently carried out promotion of health and hygiene practices in the target communities and camp sites reaching 3,000 beneficiaries. In addition to the emergency latrines constructed in temporary camps sites for displaced persons (IDPs),BRCS rehabilitated four blocks of four latrines each and water facilities in the Karimama and Malanville affected communities.

Throughout the operation, the National Society worked in collaboration with local authorities, the National Directorate for Civil Protection and humanitarian actors including Care-Benin; the collaboration that contributed to avoiding duplication of services to the affected population; thus increasing the impact.

A one-month no-cost extension was granted to allow for the completion of the NFI replenishment process. BRCS and IFRC express their appreciations to the Netherlands Red Cross, Belgian Red Cross and Belgian government, the European Commission Humanitarian Aid and Civil protection (DG ECHO), the Canadian Red Cross and Canadian Government for their contribution towards replenishing the DREF allocation for this Operation.

As it will be noted in the financial report appended at the end of this report, there were variances in the budget. The following is the justification given for the discrepancies:

• Clothing & Textiles: Over expenditure by CHF 3,369 ( 16% ) This was due to the increase of mosquito nets, bed covers, mattresses prices.

• Storage: Over expenditure by CHF 2,991 (100%) due to storage budget line that was inadvertently omitted on budget and yet there was expenditure to be incurred

• Distribution & monitoring : Over expenditure by CHF 7,020 (234%). The discrepancies was due to cost paid for loading and uploading of teakwood, cement, NFIs, the huge amount of the discrepancy is also due to the booking related to transport of jerry cans, tarpaulins from Dubai, extra cost related to loading/unloading in the field was not taken into account (under-estimation of budget cost).

• Transport and vehicle costs Over expenditure by CHF 2,542 (37%) due to leasing of vehicles to strengthen the existing vehicle to be more effective in carrying out the project activities.

• Volunteers: Over expenditure by CHF 860 (6%) due to payment of volunteers to clean and arrange the warehouse.

• Information and Public Relations Overspent by CHF 154 (6.5%). The slight overspend was due to the payment of radio reporter fees

• Office costs Overspent by CHF 821 (91%) due to budget under estimate

• Communications: Overspent by CHF 806 (115%) due to budget under estimate.

• Financial charges Overspent by CHF 158 (19.8%) due to ALC charged by Dubai (Co AE).

The majors donors and partners of DREF include the Australian, the Netherlands Red Cross and government; American and Belgian governments, DG ECHO, the Canadian Red Cross and government, the Austrian Red Cross, Danish Red Cross and government, the Irish and the Italian governments, the Japanese Red Cross Society, the Luxembourg government, the Monaco Red Cross and government, the Norwegian Red Cross and government, the Spanish Government, the Swedish Red Cross and government, the United Kingdom Department for International Development (DFID), and other corporate and private donors.

Details of all donors can be found at:
http://www.ifrc.org/docs/appeals/Active/MDR00001.pdf