DFID’s response to Cyclone Nargis
On 2/3 May 2008, Cyclone Nargis devastated
a large portion of Burma’s Irrawaddy delta and Yangon region,
affecting about 2.4 million people, including the loss of some
140,000 lives. It also cost - in damage and lost income - an
estimated US$4 billion.
The initial response
DFID Burma staff reacted immediately, relaying to colleagues in
London the scale of the disaster as it was emerging and looking
at how they could re-focus partners’ programmes to assist in
responding to the disaster. DFID’s CHASE (Conflict and
Humanitarian and Security Affairs) department was quick to
deploy a team of humanitarian specialists, who arrived in Burma
on 9 May.
As DFID and other international humanitarian partners attempted
to mount a response, their jobs were made more difficult when
the Burmese government insisted on authorising in advance all
movements by expatriate staff to affected areas in the delta.
Regional and UN diplomacy made headway on this in late May,
resulting in a streamlined procedure for internal travel
permissions in the delta and for external visa applications.
The Irrawaddy delta itself is a geographically difficult area to
navigate, made up as it is of thousands of waterways. Before
Nargis hit, it had a limited basic infrastructure, but after the
disaster, even that was lost as roads, bridges and pathways were
washed away. Then, in late May, large amounts of land were
submerged with the onset of the monsoon.
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Committing funds
We’ve agreed to give nearly US$90 million for the relief and
recovery of this part of Burma. We first committed funds to
international non-governmental organisations (INGOs) already
working in the delta, for water and sanitation, food, shelter
and health support. We also brought in plastic tarpaulins,
mosquito nets, jerry cans, and supply boats, which we
distributed through our INGO partners. In addition, we sourced
and funded key logistics personnel and other staff for UN
humanitarian agencies, to enable them to operate more
effectively and faster.
Working with the UN, INGOs, the Red Cross and other humanitarian
partners, we’ve made more than 25 funding commitments to provide
emergency agricultural supplies for the planting season and to
distribute food to affected areas, in addition to the health,
water and sanitation services we had already arranged. We’ve
also supported early recovery interventions, helping affected
people get back on their feet as quickly as possible.
Burmese charities and other local groups made extraordinary
efforts in response to the cyclone. This is something that,
through our support to INGOs, DFID has sought to bolster by
transferring skills and building the capabilities of local
organisations.
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Meeting needs and devising strategies
Five months on, DFID Burma and CHASE continue to work closely
with the UN, INGOs, the Association of South East Asian Nations
(ASEAN), various international organisations and other donors to
ensure that Burma’s needs are understood and met as far as
possible with the finite resources available. At the same time,
we’ve been engaging with donors and other partners to devise
recovery strategies for agriculture, health and education.
While spread thinly, the response to date is broadly succeeding
in covering life-saving needs, and disease outbreaks and hunger
have been avoided. However, survivors are critically vulnerable
to future shocks, and urgent needs will remain for some time.
Access to clean water during the dry season (October to April)
is a particular concern, as not all clean water sources
contaminated by salt water during the cyclone’s tidal surge were
cleaned in time for them to refill during the rainy season. Food
security will be another problem, if the October/November
harvest is less than anticipated, and assistance is urgently
needed to re-establish livelihoods.
Further details of DFID’s response to Cyclone Nargis, including funding
commitments, a photo slide presentation and lessons learned, are
available on request to
m-maguire@dfid.gov.uk
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