Period covered by this Ops Update: 15 December, 2007 to 29 January
Appeal target (current): 7,384,145 (USD 6,837,171 or EUR 4,586,425); Appeal coverage (revised budget): 69 %;
Appeal history:
- This Emergency Appeal was initially launched (on a preliminary basis) on 18 July, 2007 for CHF 2,077,530 (USD 1,646,690 or EUR 1,194,969) for five months to assist 40,000 people.
- CHF 549,000 was allocated from the Federation's Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) to support the Sudanese Red Crescent Society (SRCS) initial response efforts.
- The full emergency appeal was published on 8 August 2007 for CHF 5,464,899 (USD 4.5 million or EUR 3.3 million) to assist 140,000 flood-affected people for six months.
- By September 2007, however, the situation dramatically deteriorated. The caseload of flood affected households increased by 46 per cent. In response to the new situation, the SRCS revised the plan of action and the Federation, on behalf of its member National Society, published a revised appeal on 17 September 2007 to seek additional support for SRCS-led disaster response operation. The appeal budget increased to CHF 7,498,940 (USD 6,233,533 or EUR 4,561,399). The number of target beneficiaries was raised to 200,000 people.
- This update extends the operation timeframe for three months (to close on 18 April 2008) and revises the appeal budget to CHF 7,384,145 (USD 6,837,171 or EUR 4,586,425). The extra time is deemed necessary to enable the SRCS to complete some outstanding activities that suffered delays due to security (inter-tribal clashes) and logistical constraints (roads waterlogged and impassable during several months). Extension will also give an opportunity to ensure there are sustainable systems in place when SRCS withdraws, and a viable contingency plan to be better prepared for the 2008 rain season.
Summary: The consequences of extreme weather conditions in 2007 were tragic for many in Sudan. Over 500,000 people were affected. Sudanese Red Crescent Society (SRCS) staff and volunteers demonstrated an incredible stamina. They worked in enormously hard conditions to extend a helping hand to their fellow country people who had lost family members, homes and livelihoods to floodwaters and contagious diseases. Scores were killed by severe outbreaks of cholera/acute watery diarrhoea (AWD) and the Rift Valley Fever (RVF).
The SRCS did commendable work. Some 1.5 million people were assisted by the National Society alone with emergency relief, health care, water and sanitation. Of these, some 260,000 individuals (nearly 40 per cent of the flood-affected population) were supplied with one or more emergency shelter and relief item (depending on their needs), mobilized either through the Federation appeal or bilateral donations. A total of 1.3 million people were provided with clean drinking water and 240,000 patients were seen by SRCS outreach teams of doctors and nurses. Heavy rains that lashed the country for nearly four months, aggravated many chronic problems, including persisting gaps in basic health care provision. As a consequence, thousands of people had become exposed to health risks, which could have had irreversible consequences if no action had been taken. SRCS efforts ensured those affected had a basic minimum to protect their lives, health and dignity. Massive health education campaigns that were rolled out across the county contributed to averting major health epidemics.
The operation is drawing to its close. Emergency teams are returning to their base. The focus now is on consolidating achievements, reflecting on lessons learned and developing a viable contingency plan to mitigate impact of future disasters.
A three-month extension is necessary to ensure sustainable systems are in place when SRCS withdraws. Thus, the water kits in Sodari town (North Kordofan state) and El Hedieb village of White Nile state will continue treating water until the end of March 2008 by which time the local authorities have pledged that reconstruction of damaged pipes will have been completed.
Besides, the activities that had suffered delays due to security and logistical constraints need to be finalized. The extra time will enable the SRCS to complete NFI distributions for previously cut-off populations in the south and to resume the local shelter construction project (in White Nile state). The project was put on hold because of protracted disputes between the local authorities and the village population over land-related issues. The disagreement has now been resolved and implementation is ready to recommence.
Challenges were many, aggravated by both internal and external factors. For example, difficult terrain and lack of infrastructure posed enormous constraints to organizing logistics; recurring inter-tribal clashes (particularly in the south) restricted access to some flood-affected communities. Internally, an insufficient logistics capacity warehouse, transportation and communication systems) of SRCS was one stumbling block. The SRCS has to improve on a number of fronts to achieve greater efficiency and effectiveness. Its branch staff and volunteers voiced several concerns during a two-day workshop in January 2008 held to highlight the lessons learned. A number of recommendations were made, which have been fed into the current appeal revision (under objective 5). Activity areas prioritized include: develop a contingency plan for the 2008 wet season, retrain volunteers, upgrade the SRCS warehouse, fleet and communication systems, and strengthen SRCS logistic management, as well as reporting capacities. The appeal budget has consequently been adjusted to reflect the changes to the plan.
How we work
All International Federation assistance seeks to adhere to the Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO's) in Disaster Relief and is committed to the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response (Sphere) in delivering assistance to the most vulnerable.
The International Federation's activities are aligned with its Global Agenda, which sets out four broad goals to meet the Federation's mission to "improve the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity".
Global Agenda Goals:
- Reduce the numbers of deaths, injuries and impact from disasters.
- Reduce the number of deaths, illnesses and impact from diseases and public health emergencies.
- Increase local community, civil society and Red Cross Red Crescent capacity to address the most urgent situations of vulnerability.
- Reduce intolerance, discrimination and social exclusion and promote respect for diversity and human dignity.
Contact Information
For further information specifically related to this operation please contact:
- In Sudan: Osman Gafer Abdalla, Secretary General, Sudanese Red Crescent Society, Khartoum; email: srcs_sg@yahoo.com; telephone + 249.83.78.48.89
- In Sudan: George Gigiberia, Federation Country Representative in Sudan; email: george.gigiberia@ifrc.org; telephone + 249.83.77.10.33
- In Kenya: Dr. Asha Mohammed, Federation Head of Eastern Africa Zone, Nairobi; email: asha.mohammed@ifrc.org; telephone + 254.20.283.51.24; fax + 254.20.271.27.77
- In Kenya: Philimon Majwa, Disaster Management Manager, Nairobi; email: philimon.majwa@ifrc.org; mobile + 254 733.35.96.294
- In Geneva: John Roche, Federation Operations Coordinator (Africa); email: john.roche@ifrc.org; telephone + 41.22.730.4527