Subject: asia: bad floods and consequences, u.n. dispatch oct 13 '11

submitted by Stuart Leiderman

CONTENTS:

1 - PAKISTAN: Flood impact to worsen unless aid increases
2 - THAILAND: Agencies gear up for possible water-borne diseases

1 - PAKISTAN: Flood impact to worsen unless aid increases

GENEVA, 13 October (IRIN) - Pakistan's monsoon floods have devastated millions of lives, but one month on, the international response remains sluggish, raising fears of a worsening humanitarian situation.

"The international community is not coming forward to provide funds," said Joe Cropp of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC.) "Interest just isn't there," he told IRIN.

Oxfam, for its part, says that while humanitarian aid will be needed for months to come, relief activities so far "have barely scratched the surface".

UN agencies have repeatedly called for funds over recent weeks, warning that the situation could deteriorate rapidly if new aid is not forthcoming.

Only 18 percent of the US$357 million Pakistan Flood Response Plan appeal has been funded to date. "It is really too little and it is cause for concern," said Elisabeth Byrs, spokeswoman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA.)

"Winter is about to set in, and with the cold the situation will become unbearable, notably in Sindh [Province] where 850,000 people live in temporary shelters," Byrs told journalists in Geneva.

An estimated 5.8 million people have been struggling to survive in Sindh and Balochistan provinces since torrential monsoon rains pounded southern Pakistan in September, triggering serious flooding. [ http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=93738 ]

Over 1.5 million houses were damaged, three million acres of crops were destroyed and one third of cattle were lost, while three million people are still in need of food assistance, according to UN figures.

Many of those affected were still recovering from the disastrous 2010 floods, which affected 18 million people in Pakistan.

"What we have is a very serious situation in southern Pakistan, with hundreds of thousands of families affected, and vulnerable children who've already lived though one devastating flood, facing the repercussions of another one," said Marixie Mercado, spokeswoman for the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF.) "The reality is that unless this crisis gets more attention - and by that we mean funding - things will only get worse."

Donors stay away

As shocking images from starving children in Somalia have gripped world attention, the suffering in Pakistan is getting comparatively little media coverage. This is one of the reasons funding remains so low, says Cropp, who is based in Islamabad.

The IFRC official believes donor reluctance is also a result of the bad press Pakistan has been getting, and its reputation as a haven for armed groups. "If you look into the media, there are negative perceptions of the country. People are talking about the Pakistani government's relation with America; they're talking about militias, things like that. That negative perception may make donors reluctant to step forward."

Yet, he insisted the issue should not be one of politics. "The people of Sindh are not militias, they're ordinary people, they're farmers, they're teachers, and they need help."

The Geneva-base ACT Alliance [ http://www.actalliance.org/ ] also urged donors to step forward, bemoaning what it called the "sluggish" international response.

"The worst-hit communities are mostly likely already impoverished, marginalized and need help to stop them falling further below the poverty line and deeper into debt and uncertainty," the alliance of churches and church-related organizations said.

pfm/cb

[ENDS]

This report on line: http://www.IRINnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=93953

2 - THAILAND: Agencies gear up for possible water-borne diseases

BANGKOK, 13 October (IRIN) - Aid workers in Thailand warn of possible water-borne disease outbreaks following weeks of heavy flooding.

"Water-borne disease is always a risk in a massive flood," Matthew Cochrane, regional communications and advocacy manager for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), told IRIN on 13 October in Bangkok. "The situation needs to be constantly monitored."

While there have been no reported outbreaks to date, the authorities and aid workers are not taking any chances.

The government has mobilized all available resources including the military, police and emergency services, while a medical team of doctors and sanitation experts from Medécins Sans Frontières (MSF) has been sent to the worst-hit provinces - Ayutthaya, Phitsanulok and Sukhothai - to conduct an assessment of the flood's impact on sanitation facilities and people's health.

"Until now, we have not identified the need to intervene. Local governments can give adequate response," said Veronique Terrasse, MSF's Asia regional communication officer.

Diarrhoea, dengue, leptospirosis, typhoid, malaria and skin infections are the most common water-borne diseases in flood-ravaged areas where people have poor access to clean water, food and sanitation, said Seeviga Saegtharatip, a communicable diseases specialist at the Department of Disease Control at the Ministry of Public Health.

"Rescue teams have been sent to all flood-hit provinces to provide victims with basic medicines, trash bags and chlorine for purifying water," Saegtharatip said. "Mobile clinics have also been set up to provide free medical services."

Over 118,000 family kits have been distributed, along with 1.3 million bottles of drinking water by the Thai Red Cross.

Over two million affected

As of 13 October, the death toll has risen to 283 in Thailand and more than 2.3 million people have been affected in the northern, eastern and central part of the country, the country's Disaster Management Centre reported, with flood warnings now in place in 61 of the country's 77 provinces.

Among the worst-off is the central province of Ayutthaya, which is also home to a World Heritage site. [ http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/576 ]
Meanwhile, Bangkok, home to more than 15 million, is bracing for the worst, with flood warnings now issued to 27 vulnerable communities around the Chao Phraya river which runs through the city.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has set up 191 shelters to prepare for evacuation, while residents remain busy sandbagging their homes and stocking up on essential supplies such as water and food, with additional rains predicted for the end of the week and high tides expected over the weekend.

"This is Thailand's worst flood in decades. The prolonged disaster also means increasing health risk," said IFRC's Cochrane, adding that its seriousness underscores the need to improve infrastructure, warning systems and legislation. "Disaster preparedness can't be removed from development."

To date, there has been no official request from the Thai government for international assistance, but the World Health Organization has offered medical kits and supplies (stocked in Bangkok) which will be made available on demand. At the same time, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) remains in close contact with the Ministry of Health to offer support on water, sanitation and hygiene.

sh/ds/cb

[ENDS]

This report on line: http://www.IRINnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=93957