Recently on the ONE Blog we’ve been looking at some of the work going on as Haiti transitions toward long-term relief efforts to give the country a chance at a lasting recovery following last month’s catastrophic quake.
Today UNICEF has a post looking at an oft-overlooked yet important problem in Haiti– a lack of proper sanitation and needed latrines. You can read UNICEF’s report on this front here, and check out the video below:
Yesterday, I joined a group of DC-based reporters at the UN Foundation to hear the latest on the situation in Haiti from Sir John Holmes, the top UN aid chief on Haiti (formally called the Under-Secretary General of the UN and Emergency Relief Coordinator). Sir John joined us via teleconference from the UN offices in New York, having returned from Haiti on Sunday.
Here are a few highlights from our lunchtime Q&A:
So what’s the UN’s role in Haiti? To act as a central coordinator—for all major UN agencies (including UNICEF and World Food Programme), the International Federation of Red and Red Crescent, as well as global NGOs and countries around the world. To help coordinate the humanitarian assistance, the UN agencies and other standing invitees (World Bank, InterAction) work together in clusters (distinct teams with clear responsibilities), making sure that information on the ground gets shared, needs are being met, areas aren’t getting missed and duplication isn’t an issue.
Sir John reminded us that the scale of the emergency is huge—which means you need a huge humanitarian response. And what a response he’s seen. He said in all the years he’s been doing this type of work, he’s not sure he’s ever witnessed such a large mobilization effort. He said everyone is of course frustrated at how long things take, but this is a classic relief situation: a massive effort that takes some time.
Logistically, things are turning a corner. Aid is getting out more rapidly—a half a million people have been given food, there’s greater access to water, and search and rescue is winding down. At least 5 field hospitals are up and running, and the port should be ready to go in the next few days. The banking system has collapsed, but a few cash points should be up and limping by today. Airport traffic is also flowing more smoothly. While the US is in control of logistics at the airport, the UN is helping to advise and prioritize flights in and out, with the top priority at the moment going to medical relief teams.
Aid workers are making the best with what’s available. There’s a massive shortage of office space, so people are finding a nook wherever they can. In many cases, they’re sleeping like sardines on the floor or the ground outside. There is some food and water available and no showers. Workers are mostly just living on what they’ve brought with them.
Sir John said that while the UN is focused on immediate relief at the moment, they’re hoping to start thinking more long-term, beginning with a cash-for-work program. People would get paid to help clear rubble, provide basic services and repairs, start building houses. He said this is something the UN has done before, but they’d like to do it on an even greater scale. He said they’re committed to making sure that we turn this dreadful disaster into something better, even more sustainable for Haiti.
To listen to the full news briefing, check out this post from the UN Dispatch and look for the video player at the bottom.
Despite heavy damages to its own offices in Port-au-Prince UNICEF is ready to provide immediate support to the victims of the unfolding humanitarian crisis following the earthquake that hit Haiti today.
In coordination with all other UN agencies present on the ground, UNICEF will provide supplies to allow access to adequate sanitation, safe water and basic health care.
UNICEF is also preparing materials and staff so that children, tremendously vulnerable during natural catastrophes, are protected. UNICEF materials and advisors will assist so that children are able to continue learning and studying, and be provided safe recreation areas while their caretakers turn to rebuilding their lives.
For useful background on Haiti and UNICEF’s past relief efforts in the country, read this. And be sure to follow their excellent FieldNotes blog for up-to-the-minute reports on what they’re seeing.
UNICEF has an interesting story about some of the work they’re doing in collaboration with Columbia University to aid nutrition surveillance with the assistance of RapidSMS. You can read the full story here.
David Banda is a health extension worker who—thanks to the project—now uses his mobile phone to record and transmit nutrition information on the 70 or more under-five children he monitors every month.
“I have no other means of sending the information,” he said. “We have no fax machine in this remote village.”
Before the RapidSMS system was introduced, Banda used to cycle 19 miles every month to deliver the completed surveillance questionnaires to the district health office, and he would receive no feedback. In his 20-year career, he never imagined the day would come when data transmission would be done at the click of a button.
When his health center was chosen to be part of the RapidSMS pilot, Banda and his fellow surveillance assistants were trained on-site for about three hours on how to register and send the information. A poster and sheet-card containing instructions was also provided for quick reference.
UNICEF has a fascinating report today looking at the life of a 15-year-old named John from Uganda. John is just one of many children confronting the dangers of migration in Uganda. UNICEF-supported transit centers aim to address the problem.
UNICEF recently issued their fourth stocktaking report examining the devastating impact that the AIDS epidemic has on children. The report, which focuses a lot on the prevention of mother-to-child transmission, underscores the urgency in “establishing early infant diagnosis and preventing HIV transmission to babies.”
You can read the full report here, and watch UNICEF’s video report here:
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