Since the 30th of October, Tropical Storm Pilar (TS Pilar) has caused heavy rains and flash flooding, pouring between 144.5 and 210.0 mm of rain in the first 11 hours of the meteorological phenomenon. It rained the equivalent of the entire month of November. 

Both the Federation of Agrarian Reform Cooperatives of the Central Region (FECORACEN in Spanish) and the Salvadoran Chamber of Small and Medium Agricultural Producers (CAMPO in Spanish) report that the losses of livelihoods and agricultural production crops amount to up to 75% of beans and 50% of corn, which will imply an increase in the price of products in the basic basket. They estimate the losses amount to $22.2 million, of which $15.2 million correspond to bean crops and $7 million to corn.

The National Directorate of Civil Protection registered 334 emergencies attended, among the main ones: 25 landslides, 9 rescues, 15 injured, 3 deaths, 2 missing, 9 damaged vehicles, 135 fallen trees, 15 gullies, 3 houses destroyed, 35 homes flooded, 66 homes affected and 15 buildings destroyed, 19 landslides, 2 rivers overflowed, 1 bridge destroyed and 1 affected, 12 communities without electricity, 2 communities without telephone communication and 90 streets affected.

This project seeks to alleviate the humanitarian needs of the population affected by Tropical Storm Pilar, in the sectors of Psychosocial Support, WASH and Food Security (through the delivery of cash transfers/vouchers). It also seeks to strengthen capacities for community resilience for disaster risk reduction. The project will last 4.5 months and will reach 873 families (3,492 people) affected by Tropical Storm Pilar, through the provision of humanitarian services and subsequent actions that were previously consulted at the community level.

The SLS and ALFALT will be the direct implementers of the project, with the support of professional staff from LWF El Salvador, Christian AID and CREDHO in terms of coordination, quality programming and monitoring.

RRF 13 2023 El Salvador Tropical Storm Pilar

Between 19 and 20 September 2023 after nine months of blockade, Azerbaijan launched a massive military attack on the Nagorno-Karabakh region, several were subjected to intensive shelling by the Azerbaijani armed forces. According to Human Rights Defender’s report as of September 20, at least 200 deaths and more than 400 wounded persons, including civilians, were reported. The number of injured people among the civilian population exceeded 40 persons, including 13 children. There were 10 confirmed civilian deaths, including 5 children. Further information about casualties was impossible to define objectively as the Nagorno-Karabakh state and municipal administrations were no longer functioning. Over 101,848 Armenians fled, more than 30,000 of them were children, 52% are women and girls, 31% are children, and 16% are people with disabilities. 98,000 displaced located across Armenia (with population of 2.8 million) People arrived in Armenia exhausted physically and mentally after nine months of blockade, waiting hours to cross the border with Armenia with many in shock. Malnutrition and stress were evident among the displaced population with problems especially severe among children and pregnant women. People arrived squeezed in cars and buses, with a few bags many people only managed to bring some clothes with them.

The displaced people are in urgent need of all types of support including shelter, daily essentials, warm clothes, shoes, food, kitchen utensils, bedding, hygiene supplies, heaters, furniture, etc. A total of 53,900 displaced are in temporary accommodation in state-provided facilities, others stay at relatives’ homes or find accommodation on their own. The movement of people to and from the region and villages is very high and will continue, as local authorities offer accommodation mainly in rural areas, mostly in empty houses lacking basic living, sanitary and hygiene conditions, such as water supply, bathrooms, etc. The influx of refugees has been so large that in many ways the lives of host communities, who are already overstretched, have been significantly affected. An estimated 95,000 people from host communities will require support.

ACT Alliance members Armenian Round Table and HEKS/EPER developed this appeal for a 12 months period to address the most urgent needs of affected people by providing Multi-purpose cash assistance and shelter as well as to facilitate access to livelihood and job opportunities.

ACT Appeal ARM231

ARM231 Results Framework

On October 7, 2023, a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck 40km west of Herat province, Afghanistan at a depth of 9 km. Aftershocks continued including 5.1 magnitude earthquake on October 10^th and another 6.3 magnitude earthquake on October 11^th in Zindajan district in Herat province.

Among the different affected districts, Zindajan district was hit the hardest, with 100 percent of homes estimated to have been completely destroyed, 1,663 injured and several hundred are missing across the district’s 11 villages. Around 80% of the affected families totaling 1,395 out of 1,655 are situated in Zindajan district, where 1,353 homes are reported to have been destroyed or severely damaged.

According to OCHA, to date, 1,384 people (759 females and 625 males) are reported to have died and 1,853 people were injured (1,137 females and 716 males) by the earthquakes. Assessments completed to date indicate that 3,067 homes have been affected.

The destruction of homes and shelters caused by the earthquake compounds the already harsh living conditions faced by residents of Herat province, due to the political and economic crisis brought on by the complete withdrawal of NATO troops in August 2021. The destabilization resulting from the withdrawal led to mass conflict-induced displacement and put additional burden on the meagre existing infrastructure, markets and other facilities.

ACT Alliance members community World Services Asia (CWSA) and Christian Aid (CA) developed this appeal for a period of 12 months to address the urgent needs of around 58000 affected people by providing shelters assistance, Multi-purpose cash assistance, Food & NFIs distribution, WASH services, Psycho-social support to the traumatized people. An appeal budget of 3 million USD has been developed to address the short and medium term needs of the people. 

ACT Appeal – AFG231 Afghanistan Earthquake

Results Framework AFG 231 Appeal

On October 7, the Government of Israel declared war and initiated a series of airstrikes on the densely populated Gaza Strip, after Palestinian armed groups breached the security barrier at several points resulting in significant loss of life while simultaneously launching barrage of rockets into Israel. The attacks from both parties, led to the loss of thousands of Palestinian and Israeli lives, with tens of thousands of individuals sustaining injuries.

In Palestine, the ongoing hostilities have created a humanitarian crisis, with homes, schools, medical facilities, and critical infrastructures being extensively damaged or destroyed.  In the Gaza Strip, the conflict has led to significant and alarming mass displacement of people. Approximately 1.4 million out of Gaza’s 2.2 million residents are currently displaced.

Gaza Ministry of Public Works and Housing reported 15,749 housing units destroyed, 10,935 uninhabitable and 142,500 housing units sustained minor to moderate damage. The total number of housing units reported as destroyed or damaged accounts for at least 43% of all housing units in the Gaza Strip. The attacks have affected 34 healthcare facilities and 24 ambulances. Twelve hospitals and 46 primary care clinics are no longer functioning.

All five wastewater treatment plants in Gaza have been forced to shut down due to lack of power, which previously provided water and sanitation services to over 1.1M people. 2 out of the 3 main lines mobile and internet communications were destroyed, hindering the communication channels.

As a result of the war in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem are witnessing an escalation of violence, including casualties, settler violence, and attacks on healthcare facilities and staff. Due to the security situation, Israeli has put many restrictions on movement and access throughout the West Bank, putting more strains on people’s livelihoods and are severely impacting access to essential services.

ACT Palestine Forum members DSPR, LWF, HEKS-EPER and ELCJHL are responding to this conflict with an appeal to raise USD 5,237,649 over two years for responding to the urgent needs with special focus on people who have been directly affected by the current conflict in Gaza, Jerusalem and the West Bank.

PSE231 Appeal- Gaza Conflict

PSE231_Results framework Final

As of July, UNCHR reports the total number of Ukrainian refugees globally is 6.3 million of which 5.96 million are in Europe.

According to IOM a further 5 million people have been displaced internally within Ukraine.  In June, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) had recorded 24,862 civilian casualties to date in Ukraine with 9,083 people killed and 15,779 injured.   

This fourth revision is based upon the updated needs assessments of ACT members in the appeal (AIDRom, Church World Service, HEKS/EPER, Hungarian Interchurch Aid and the Lutheran World Federation).  Christian Aid joins the appeal as a requesting member in this revision working with local organisations in Ukraine with a Survivor & Community Led Response (SCLR) approach.

ACT members are responding in Ukraine, Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Poland, and Slovakia with the revised appeal budget of USD46,747,481 (Total income as of 8 August 2023: 25,381,252 USD and the Balance requested: 21,366,229 USD).

UKR221 Appeal Rev4

UKR221 Results Framework Rev4

Last year in September 2022 heavy monsoon caused widespread flooding and landslides with severe ramifications for human lives, property, and infrastructure.  81 districts (Baluchistan 32, Sindh 23, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 17, Gilgit Baltistan 6, and Punjab 3) were declared ‘calamity hit’ by the Government— a one-third area (70% districts) across Pakistan was affected.

ACT Alliance members Community World Service Asia and Norwegian Church Aid launched an appeal to respond to the urgent needs of the affected population through provision of essential needs, ash assistance, shelter kits, mobile clinics for primary health care services in remote areas, and WASH interventions. With the support from Funding Members, more than 50,000 affected people have been reached. Targeted people are provided with safe drinking water by rehabilitation of existing and installation of new water facilities, Provision of water storage containers. Moreover, sanitation facilities are provided in the targeted area, Multipurpose cash assistance were provided to around 800 families which helped them in rehabilitation of their shelters.

The main purpose of the appeal revision is that the Pakistan Meteorological Department predicted heavy Monsoon rains in the country which already have started impacting the northern parts of the country. These rains will aggravate the situation of people who are already affected by floods in 2022. On these grounds NCA has decided to revise the current ACT Appeal (PAK221) so that we are able to adequately scale up and address the impact of 2023 Monsoon rains with a concentration in Sindh province.

Much of the infrastructure destroyed by the floods remains to be rebuilt. More than 10 million people in flood-affected areas still lack access to safe drinking water, according to UNICEF.  Due to insufficient support and livelihood about 1.1 million people are at risk of sliding of becoming food insecure. The continued inflation that is being experienced by Pakistan in the last year has resulted in food inflation. Food inflation in May 2023 surged to 48.7 percent. This situation has resulted in a significant increase in the challenges for flood-affected communities to access adequate shelter, water, sanitation, re-construction of houses and agricultural livelihoods.

In Sindh province, people are still displaced with some areas having land still waterlogged. According to Pakistan Contingency Plan for 2023, it is estimated that around 10 million people will be affected from Monsoon rains this year 2023 in Pakistan. The majority of affected people will be in Sindh province.

Moreover, assessments in June 2023, by the Sindh Govt indicate that a total of 2.1 million houses still require reconstruction or repairs however, Govt. resources will only cover 350,000 households.

Due to insufficient support and reduced livelihood opportunities about 1.1 million people are at risk of becoming food insecure. The continued inflation that is being experienced by Pakistan in the last year has exasperated food inflation.

ACT Alliance members Community World Service Asia and Norwegian Church Aid is raising an appeal for USD 4,272,493. Since the appeal raised in October 2022 around USD 1.2 million has been mobilized.

PAK221 – Pakistan Flood Response – Revised Appeal

PAK221 – Pakistan Flood Response – Revised Results Framework

After nearly 12 years of conflict, and an earthquake of 7.8 magnitude that hit its foundation, Syria remains a complex humanitarian and protection emergency characterized by ongoing hostilities and their long-term consequences, including widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure, economic collapse, explosive ordnance contamination, Covid 19, and one of the largest number of internally displaced people in the world.

An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8, with at least 1,200 aftershocks have been reported, followed by a second earthquake of 7.5 magnitude, at a depth of 17.925 km (11.14 miles) has occurred at Central Turkey near the city of Gaziantep, as reported by the National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC) of the USGS on February 06, 2023, 01:41:15 UTC.

Analysis indicates that this is a very strong earthquake. Widespread building collapse has been reported in southeast Turkey and northern Syria. The earthquake was also felt across Lebanon, Cyprus and the region while it is expected that aftershocks which may be at the same intensity as the initial earthquake will be felt for weeks.

There have been more than 23,000 deaths reported as at the 11th of February between Turkey and Syria, with 14,014 in Turkey and 4,377 in Syria, and almost 7,700 people injured in Syria. With thousands of collapsed buildings, (around 1,765 totally destroyed and 5,571 partially destroyed , in addition to 115 schools were destroyed in Aleppo, Hama, and Lattakia cities ).  Many people remain trapped under the debris of collapsed buildings, rescue and search are fearing its too late finding anyone alive under the rubble. Flooding has been reported in displacement camps due to inclement winter weather.

The Syrian population was already deeply affected by the ongoing war and the economic collapse of the country and now, many people must deal with being displaced, losing their livelihood, and fighting the harsh winter conditions.

ACT Syria Forum members CA, GOPA-DERD, HEKS/EPER, LWF, MECC  And HIA in Türkiye  are responding to the protracted crisis and the earthquake with an appeal to raise USD 16,243,918 over two years, As of this publication, the appeal has raised USD 10,675,211.

This appeal revision is primarily an update of the results framework, as a result of the coordination efforts and assessments of different programmatic and geographic areas that ACT Requesting Members have undertaken to refine activities and address changing needs.

SYR231 – Syria Turkey Response Revision 3

SYR231 Results-Framework- Revision 3 Final

Links to the previous versions:

Syria and Türkiye: Syria Protracted Crisis – Developing the Resilience of Affected People and Emergency Response for Affected Communities – SYR231- Revision 2 | ACT Alliance

Syria: Syria Protracted Crisis – Developing the Resilience of Affected People and Emergency Response for Affected Communities of Syria-Türkiye Earthquake- SYR231- Revision 1 | ACT Alliance

SYRIA: Syria Protracted Crisis – Developing the Resilience of Affected People – SYR231 | ACT Alliance

Over the past three and a half months there has been a sudden surge in Tanzania of asylum seekers from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) from Masisi and Rutshuru territories in North Kivu. These locations are currently occupied by Congolese Revolution Army (M23), Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC), as well as Mai Mai and other non-state armed groups who control towns in the same area. Civilians are now caught between groups of combatants. According to some recent peace agreements, it is expected that M23 have agreed to move away from these areas, but this is not the first time M23 promise to relocate but do not. Currently these agreements are yet to materialize.

In November / December 2022, asylum seekers arrived into Tanzania at the average rate of 150 person per day. This year (March 2023) saw the highest number of asylum seekers from the DRC entering Tanzania in groups of 300–600 (highest peak recorded). This number then reduced to 20-30 asylum seekers arriving in Tanzania in May and June 2023.

Majority of the asylum seekers are women, children and the elderly. The asylum seekers enter Tanzania through Lake Tanganyika using boat canoes from DRC. More asylum seekers are projected to cross from the DRC to Tanzania because of the expected continuation of clashes in eastern DRC (UNHCR 29/06/2023; Daily News 19/03/2023).  The number of refugees registered by UNHCR are 11,964 as of 14th July 2023 and they are now settled at Nyarugusu refugee camp.

RRF 11 2023 Tanzania DRC Refugees

Angola has been going through a prolonged drought, considered to be the worst in 40 years, due to three consecutive failed rainy seasons. The drought has affected food security in Cunene, Huíla and Namibe provinces. There have been a recorded 40% crop losses greatly impacting negatively household food availability, incomes and livelihoods (https://www.unicef.org/appeals/angola). The drought in Angola falls under one of the most under-reported or forgotten humanitarian crisis (CARE– breaking the silence, 2023). An estimated 3.8 million people where 114,000 children under the age of five are acutely malnourished (UNICEF: HAC 2023 report).

The prolonged drought has been caused by irregular and in some cases lack of rains and as a result, farming communities have no harvest as expected. In addition, many have lost their seed stock. Livestock (oxen) that were used for ploughing their field have also died. According to the Global Network Against Food Crisis (GNAFC) report, Angola is among the countries where the food security situation is forecasted to remain critical due to below average rainfall and poor humanitarian assistance.

The situation is predicted to be critical from August to Oct/Nov 2023. During this period, all food reserves will be depleted, the man-made dams (Chimpakas) will be dry and basic food prices will be at their peak.

RRF 10 2023 Angola Drought