The worst flooding since 1998 is scouring the arid landscape of coastal Peru. This Phenomenon has been affecting the country since January 2017. In February, there were damages due to the same reason in other geographical areas affecting 800 people, and an RRF of 59,072 USD was granted by ACT Secretariat to respond to the emergency (RRF04/2017, issued on 17.2.17).  The situation in Peru has kept worsening since then. The current situation has exceeded the local capacity to respond, the affected population have increased to 863,000 persons. The ACT Secretariat has approved to add 90,880 USD to the RRF.

Humanitarian needs are wide-ranging. Thus far it is estimated that 29,000 houses and dwellings have been destroyed or collapsed, affecting at least 120,000 people who are in immediate need for alternative shelter and other types of assistance such as water, sanitation and hygiene as well as protection. There is concern that levels of personal hygiene and sanitation are low, increasing risks of disease outbreaks, including acute diarrhoea, dengue and Zika virus.     The State of Emergency is in effect in 11 of the country’s 24 departments and one constitutional province, and a Health Emergency has been declared in 8 departments, affecting 655 districts. According to the National Office of Meteorology and Hydrography (SENAMHI, Spanish acronym), the emergency situation is expected to continue until the end of April. In the town of Piura, in Piura region, which is one of the most affected areas

RRFs_Peru_Floods and Mudslides _No. RRF 04/2017 - Rev.1

Monday 20^th February 2017 marked the most historic declaration of famine in parts of South Sudan, affecting mostly Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) who are dispersed and the host communities already affected by the on-going conflict. Across South Sudan, more than 3 million people have been forced to flee their homes and nearly 7.5 million people need humanitarian assistance and protection, as a result of multiple and deepening crises, including conflict, inter-communal violence, economic decline, disease, and climatic shocks, which have led to displacement, distress, destitution and death. South Sudan ACT Forum members CA, DCA, FCA, ICCO-Cooperation, LWF, NCA and PRDA are planning to respond jointly. The key response sectors are Food Security & Livelihoods, Nutrition, WASH and NFIs, as well as Education (EiE) & Psychosocial Support. This intervention will be targeting at least 180,000 severely crisis affected people across South Sudan, with a target of 9,161,771.54 USD. Appeals_South Sudan_Famine Crisis_SSD171 [caption id="attachment_5490" align="alignnone" width="700"] Credit: Valter Hugo Muniz/ACT[/caption]

On 3 March 2017, Tropical storm Enawo formed in the southern Indian Ocean. The cyclone hit landfall in Madagascar on 7 March at around 10:30 am local time. Enawo is currently equivalent to a Category 4 hurricane. On 8 March, Enawo weakened from an “intense” to a “moderate” tropical storm. The remnants of Intense Tropical Cyclone Enawo exited Madagascar on the morning of 10 March. The storm traversed nearly the length of the island over two days, affecting communities from north to south across Madagascar’s eastern and central regions. The northeastern Sava region has sustained significant damage to housing and agriculture. Antalaha port is inaccessible and more than half of the city’s homes have been destroyed. Farahalana commune is flooded by Lohoko River, with half of all housing under water. In the Analanjirofo region, more than 10,000 people are displaced (IFRC, 8 March 2017). The data collection continues and the floods are generalized through the island. The most recent Sitrep of the National Office for the Management of Risks and Crises (BNGRC) of 15^th March 2017 – 06:00 pm gives the following preliminary impacts: 18 dead, 18 disappeared (peoples missing), 250 injured, 424,801 disaster victims, 246,842 displaced persons, 79,071 without shelter identified. ACT Madagascar Forum members, SAF/FJKM and Malagasy Lutheran Church (MLC) in collaboration with the National Office of the Risks and Disasters Management (BNGRC), is planning to respond to assist with:

• Food Distribution,
• NFIs such as light blanket, bar soap and oil
• Potable water
• Cash Distribution.

Somalia is in the grip of an intense drought, induced by up to four consecutive seasons of poor rainfall. In the worst affected areas, poor rainfall and lack of water has wiped out crops and killed livestock, while communities are being forced to sell their assets, and borrow food and money to survive. The latest food security and nutrition analysis from the FAO-managed Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit (FSNAU) and the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWSNET) issued on 2 February 2017, reveals that the number of people in need of humanitarian assistance has increased from 5 million in September 2016 to 6.2 million between February 2017 and June 2017.  The drought situation is compounded by protracted conflict which is causing displacements, seasonal climatic shocks as a result of most extreme El Niño phenomenon in 50 years, and disease outbreaks. Preliminary forecasts indicate that below average to near average rainfall is expected to prevail across most parts of Somalia during the forthcoming 2017 Gu season (April-June). As a result, only minimal improvements are expected during this time and in some areas further deterioration in food security is possible. This sets the stage for a possible famine in 2017, if the humanitarian assistance does not reach the beneficiaries in time. ACT Somalia Forum members through NCA, FCA, LWF, Diakonia Sweden and DKH plan to respond by providing Food Assistance, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene facilities and services, Education(school-feeding programs), Health and Nutrition, Cash based interventions, Livestock interventions, as well as Early recovery and Livelihoods support to the affected populations in various Districts in Puntland and Somaliland states. Appeals_Somalia_ Drought_SOM171 [caption id="attachment_5496" align="alignnone" width="700"] Credit: V.Muniz/ACT[/caption]

While Ethiopia continues to pull through from the impact of the El Niño phenomenon-induced drought that left 10.2 million people in need of emergency assistance in 2015/16, the country is facing a new drought, due severe weather conditions - the cumulative effect of the negative Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) and La Niña weather phenomena, causing the failure of the Hageya/Deyr rains (fall rain) in south eastern and eastern parts of the country. The drought has mainly resulted in severe water shortage and livestock deaths due to lack of pasture and high rate of animal disease. The drought has endangered lives and livelihoods of millions of the pastoralist households in southern and south-eastern lowland areas of the country. It occurred when people and livestock were still suffering from the effects of insufficient March 2016 rains.The Ethiopian Government with its humanitarian partners have issued the Humanitarian Requirement Document (HRD) in mid-January 2017 and declared that a total 5.6 million people are in need of urgent assistance. A total of USD 948 million has been requested.Members of the ACT Alliance Ethiopia Forum are currently responding to the 2015-16 El Niño-induced drought and are mobilizing additional resources and/or diverting scarce resources to meet urgent needs.  CA, EECMY-DASSC, EOC-DICAC, HEKS/EPER,  IOCC, LWF and NCA plan to carry out the following proposed preliminary activities: WASH (including provision of drinking water to persons and livestock, provision of water treatment chemicals, maintenance and rehabilitation of water supply infrastructure, as well as hygiene and sanitation promotion), Food Security, Nutrition, Education and Livelihood (including livestock health support and feeding). Preliminary Appeals_Ethiopia_ Drought_ETH171   [caption id="attachment_5443" align="alignnone" width="700"] Credit: Valter Hugo Muniz/ACT[/caption]  

The ZIM161 Appeal has been both revised and extended (for 6 additional months), for the following reasons: i) there are indications of additional funding for the appeal, ii) late receipt of pledged funding for the appeal. iii) an expected peak in the need for food in March-April as people await yields. The proportion of people in need of urgent assistance has increased to 42% of the rural population (ZimVAC, 2016) which is well above the initial projection of 30% used at the planning stage of the appeal. This makes assistance more urgent and critical in the new proposed intervening period of the appeal. On top of the drought, the crisis started in 2015/16, the incessant rain that Zimbabwe is receiving is already resulting in flash floods that are affecting the logistical movement of grain and foodstuffs. The rains are also disrupting normal agronomic practices such as timely weeding and fertiliser application which might lead to reduced yields. In some areas, the crops have also been affected by armyworm and Agritex reports that in the Matabeleland North Province, 50-70% of the crops have been affected and likely to result in decreased yields. In Zimbabwe, food security has extremely been compromised by erratic rains in the 2015/16 season. This has put 4.1 million people at risk of starvation during the lean season period of January-March 2017. Highest levels of food insecurity are in the Midlands, Masvingo, Matabeleland South and Matabeleland North provinces.  As the 2016/17 lean season approaches no additional assistance has been received from the government, WFP and other aid agencies. The ACT Zimbabwe forum through DanChurchAid (DCA), Christian Aid (CA) and other local implementing partners have responded to the 2015/16 El Nino induced drought since March 2016. To date, DCA has reached 12 090 and CA 5360 beneficiaries.  They will continue contributing to immediate assistance to 27 955 beneficiaries through cash transfer programme to enable households to buy food. Early recovery activities will also be mainstreamed throughout the extension period. Appeals_Zimbabwe_ Drought in the Midlands, Masvingo, Matabeleland North and South Provinces _ZIM161_Rev.1 [caption id="attachment_5559" align="alignnone" width="700"] Credit: V.Muniz[/caption]

Malawi is experiencing La Nina weather phenomena since onset of the rainy season and many districts have received above normal rainfall triggering flash floods in some of the Districts. Between the 4^th and 10^th February 2017, heavy rains caused the worst flooding in 4 Traditional Authorities (Ndindi, Pemba, Kambwiri and Maganga) in Salima district.  A total of 35,304 people have been affected; of which thousands are displaced and currently dwelling in school blocks. A total 1,827 hectares of agricultural land (crops: maize, rice, cowpeas, cassava and sweet potato) has been washed away together with livestock such as goats and chickens. Household belongings such as food stocks, clothing and kitchen utensils have also been washed away. To date, no human casualties have been reported however there have been significant reports of injuries caused by the flooding. The displaced population have no food, shelter, sanitary materials, clothing, blankets and kitchen utensils. School children are also affected as their school materials and food rations were damaged. ACT Alliance Malawi Forum members(Churches Action in Relief and Development (CARD)and Evangelical Lutheran Development Service (ELDS) will respond through Rapid Response Funds mechanism by providing life-saving support to 5,016 affected people in Salima District through provision of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), household Non-Food items (NFIs) and nutrition for under-five malnourished children. RRFs_Malawi_Floods_No.RRF 05/2017 [caption id="attachment_5454" align="alignnone" width="700"] Credit: Valter Hugo Muniz/ACT[/caption]

The beginning of 2017 entailed arctic cold, which brought a record breaking low temperature and paralyzed some parts of Ukraine, Russia and the whole of  Eastern Europe. The temperature in the region dropped to -30°C, resulting in transport collapse and damage to communal infrastructure, disruption of heat and electricity supply, frostbite of hundreds of people and a rapid growth of influenza and other disease rates in many places in Ukraine and Russia. According to official data to date, in Ukraine 40 people have died from the extreme cold conditions and about 900 have sought medical help; and in Russia several thousand people were affected. The frosts damaged heat systems and led to disruptions of heat supplies. Harsh weather has led to a drop of temperature in the places where  Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and non-displaced conflict affected population live in Ukraine, as well as for Ukrainian refugees in Russia. This is especially true in villages in Ukraine, where houses almost never have proper insulation, which means that the temperature inside houses can be around +7 to +9°C. According to the meteorological forecast, Ukraine and Russia expect new bursts of cold weather in February, with temperatures that can plunge down to -20°C. RRFs_Ukraine and Russia_Cold Snap_No.RRF 03/2017 [caption id="attachment_5478" align="alignnone" width="700"] Credit: Valter Hugo Muniz/ACT[/caption]

Exceptionally harsh winter conditions from the beginning of January 2017, with temperatures at times going down to -30 degrees Celsius, have already claimed lives across Europe - among them refugees from various countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia. The cold wave started already at the beginning of January peaking end of last week and building up to a small – scale emergency. Meteorologists forecast new freezing waves in Serbia, with lots of snow and freezing rain. It is estimated that this winter will be one of the coldest in the last 50 years. Among cold snap affected people are already highly vulnerable refugees/migrants in Serbia. As a reminder, in May 2015, an influx of refugees/migrants started to pass through Serbia. Very quickly, more than 5,000 persons were entering the territory of Serbia on a daily basis, transiting towards Western and North Europe. However, the closure of national borders along the Balkan route in early 2016 left refugees/migrants stranded in Serbia. RRFs_Serbia_Winterization support_No.RRF 02/2017 [caption id="attachment_5481" align="alignnone" width="700"] Credit: Valter Hugo Muniz/ACT[/caption]

The 2017 Darfur Programme (DP) Appeal marks the 14^th anniversary of the joint Caritas Internationalis (CI) and ACT Alliance (ACT) collaboration which commenced in 2004. As has been mentioned in previous Appeals, the DP has been able to engage with and respond to the protracted humanitarian crisis that has continued to engulf the country. It has been about 13 years since families have had to leave their homes, their livelihoods and their land. To date, the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has, in the 2016 Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) estimated that the ongoing conflict has left around 2 million Darfuri IDPs in need of humanitarian assistance and support. This does not include the impacts stemming from the conflict which broke out in the Jebel Marra (JM) region, in January 2016 which has displaced an additional 82,000 people throughout Darfur (OCHA Humanitarian Snapshot, September 2016). The Sudanization process continues to be underway throughout the country. While no sign has been made that this government level strategy will come into full force in the year ahead, the DP continues to forge ahead; engagement and support - at all stakeholder levels - will continue, status quo, into 2017 should Sudanization become a clear reality.In line with NCAs revised country strategy and the context of Sudan (particularly Darfur), the DP will be making a solid effort to support its target communities through building ownership of NCA projects to ensure sustainability and long-term support.This will be done through an integrated and holistic approach; looking to all sectors of the DP to work and support one another instead of in sectoral silos. Examples of proven effectiveness can be seen through the efforts of the Ta’adoud project which NCA is an integral part of. Appeals_Sudan_ Darfur Programme _ SDN 171 [caption id="attachment_5562" align="alignnone" width="700"] Credit: V.Muniz[/caption]

The arctic conditions from the beginning of January 2017 have already claimed lives across Europe. Conditions remain tough and constitute a small-scale, local emergency in south-eastern Romania. The severe winter weather hit Romania a week ago, when it started snowing heavily and temperatures dropped consecutively to -25 degrees Celsius. The cold snap claimed the lives of many elderly people dying of hypothermia. 40,000 are affected by the weather and cut off by the blizzards in the South and East of Romania and in need of some form of humanitarian assistance. People have been trapped inside their houses leaving many with no access to food and medicine. Furthermore, affected people have no access to safe and sufficient amount of drinking water. ACT member AIDRom plans to carry out winterization activities in the sectors of Food Security, WASH and NFI for a period of 2 months through the ACT Rapid Response Fund requiring 34,161 USD.   RRFs_Romania_Cold Snap_No.RRF 01/2017 [caption id="attachment_5498" align="alignnone" width="700"] Credit: V.Muniz[/caption]

Powerful Typhoon Nock-Ten or known locally as Nina, packing a maximum sustained winds of 185 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 255 kph, entered the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) on December 23. It brought heavy rain and fierce winds. The typhoon made eight landfall-from Bato, Catanduanes; Sagnay, Camarines Sur; San Andres Quezon; Torillos, Marinduque; Verde Island, Batangas; Tingloy Island, Batangas; Calatagan, Batangas; Lubang Island, Occidental Mindoro. Typhoon Nock-Ten is expected to leave the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Wednesday, December 28. It affected at least 384 barangays (villages) in the four regions of Bicol (Region V), MIMAROPA (Region IV-B), CALABARZON (Region IV-A) and Eastern Visayas (Region VIII). RRFs_Philippines_ Typhoon Nock-ten_No.RRF 11/2016 [caption id="attachment_5561" align="alignnone" width="700"] Credit: V.Muniz[/caption]