120,000 Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh home are rapidly leaving their native land as the result of hastening of a humanitarian crisis and fear of military attack by Azerbaijan army and blockage of the sole road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia.  As of 10 am on 28 September, the total number of forcibly displaced people is 66,500. The intensity of arrivals is very high; their number is increasing by the hour. People are arriving exhausted physically and mentally after 10 months of blockade, long waiting hours to cross the border with Armenia, in shock of military assault and fear of persecution.

ACT Armenia Forum through the Armenian Round Table will access ACT’s Rapid Response Fund to provide assistance to affected people.

ACT Alert Armenia Influx of Displaced People

Angola has been going through a prolonged drought due to three failed consecutive agriculture seasons in Cunene, Huíla, and Namibe provinces. As a result of the poor rain patterns, farmers have recorded a 40 % crop loss; greatly impacting negatively on household food security, income, and livelihoods.

The drought in Angola falls under one of the most under-reported or forgotten humanitarian crises (CARE– breaking the silence, 2023).In Angola, this is the worst drought in 40 years, and it has been characterized by hunger and rising food prices affecting an estimated 3.8 million people resulting in 114,000 children under the age of five acutely malnourished (UNICEF: HAC 2023 report). The drought is caused by irregular or lack of rains for farming communities as farmers have not harvested sufficient food due to the poor rains over several past seasons. Many have lost their seed stock, and livestock (oxen) that were used for plowing their field have also died.

The situation is predicted to be most 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. 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 humanitarian assistance until the next harvest is needed to prevent further deterioration.

The national member of ACT Angola Forum the Council of Churches of Angola (Conselho de Igrejas Cristãs em Angola) CICA is planning to respond to the drought crisis through Rapid Response Funds.

Angola Drought

The situation of the refugees in Lebanon has been exacerbated by a series of disasters ranging from the beginning of an economic crisis, the outbreak of COVID-19, and the devastating 2020 Beirut blast. Lebanon has the world’s highest number of refugees per capita. The country hosts around 500,000 Palestinian refugees, 500,000 migrant workers from different nationalities and 1.5 million Syrian refugees of whom about 78% lack legal status (UNHCR) and 89% live below the extreme poverty line.

The political and economic situation in Lebanon has reached a critical stage, bordering on a large-scale emergency that threatens to push the country into collapse. Lebanon is teetering on the brink of becoming a failed state. As the prices of essential goods continue to surge, and the local currency further depreciates during 2023. The impact is disproportionately severe on vulnerable and impoverished families, particularly women, the elderly, and individuals with disabilities, who are struggling to meet their basic needs in a dignified and safe manner.

Combined with the political deadlock in the country and the inability to reach a common understanding of how the country should proceed, the economic crisis only worsened to extreme lengths. As a result, the Lebanese currency continued to depreciate while inflation increased. Of course, this meant that more people fell into poverty and those already classified as vulnerable are now in a much more difficult position.

ACT Lebanon forum Members (DSPR- JCC, HEKS-EPER and MECC), are getting ready to respond to this crisis with focus on sectors of Health, Education,  Basic needs, Livelihoods and MHPSS.

Alert-Lebanon- Protracted Crisis

Typhoon Doksuri (Egay) started as a low-pressure area and later on became a tropical depression in Southeastern Luzon last July 21, 2023. As it traversed westward over the Philippine Sea, it turned into a typhoon on July 22 and became a Super Typhoon when it approached Northern Luzon on July 25. Various tropical cyclone warning signals ranging from 1 to 4 were raised in several Luzon provinces including Metro Manila with TCWS #5 being declared in the northern Babuyan islands at the peak of the typhoon. The super typhoon’s Alert Note_Typhoon Doksuri on July 26 as it makes two landfalls in the vicinity of Fuga Island in Aparri and Dalupiri Island in Calayan, both in  Cagayan province. It moves West Southwestward at 15 km/h with maximum sustained winds of 175 km/h near the center and gustiness of up to 240 km/h. The fifth tropical cyclone to hit the country this year, Doksuri displaced thousands of families who were then evacuated in safer areas, destroyed road and bridges and houses made of light materials.

The super typhoon affected 12 regions of the country. As of July 27, there were 158,076 families or 538,021 individuals affected in 1,686 barangays in Regions 1,2,3, IV-A CALABARZON, IV-B MIMAROPA, Region 5, Region 6, Region 10, Region 12, Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) including the National Capital Region. About 8,670 families are staying in 581 evacuation centers in the affected regions. The total number of displaced populations is currently at 12,851 families (29,372 persons). Damaged houses reached to 2,298 with about 2,186 partially damaged. (DSWD-DROMIC 27 July 2023)

There were also 84 municipalities affected by power interruption due to damage electrical posts caused by the strong winds of the super typhoon. Initial estimate from the Department of Agriculture pegged the damage and losses to agriculture to Php53.1 Million.

On June 15, 2023, heavy rains hit the territory of the Republic of Serbia, causing floods throughout the country. 56 cities and municipalities affected by flash floods declared a state of emergency. Houses are flooded, massive material damage is done to crops, and infrastructure is damaged. More than 300 people are evacuated from their homes. The weather forecast predicts new precipitation in the coming days, so there is a possibility of new floods. Landslides have been triggered in some municipalities, endangering houses.

ACT Alliance Europe Forum members EHO and Philanthropy are planning to respond with Rapid Response Funds to support the most affected families.

Alert Serbia Floods

Early Tuesday, June 06, 2023, the destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant Dam which crosses the Dnipro River on the front line in Nova Kakhovka in Khersonska – has led to massive flooding, forcing dozens of thousands of people to flee and impacting at least 46 towns and villages which have been reported fully or partially flooded, according to the Ukrainian authorities. Kakhovka Reservoir, which was formed by the Kakhovka Dam and stretches 240 kilometres through Zaporizka, Dnipropetrovska and Khersonska oblasts, is one of the largest water sources in the south of the country. It provides water supply, including drinking water, to major industrial cities, including Kryvyi Rih, Marhanets, Nikopol and Pokrov, home to nearly 700,000 people.

ACT Alliance Ukraine Forum member HEKS with its local partner is planning to respond with Rapid Response Funds to support the most affected people.

Alert Ukraine Kakhovka dam destruction

On the 9th of May Israeli escalation against the Gaza Strip induced catastrophic humanitarian situation in the lives of the people living in Gaza. According to Palestinian ministry of health (MOH) on 13th May at 11:00 AM, 33 Palestinians were killed in Gaza, including 6 children and 3 women, and more than 190 were injured including 64 children and 38 women, many of them were serious injuries and might have a long-term disability that needs further interventions.

The initial governmental report showed that hundreds of housing units were totally destroyed or damaged, where hundreds of Palestinians have had to leave their homes in Gaza due to the ongoing air strikes targeting their homes which were completely, partially damaged or their houses at risky areas with a potential to be targeted by bombardment, multiple water and sanitation facilities and infrastructure were also damaged.

Access to the sea for fishing was suspended during the escalation affecting more than 4,400 fishers and their families, as well farmers were unable to safely access farmlands near the Israeli perimeter fence for irrigation, harvesting, feeding livestock and other essential activities, critically undermining their livelihoods, and leading to scarcity of fresh vegetables and other food commodities in local markets.

The hostilities continued until a ceasefire came into effect at 22:00 on 13 May. The ceasefire continues to largely hold, despite incidents involving the exchange of fire, shortly after the ceasefire.

ACT Palestine forum is preparing an RRF to respond to the needs of the affected communities. ACT member DSPR- NECC is getting ready to respond to this crisis with focus on sectors, Food and NFI’s, Health, and MHPSS.

Alert-Palestine- Gaza Escalation

Cyclone Mocha, described as the strongest in more than a decade, hit the coast of Myanmar and Bangladesh on the morning of Sunday, May 14. The resultant flooding has forced hundreds of thousands of individuals to evacuate their homes in both Myanmar and Bangladesh.

Almost 5.4 million people are estimated to have been in the path of the cyclone, enduring winds in excess of 90 kmph across Rakhine and the Northwest. Of these, nearly 3.2million are most vulnerable to the cyclone impact based on analysis of shelter quality, food insecurity and coping capacity.

As per initial reports immediate needs for relief items, shelter, food, health, and WASH support in the affected areas. Concern about waterborne disease outbreaks is high, and close monitoring will be critical. Explosive ordnance risk education and hygiene awareness will also be required, along with psychological support.

The State Administration Council (SAC) has declared 17 townships as severely affected areas and is preparing for a coordinated response. However, commercial flights are not currently allowed to reach Sittwe, and UNOCHA together with WFP and other organizations are organizing to get approval from SAC to reach affected population.

ACT Alliance members in Myanmar, Christian Aid, Finn Church Aid and Lutheran World Federation are currently present on the ground and conducting assessments.  

ACT Myanmar Forum -Alert Cyclone Mocha