Haiti- IOM Launches Environmental Health Strategy for Haiti’s Earthquake-Displaced - IOM is launching a new comprehensive environmental health and sanitation strategy to monitor and tackle the challenging conditions faced by hundreds of thousands of Haitians displaced by the January 12 earthquake.
Over the coming weeks, IOM’s environmental health and sanitation
unit (EH/WASH) will train residents in 15 camps to report on
crucial health issues such as water, sanitation and hygiene issues.
The teams will also focus on vector control – fighting mosquitoes
in order to prevent malaria and dengue fever – as well as
environmental hazards, especially flood risks, ahead of the rainy
season.
Dr Felix Diesner, IOM’s Project Manager said: “Adequate sanitation, water and hygiene are not only basic human needs, but also the best option we have to prevent disease outbreaks.”
“The environmental conditions we live in affect us deeply; the
air we breathe, the soil we walk on, the presence of trash. Imagine
being forced to live in a camp, with people you might not know and
where every moment is a challenge. You might start to think that
simple disciplines like hand washing are trivial, but they are more
crucial than ever for maintaining health.”
IOM’s EH/WASH team, funded by the Swedish International Development
Corporation Agency (SIDA) assisted US marines (Tiger Team) during a
recent flood risk assessment in 21 sites, advising on strategies to
mitigate possible flash flooding.
“We must figure out the best way to address the potential for flooding - whether we drain canals, move people to higher ground by elevating the tents, or relocate them to other places,” said Christian Poteau, IOM’s national EH/Wash Engineer. “If nothing is done, the most vulnerable could lose their life in a second as a result of mudslides or rain. Making an assessment will guide us in making better decisions.”
The unit’s primary focus is a real-time monitoring system, to
track the sanitary situation in displacement sites and to detect
immediate and structural challenges.
IOM is working closely with the Haitian government, many UN and NGO
partners and camp populations in order to establish that system.
“Good information leads to good decision making,” says Dr Diesner,
who says the monitoring system will promote sanitation, hygiene,
more effective solid waste management and “vector control,”
addressing potential disease carriers such as mosquitoes.
A “Rapid Response Team” led by engineers will address emergencies
through activities involving the camp populations.
IOM will also launch a series of hygiene education exercises,
including the use of dancers, theatre groups and posters, in order
to promote healthier living.
“The challenges we face in Haiti are difficult because of their
sheer quantity and their many causes, but everything we do today is
the basis for a better life tomorrow. That’s our motivator, and
it’s a strong one,” says Dr Diesner.
For more information, please contact Mark Turner at IOM Port-au-Prince, Tel +509 3702 5066 / 3490 6678, Email: mturner@iom.int or Bertrand Martin, Tel+509 3859 8619; email: bmartin@iom.int
Chile – IOM to Assist Families Affected by the Earthquake in Maule and Biobío Provinces- With funding from the United Nation's Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), IOM Chile is set to provide emergency assistance to some 2,100 families affected by the powerful 27 February earthquake and ensuing tsumani that caused massive damage in the southern provinces of Maule and Biobío.
Early assessments by Chilean authorities estimate that some 200,000 homes were destroyed and that many families are in need of emergency assistance.
The USD 3 million will allow IOM to provide support for the construction of temporary houses locally known as Mediaguas, for 1,500 families. Additionally, IOM will provide 600 Home Repair Kits for families whose houses suffered minor damage but are deemed otherwise safe. Also, 600 Kitchen and Hygiene kits will be distributed to families whose belongings were lost.
“Many families are presently living in precarious conditions while the Government and local NGOs are beginning the reconstruction process. With the impending rains of autumn and ensuing cold temperatures, agencies are concentrating on providing shelter,” explains Viviana Mellado, Officer in Charge of the IOM Office in Chile.
The quake’s epicentre was located off the coast of Chile near the southern provinces of Maule and Biobío.
According to the Government, some 160,000 houses - 37% of which in Biobío - have been irreparably damaged or destroyed in the regions of Metropolitana, O’Higgins/Libertador, Maule and Biobío. A further 93,600 houses still need to be assessed in Maule and O’Higgins and temporary shelter is still urgently required for an estimated 70,000 to 120,000 people.
"IOM is working with NGO partners to provide assistance, and will also coordinate with several UN agencies to ensure that water and sanitation, education and emergency livelihood needs are covered in the areas covered by CERF funding,” Mellado adds.
This CERF-funded initiative will be carried out over a three month period and will focus on more remote areas where the arrival of government assistance is taking more time.
For more information, please contact: Viviana Mellado, IOM Santiago, Tel: +56 2 2746713, E-mail: vmellado@iom.int
