2012 ERF Annual Report
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Humanitarian Multi-Stakeholder Fund Myanmar Credit: ADRA Myanmar Annual Report 2012 Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Humanitarian Multi-Stakeholder Fund – Myanmar Annual Report 2012 Note from the Humanitarian Coordinator The Humanitarian Multi-Stakeholder Fund (HMSF) is In 2012, the HMSF demonstrated that it is an essential the Emergency Response Fund for Myanmar. The HMSF humanitarian funding tool that addresses urgent needs of provides rapid and flexible funding to address the urgent displaced people in remote areas in Myanmar where humanitarian needs of people in insecure areas, including access remains limited for the international community. those internally displaced. This in-country funding During the reporting period, the HMSF supported five mechanism facilitates the coordination of emergency projects implemented by five international non- response activities, strengthens partnerships, and governmental organisations (INGO) in partnership with complements existing funding channels in Myanmar. It five CBOs. enables humanitarian partners to meet the short-term emergency needs of vulnerable communities. The HMSF The establishment of partnerships between INGOs and is not intended to support activities that are outside the CBOs proved to be a successful strategy, enabling the scope of the humanitarian response or which could be HMSF to reach a wider number of beneficiaries and to better addressed through development channels. develop the capacity of local organisations. The international community’s determination to support Through the implementation of HMSF-funded projects, humanitarian operations in Myanmar has led to various around 35,000 people received assistance in 2012. creative initiatives to ensure those most in need are assisted. The HMSF represents an innovative approach to Project activities impacted the life of beneficiaries by: targeting populations otherwise inaccessible to improving access to safe and clean water; improving international agencies and organisations. Priority has hygiene conditions and awareness; providing basic health been given to vulnerable groups living in ceasefire areas, assistance and medicines; providing shelter and basic mixed administration areas, and relocation sites. Support non-food items (NFIs); continuing educational programs is also provided to the communities that host the and activities and improving learning environments; displaced populations. delivering food supplies; increasing food production, livelihood opportunities, and improving farming Since its inception in 2007, the HMSF has successfully techniques; and by enhancing capacities of communities addressed key humanitarian needs, increased local through trainings. capacities, and built partnerships with independent civil society groups through planning and implementing This Annual Report is an opportunity to thank humanitarian projects. The HMSF strives to strengthen contributing donors and all humanitarian partners for civil society by building the capacity of community- their engagement and continual support to the HMSF. It based organisations (CBOs) and faith-based groups to is with their commitment and through coordinated efforts conduct needs assessment and analysis, and to develop that it has been possible to address urgent humanitarian their project design and strategic planning skills. needs of the people in Myanmar. Increased interaction and consultation among stakeholders, including communities and their leaders, can lead to improvements beyond the villages themselves, and is seen as an important outcome of the Fund. Ashok Nigam Humanitarian Coordinator Myanmar 1 Humanitarian Multi-Stakeholder Fund – Myanmar Annual Report 2012 Executive Summary Humanitarian Overview have been displaced following the resurgence of the conflict between Government forces and the Kachin Myanmar is confronted with frequent natural disasters, Independence Organisation/Kachin Independence Army complex ethnic conflicts, an isolated economy, chronic (KIO/KIA) only since June 2011. The majority of the poverty and limited basic services. Following the Internally Displaced People (IDPs) - an estimated 47,000 November 2010 general election, a new Government was people-are displaced in hard-to-reach areas. formed in April 2011. Since then, Myanmar has undertaken broad yet fragile reforms, progressing in Despite on-going peace negotiations, partners estimated economic development and democratisation and taking that life-saving assistance would be required in Kachin initial steps towards peace with various ethnic groups. and northern Shan States even if the situation were to normalize in the near future. In July 2012, the The international community has responded to Government restricted UN and international NGO access developments in Myanmar with increased interest. The to IDPs in non-government controlled areas for security United States, the European Union and Western countries reasons, forcing the UN and the INGOs to coordinate have suspended sanctions against Myanmar and have their responses from Kachin’s capital city Myitkyina and increased investments. Bhamo. Local faith-based organisations remain the foundation of the response, particularly in hard to reach Long and tightly restricted humanitarian access has areas where faith-based groups continue to have access to resulted in only a few organisations being able to provide all camps and IDP locations, including in Government services to vulnerable populations. Direct presence of controlled areas. However, given the protracted nature of international organisations is minimal as international the conflict and limited number of actors, their capacities NGOs and donors had to rely mostly on the current are stretched. Additional support to develop human presence and level of access of the organisations already resources and to build capacity is needed. active in those regions. This has also led to limited availability of detailed, first-hand and reliable A planning exercise was conducted in 2012 by the UN information on the humanitarian needs of the local and NGOs, identifying priority sectors for immediate population. intervention, including food aid, NFIs, shelter and camp coordination/management, health and nutrition, WASH Border areas have been the theatre of conflict and and protection. The Kachin Response Plan requires USD insecurity, population movements, and widespread 35.8 million for 85,000 IDPS to support humanitarian vulnerability for the past 50 years. Conflict in east needs from March 2012 until February 2013. Myanmar has led to widespread population displacement and generated a large number of refugees. The United Rakhine State Response Nations estimates that up to 400,000 people remained internally displaced in the rural areas of south-eastern The communal violence between Rakhine and Myanmar. ‘Rohingya’ started in June 2012 and reignited in late October. The violence displaced over 125,000 people in Humanitarian vulnerabilities in the east of Myanmar 10 townships, with an estimated additional 10,000 include a range of chronic and acute health problems and unregistered IDPs. Many more in isolated villages have poor nutritional status; lack of safe drinking water and lost access to basic services and livelihoods. sanitation; poor access to schooling (especially beyond primary level); particular vulnerabilities faced by Communal tensions have long existed in Rakhine. children and women (including sexual and gender-based Tensions cross a number of issues, defined in both ethnic violence (SGBV) and human trafficking); and access to and religious terms as well as citizenship rights, livelihood opportunities. Most of the landmines are demographic trends, land rights and the on-going work of concentrated in the areas along the South-Eastern border, humanitarian aid and development actors. The inter- further impacting livelihoods and the population’s access dynamics between communities (the Burmese, Rakhine to services. and ‘Rohingya’) related to the causes and response to the conflict, coupled with multiple stakeholders in each Kachin State Response group adds complexity to the situation. Urgent needs include shelter, food, health services, and safe drinking Along the North-East border, across Kachin State and water, and hygiene and sanitation facilities. northern parts of the Shan State, over 85,000 persons 2 Humanitarian Multi-Stakeholder Fund – Myanmar Annual Report 2012 Moreover, the provision of adequate land to build camps Further, in November 2012 the HMSF expanded its is needed. In the current situation, the risk for disease to geographical scope to enable partners working in spread within and outside the camps is high unless Rakhine State to respond to the emergency from the people are relocated. In several camps in Sittwe, the beginning of 2013 onwards. capital of Rakhine State, more land should be allocated to reduce overcrowding, and shelters, latrines, and basic The HMSF has managed a total donor contribution of services (including temporary learning spaces) are USD 7.1 million since 2007. In 2012, AusAID joined the urgently required. Safe and sanitary conditions are United Kingdom’s Department for International necessary as it is likely that the IDPs will reside in these Development (DFID) and the Swedish International camps for an extended period of time. Many people are Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) in support of living in makeshift shelters after having being turned out the Fund. from host families who can no longer support them.