EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Brussels, 3.2.2015 C(2015) 663 final

COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DECISION

of 3.2.2015

financing emergency humanitarian actions in Southern Africa from the general budget of the European Union

(ECHO/-SF/BUD/2015/01000)

EN EN COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DECISION

of 3.2.2015

financing emergency humanitarian actions in Southern Africa from the general budget of the European Union

(ECHO/-SF/BUD/2015/01000)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid1, and in particular Article 2(a), Article 4 and Article 13 thereof,

Having regard to Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union and repealing Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 2, and in particular Article 84(2) thereof;

Whereas:

(1) Heavy rains and tropical storms since December 2014 have led to severe flooding across the Southern African region, in particular in Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar, affecting more than 1 million people (as of 23 January 2015), causing displacement of thousands and destruction of houses, schools, health facilities, roads, bridges and other infrastructure and loss of crops and livestock. In inaccessible areas people are still stranded, rescue and relief operations are on-going but heavy rains coupled with strong winds are expected in the near future and the risk of flooding is still high. The situation is therefore likely to worsen.

(2) In Malawi the flooding has affected approximately 638 000 people and a State of Disaster has been declared by the President on 13 January 2015 in the 15 most affected districts. 121 000 people are currently displaced, 50 lives have been lost and 153 people are missing. In Mozambique, there are 64 dead and 137 614 affected people. In Madagascar the tropical storm Chedza has resulted in 35 deaths and nearly 117 181 people affected. The numbers are expected to rise in all three countries as the rain continues.

(3) The humanitarian aid partners of the Commission are on the ground engaged in the response and requesting Union financial support for the integrated relief operations, including provision of food, shelter, non-food items, water, sanitation and hygiene interventions, epidemics prevention, primary health and protection. Support to logistics and coordination are crucial to ensure efficient and timely provision of the

1 OJ L 163, 2.7.1996, p. 1 2 OJ L 298/1, 26.10.2012

EN 2 EN humanitarian assistance as access to the affected populations is in some locations extremely difficult. Early recovery assistance is also essential to restore the livelihoods of the affected population.

(4) To reach populations in need, humanitarian aid should be channelled through Non- Governmental Organisations ('NGOs') and international organisations including United Nations ('UN') agencies. Therefore the Commission should implement the budget by direct management or by indirect management.

(5) Humanitarian aid actions financed by this Decision should be of a maximum duration of 6 months.

(6) Pursuant to Article 130 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council ('the Financial Regulation') and in view of the specific nature of the humanitarian situation necessitating emergency action, expenditure incurred before the date of submission of a proposal should be eligible for Union funding.

(7) It is estimated that an amount of EUR 3 000 000 from budget article 23 02 01 of the general budget of the European Union is necessary to provide humanitarian assistance to approximately 1 000 000 flood affected people in Southern Africa, taking into account the available budget, other donors' contributions and other factors. The activities covered by this Decision could be financed in full in accordance with Article 277 of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1268/20123 ('the Rules of Application').

(8) This Decision complies with the conditions laid down in Article 94 of the Rules of Application.

(9) Pursuant to Article 13 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96, the opinion of the Humanitarian Aid Committee is not required,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

1. A maximum amount of EUR 3 000 000 for the financing of emergency humanitarian actions in Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar from budget article 23 02 01 of the 2015 general budget of the European Union is approved.

2. The humanitarian actions shall be implemented in order to improve the humanitarian situation of vulnerable people affected by floods in Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar through the provision of integrated relief and early recovery assistance.

Article 2

1. The period for the implementation of the actions financed under this Decision shall start on 13 January 2015. Expenditure under this Decision shall be eligible from the

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EN 3 EN same date. The duration of individual humanitarian aid actions financed under this Decision shall be limited to a maximum of six months.

2. Pursuant to Article 130 of the Financial Regulation, and in view of the specific nature of humanitarian aid, expenditure incurred before the date of submission of a proposal may be eligible for Union funding.

3. If the implementation of individual actions is suspended owing to force majeure or other exceptional circumstances, the period of suspension shall not be taken into account in the implementing period of this Decision in respect of the action suspended.

4. In accordance with the contractual provisions ruling the Agreements financed under this Decision, the Commission may consider eligible those costs arising and incurred after the end of the implementing period of the action which are necessary for its winding-up.

Article 3

1. In accordance with Article 277 of the Rules of Application and having regard to the urgency of the action, the availability of other donors and other relevant operational circumstances, funds under this Decision may finance humanitarian actions in full.

2. Actions supported by this Decision shall be implemented either by non-governmental organisations which fulfil the eligibility and suitability criteria laid down in Article 7 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 or by international organisations.

3. The Commission shall implement the budget:

(a) either by direct management, with non-governmental organisations;

(b) or by indirect management with international organisations that are signatories to the Framework Partnership Agreement (FPA) or the Financial Administrative Framework Agreement with the UN (FAFA) and which were subject to the institutional compliance assessment ('six pillar assessment') in line with Article 61 of the Financial Regulation.

Article 4

This Decision shall take effect on the date of its adoption.

Done at Brussels, 3.2.2015 For the Commission Claus H. Sørensen Director-General

EN 4 EN EUROPEAN COMMISSION

DIRECTORATE-GENERAL HUMANITARIAN AID AND CIVIL PROTECTION - ECHO

Emergency Humanitarian Aid Decision 23 02 01

Title: Commission Implementing Decision on the financing of emergency humanitarian actions in Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar from the general budget of the European Union

Description: Emergency assistance for populations affected by floods in Southern Africa and Indian Ocean

Location of action: Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar

Amount of Decision: EUR 3 000 000

Decision reference number: ECHO/-SF/BUD/2015/01000

Supporting document

1 Humanitarian context, needs and risks

1.1 Situation and context

Heavy rains and tropical storms since December 2014 have led to severe flooding across the Southern African region, in particular in Malawi, Mozambique, Madagascar, affecting more than one million people (as of 23 January 2015), causing displacement of thousands and destruction of houses, schools, health facilities, roads, bridges and other infrastructure and loss of crops and livestock. In inaccessible areas people are still stranded, rescue and relief operations are ongoing but heavy rains coupled with strong winds are expected in the near future and the risk of flooding is still high. The situation is therefore likely to worsen.

In Malawi, the flooding has, according to the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA), affected approximately 638 000 people and a State of Disaster has been declared by the President on 13 January 2015 in the 15 most affected districts.

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1 1 121 000 people are reported to be currently displaced, 50 lives have been lost and 153 people are missing.

In Mozambique, the local authorities report 64 dead and 137 614 affected people .The numbers are expected to rise as the rain continues. The United Nations Resident Coordination Office (UNRCO) reports that 50 481 people are in 49 accommodation centres.

In Madagascar, the tropical storm Chedza made landfall on 18 January. Heavy rains were reported across the country, including over the capital Antananarivo. Nearly 117 181 people are reported to have been affected by the tropical storm so far, and 35 have people are died.

ECHO1 is closely collaborating with the EU Delegations in the affected countries, the OCHA Regional Office in Johannesburg, UNDAC, IFRC and all other partners in the collective effort to support the national governments in assisting victims of the disaster.

1.2 Identified humanitarian needs

The assessments of the situation in all the affected countries are still on-going; including UNDAC, FACT, and ECHO deployed staff to Malawi.

The Commission's humanitarian aid partners are on the ground engaged in the response and requesting Union financial support for life-saving operations, including provision of food, shelter, NFI, WASH/epidemics prevention, primary health care and protection. Support to logistics and coordination are crucial to ensure efficient and timely provision of the humanitarian assistance. Access to the affected populations in some locations is extremely difficult.

Malawi

Malawi is the country most affected by the floods. DoDMA estimate that 638 000 people are affected through damages to crops and houses. 121 000 people (22 000 households) are being considered displaced and 50 people are reported dead. This number is expected to rise as assessments are taking place and information is being analyzed. The floods have caused extensive damage to crops, livestock and infrastructures. An estimated 200 000 students are not able to attend school due to their schools being flooded or used for shelter by flood victims.

The southern districts of Nsanje, Chikwawa and Phalombe are the most affected. According to DoDMA there are reports of a large number of displaced people in Phalombe District and 153 people are still missing and being searched for in Nsanje. Several villages are completely destroyed and the communities affected are likely to remain in camps for up to 6 months.

1 European Commission's Directorate-General for Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection - ECHO

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2 2 The Government of Malawi has activated the Humanitarian Cluster System and on 13 January 2015 appealed to the international community for assistance. The highest priority is still the evacuation of people in risk of drowning. The appeal also specifies access to clean water and prevention of disease outbreaks, the need for the provision of tents, food and non-food items; and in the conducting of search and rescue operations.

The UNDAC initial assessment, WFP, the Commission's humanitarian aid partners reports and the ECHO mission in Malawi has identified the following needs and issues to be addressed urgently:

- There is a general lack of information due to lack of accessibility. Helicopters for rescue and search operations as well as for transportation of needs assessments teams are required.

- Support with tents and shelter materials and NFI for displaced populations is an emergency and help with rehabilitation of houses of those most vulnerable will be required.

- The households lost their food reserves, are displaced and their livelihoods activities have been disrupted. There is an urgent need for food distribution, especially for children under the age of 5 years. Food security has been seriously compromised as crops have been destroyed and the support to winter crops will be of great importance for the future food security.

- WASH related activities and items are needed, including water testing and sampling. Water supplies have been contaminated and sanitation infrastructure has been flooded. A growing concern is the prevention of waterborne diseases, given the poor conditions and inadequate drainage at relocation sites. ECHO has previously supported the prevention of cholera and malaria in the areas that are currently affected by the floods.

- Primarily Health services need to be made available, especially in the camps.

- Protection issues need to be address and better Camp Management and Coordination is needed.

- Moreover, the establishment of a Regional Disaster Response Center targeting the prone areas is recommended. Early Warning System should be enhanced in all the flood prone areas or in large river flood plains. The majorities of communities were unaware of the heavy rains and were taken by surprise by the sound of the floods. They lost all their belongings as a result of inadequate preparation. Areas supported by ECHO under the DIPECHO programme were better prepared; the communities moved a day before the floods came.

- Reconstruction in the affected areas require more technical support ensuring that build back better strategies are considered.

Mozambique

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UNRCO in Mozambique reports 137 614 people to have been affected country wide. The floods have destroyed 4 963 houses, 378 classrooms, 6 health centres and 51 bridges. The death toll due to flooding, lightning and house collapse is 64. There are 50 481 people (11 662 families) hosted in 49 accommodation centres.

The most critical situation is in the centre of the country, in the Licungo River Basin, Zambézia Province where there are a total of 117 685 people (23 893 families) affected. Floods here reached historical levels (in some areas up to 12m height). ECHO partners report, that in the town of Mocuba in central Zambezia province, where the river Licungo overflowed its banks, 15 000 people lost their homes and 18 children are reported missing. Mozambique Red Cross Society (MRCS) branch staff in Mocuba reported that 1 032 families have been relocated to temporary shelters in schools and churches. In Nacala district 1 000 houses have collapsed.

The current response is focused on Zambézia Province due to the severity of the damage. Infrastructure was largely affected, isolating entire communities and making assessment difficult and requiring air transport.

The first priority is to evacuate the people in risk. Life-saving operations are being conducted and accommodation centres being established. Airborne assistance is needed for the initial delivery of aid. UNRCO reports that displaced people are in need of food, access to clean water and sanitation, there are gaps in the provision of shelter, mosquito nets and other NFI. Lack of information, due to poor access, prevents planning of the effective response. Logistical support is required to cope with the damages to roads and bridges.

Madagascar

Tropical storm Chedza made landfall over Madagascar on 16 January 2015 and weakened into a tropical depression as it crossed the island. 35 people have died and 117 181 have been affected by the tropical storm. 2 322 houses have been destroyed, 200 schools damaged, 8 health centres flooded, and about 1 650 ha of cropland inundated. 1 451 houses and 1 dam have been damaged and 4 roads are cut off.

The western region of Menabe was hardest hit, as well as the eastern districts of Manakara, Mananjary, Nosy Varika (Vatovavy-Fitovinany) and Farafangana (Atsimo Atsinanana). In the Analamanga region 40 584 people have been affected, 30 239 people displaced, 541 damaged houses, 13 damaged schools and 4 people dead.

Search and rescue operations, as well as other support measures, are being undertaken, and assessments are continuing. The Government has mobilized USD1.3 million for the response, and requested partners to continue to support the provision of assistance. More rains are expected over the island, including over Antananarivo. The Malagasy Red Cross Society has activated its contingency plan and volunteers are on the ground to assist the displaced population. In addition to the current response, the Food Security and Nutrition Clusters are to assess the medium to longer term impact of Chedza.

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4 4 In all the affected areas in Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar there are the following urgent needs on the grounds that need to be addressed:

- Tents, Shelter Materials and assistance with rehabilitation of houses - Food, especially for those in the evacuations centres and camps - NFI- basic relief items: clothes, blankets, mosquito nets, kitchen utilities, blankets, etc. - WASH related activities and items - Emergency Health - Epidemics prevention - Psycho-social support and Emergency Education ( school in a box) - Protection and strengthening of Camp Management - Food Security and Livelihoods Rehabilitation - Logistic services - Coordination and Information Management

Specific attention shall be paid to the mainstreaming of DRR in all the sectors of intervention, where feasible.

1.3 Risk assessment and possible constraints

Humanitarian interventions in the affected areas do not generally encounter major security risks. In the present situation access to some locations is likely to be difficult, and some roads in the target areas are impassable. In the absence of logistic support airlifting of commodities could seriously be hampered.

The "cyclone season" has now commenced therefore occurrence of some cyclones could result in increased layers of vulnerabilities.

Inadequate basic social facilities in accommodation centres in case of serious flooding could present more challenges. Therefore the humanitarian actors should consider expedient proper planning of the accommodation centres and equipping them with adequate facilities.

In the areas where DIPECHO projects are implemented, Community Risk Management Committees are reportedly active utilising their emergency action plans to respond. It is also expected that the mitigation works implemented under DIPECHO will have a significant contribution in reducing the impact of flooding. Furthermore the motor boats procured under DIPECHO projects are currently being used to warn and evacuate isolated communities. It is also expected that losses related to food will be mitigated by the raised storage facilities that were constructed under DIPECHO.

2 Proposed EU humanitarian aid response

In order to sustain the continuity of the relief effort so far provided by the government, UN agencies, local and international NGOs coping with disaster, an emergency funding is needed to provide the affected populations with life-saving

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5 5 support in terms of access to shelter, food, vital infrastructure, safe water sources and prevention of diseases. Coordination, logistical support and proper management of camps ensuring that protection issues are particularly considered, need to be addressed. Food security support and rehabilitation of vital infrastructure may also need complementary emergency assistance.

Interventions funded by this decision will be targeting the identified emergency needs in the affected areas as well as recovery needs from the recent storms and floods.

2.1 Rationale

The entire Southern African region is extremely vulnerable to weather hazards, namely tropical cyclones, floods, droughts and strong winds. Weather induced disasters are significantly reducing resilience in Southern Africa where livelihoods and economies are extremely sensitive to climatic variations (agro-based economies). Repeated shocks therefore erode communities' ability to fully recover, leading to increased fragility and vulnerability to subsequent hazards. The vulnerability situation is further compounded by negative socio-economic factors prevailing in the region such as high HIV prevalence rate, extreme poverty and high population density. In this rainfall season 2014/15 the region suffered from first late rains and then above normal heavy rains and intense cyclones mainly affecting Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar.

2.2 Objectives

Principal objective:

To save and preserve lives of vulnerable people affected by floods and cyclones in Malawi, Madagascar and Mozambique.

Specific objective:

To improve the humanitarian situation of vulnerable people affected by floods through the provision of integrated relief and early recovery assistance.

2.3 Components

The current in country response has so far largely focused on search and rescue operations and relief/ life-saving interventions; though the needs have not been satisfied.

Components to be considered for funding will include the following:

- Provision of Shelter (tents, shelter materials and assistance with rehabilitation of houses for the most vulnerable). - Camp Management and Coordination - Provision of NFI - WASH activities and items, with focus on epidemics prevention - Provision of Primary Health, including support to disease surveillance

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6 6 - Protection - Psycho-social rehabilitation and emergency education (school in the box) - Support to Needs Assessments and Coordination - Support to Logistics - Livelihood Rehabilitation

All interventions where feasible, should mainstream DRR.

2.4 Complementarity and coordination with other EU services, donors and institutions

The complementarity with other donors’ actions and on-going support is secured by the Harare ECHO Office's close collaboration with the main stakeholders, including EU Delegations and EU Member States, in Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar. (See table 3 in annex).

2.5 Duration

The duration of humanitarian aid actions shall be 6 months.

Expenditure under this Decision shall be eligible from 13 January 2015.

If the implementation of the actions envisaged in this Decision is suspended due to force majeure or any comparable circumstance, the period of suspension will not be taken into account for the calculation of the duration of the humanitarian aid actions.

Depending on the evolution of the situation in the field, the Commission reserves the right to terminate the Agreements signed with the implementing humanitarian organisations where the suspension of activities is for a period of more than one third of the total planned duration of the action. In this respect, the procedure established in the general conditions of the specific agreement will be applied.

3 Evaluation

Under Article 18 of Council Regulation (EC) No.1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid the Commission is required to "regularly assess humanitarian aid actions financed by the Union in order to establish whether they have achieved their objectives and to produce guidelines for improving the effectiveness of subsequent actions." These evaluations are structured and organised in overarching and cross cutting issues forming part of ECHO's annual General Guidelines for Operational Priorities on Humanitarian Aid such as child-related issues, the security of relief workers, respect for human rights, gender. Each year, an indicative Evaluation Programme is established after a consultative process. This programme is flexible and can be adapted to include evaluations not foreseen in the initial programme, in response to particular events or changing circumstances. More information can be obtained at:

http://ec.europa.eu/echo/en/funding-evaluations/evaluations

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7 7 4 Management Issues

Humanitarian aid actions funded by the European Union are implemented by NGOs and the Red Cross National Societies on the basis of Framework Partnership Agreements (FPA), by Specialised Agencies of the Member States and by United Nations agencies based on the Financial Administrative Framework Agreement with the UN (FAFA) in conformity with Article 178 of the Rules of Application of the Financial Regulation. These Framework agreements define the criteria for attributing grant agreements and financing agreements in accordance with Article 94 of the Rules of Application and may be found at:

http://ec.europa.eu/echo/en/partnerships/humanitarian-partners

For NGOs, Specialised Agencies of the Member States, Red Cross National Societies and international organisations not complying with the requirements set up in the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Union for indirect management, actions will be managed by direct management.

For international organisations identified as potential partners for implementing the Decision, actions will be managed under indirect management.

Individual grants are awarded on the basis of the criteria enumerated in Article 7.2 of the Humanitarian Aid Regulation, such as the technical and financial capacity, readiness and experience, and results of previous interventions.

5 Annexes

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8 8 Annex 1 - Summary decision matrix (table)

Principal objective To save and preserve lives of vulnerable people affected by floods and cyclones in Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar Specific objectives Allocated amount by Geographical area of Activities Potential partners2 specific objective operation (EUR) To improve the humanitarian situation of 3 000 000 Malawi, Mozambique and - Provision of Shelter (tents, Direct management vulnerable people affected by floods Madagascar shelter materials and assistance with rehabilitation of houses through the provision of integrated relief for the most vulnerable). - CHRISTIAN AID-UK and early recovery assistance. - Camp Management and - COOPI-IT Coordination - GAC-DE - Provision of NFI - GOAL-IR - WASH activities and items, with focus on epidemics - STC-UK prevention - WV-UK - Provision of Primary Health, - MSF-F including support to disease surveillance - Protection Indirect management - Psycho-social rehabilitation and emergency education - FAO-IT (school in the box) - FICR-CH - Support to Needs Assessments and Coordination - UN-HABITAT-KE - Support to Logistics - UNICEF-US - WFP-IT - IOM

TOTAL 3 000 000

2 Christian Aid (UK), Cooperazione Internazionale (IT), DEUTSCHE WELTHUNGERHILFE e.V., FEDERATION INTERNATIONALE DES SOCIETES DE LA CROIX- ROUGE ET DU CROISSANT ROUGE, GOAL, (IRL), THE SAVE THE CHILDREN FUND (GBR), UNICEF, FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION, United Nations Human Settlements Programme, WORLD FOOD PROGRAM, WORLD VISION – UK, International Organisation for Migration, Médécins Sans Frontières (FR) .

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9 Annex 2 - List of previous EU/Commission humanitarian aid decisions

List of previous EU/Commission humanitarian aid operations in MOZAMBIQUE*,MALAWI, MADAGASCAR*

2013 2014 2015 Decision Number Decision Type EUR EUR EUR ECHO/DRF/BUD/2013/91000 (*) Ad hoc 161 603 ECHO/MOZ/BUD/2013/01000 Emergency 3 000 000 ECHO/DIP/BUD/2014/94000 (*) Ad hoc ECHO/DRF/BUD/2013/91000 (*) Ad hoc 85 500 ECHO/DIP/BUD/2014/94000 (*) Ad hoc 7 000 000

Subtotal 3 247 103 7 000 000 0

TOTAL 10 247 103

Date : 21/01/2015 Source : HOPE. (*) decisions with more than one country

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Annex 3 - Overview table of the humanitarian donor contributions

Donors in MOZAMBIQUE*, MALAWI, MADAGASCAR* over the last 12 months 1. EU Member States (*) 2. European Commission EUR EUR Denmark 162 712 Germany 10 085 500 Sweden 8 098 France 450 000

Subtotal 10 706 310 Subtotal

TOTAL 10 706 310

Date : 21/01/2015 (*) Source : EDRIS: https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/hac Empty cells: no information or no contribution.

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Annex 4 - Maps

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