UN-Iraq Reconstruction and Development Update September 2007 United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) Background cholera epidemic outbreak in Sulaymaniyah City, the UN The present update is submitted Resident Coordinator (RC) for as part of the United Nations’ Iraq and UNDP-Iraq Director contribution to the nationwide fielded a mission to reconstruction and development Sulaymaniyah City in order to of Iraq, the UN Country Team support the Government of Iraq The UNCT for Iraq is: (UNCT) in collaboration with the (GoI) in containing the situation. Iraqi Authorities, the private Within its mandate, UNDP efforts ESCWA FAO sector and NGO partners. were keyed to addressing the ILO IOM Coordinated through the United causes and developing OHCHR UNDP UNEP UNESCO Nations Assistance Mission for sustainable solutions. UNFPA UN-HABITAT Iraq (UNAMI), the UNCT has UNHCR UNICEF employed a “cluster” approach to UNIDO UNIFEM its reconstruction and While the mission was UNOPS WFP development programmes as spearheaded by WHO, UNDP WHO presented in the Joint UN-Iraq participation included its Assistance Strategy 2005 - 2007. WATSAN team leader. UNDP This cluster approach has taken a conducted extensive meetings lead role in the delivery of with senior officials in • Background; Key Challenges 1 assistance and the strengthening Sulaymaniyah and Erbil including of national capacity in Iraq. the Ministers of Health, Planning • Support to Constitutional Despite the continued constraints and Water Resources, the Process; Child Protection 3 due to the prevailing security Governors of Erbil and situation, reconstruction and Sulaymaniyah, and the KRG • Human Rights; Education 4 development activities are being Coordinator for UN Affairs. In • Culture; Communication & implemented by the UN agencies these discussions, it was agreed through national partners and Information; Infrastructure 5 to continue the urgent follow-up counterparts. from UNDP to support remedial actions necessary to prevent • Water & Sanitation; Key Challenges sewage from being discharged Environment 6 into water used for human consumption. As an immediate • Health & Nutrition 8 Since the first case of cholera follow-up, a second mission was was recorded in Kirkuk on 14 fielded by the RCP Unit. • Governance & Human August, a total of 2,803 cases Development; Agriculture & have been confirmed by WHO in Food Security 9 33 (out of 116) districts of 8 A task force was assembled to governorates mainly in the address the outbreak and a • Technical Assistance/Capacity Kurdistan region (especially report prepared which includes Building 10 Sulaymaniyah, Kirkuk and Erbil). an emergency action plan as well To date, 14 deaths have been as longer term recommendations • Iraqi Children call for change – attributed to the outbreak. While to control the outbreak in a Gehan’s story 11 the number of reported new sustainable manner. A cases continues to decrease, the partnership with UNICEF and severity of the disease and its WHO to react to the cholera outspread across governorates outbreak in Sulaymaniyah appear to be increasing. governorate was developed in In an immediate response to the Page 1 UN-Iraq Reconstruction & Development Update ● September 2007 ● [email protected] ● (+962 6) 550-4700 the last days of the month. drinking water needs. UNICEF has been requested to expand its In the interim, UNICEF With the deterioration in security water tankering operation and delivered education supplies and large scale displacement of supply of water purification comprising tents, plastic sheets, people both inside and outside of chemicals to respond to school-in-a-box, recreation kits, Iraq, the Public Distribution immediate needs. chairs and desks to the System (PDS) has had difficulties Gardaseen IDP camp in Akre/ in reaching all locations of the Ongoing violence and insecurity Dohuk. A UNICEF facilitator country in a timely fashion with a visited the Esawa camp in complete food ration. are having adverse effects on the health status of children, Qaladiza to assess the situation of families displaced due to the The situation is particularly severe precluding efforts by the Ministry of Health (MoH) and most shelling of the villages on the for Internally Displaced Persons northern Iranian/Iraqi border. (IDPs). In response to a request Directorates of Health (DoHs) to deliver essential medical UNICEF is also supporting from the Ministry of Trade, WFP establishment of Community plans to support the Ministry to supplies, including vaccines, to the most vulnerable areas Child Care Units (CCCUs) in enhance the PDS capacity in IDP camps, which will help areas such as importing & especially those with a high influx of IDPs and/or disease address and treat severe and contracts, quality control, moderate cases of malnutrition outbreaks. transportation & freight, food among children under five. pipeline management, and While the overall number of warehousing in order to help the violent incidents has been The MNF-I confirmed last PDS overcome some of the relatively low this month, month that it had approximately bottlenecks that it is currently displacement continues at a rate 800 children in custody near facing. This initiative will require of over 60,000 per month across Baghdad. A recent UNICEF- time, thus, the emergency food Iraq. According to IOM, the supported site assessment of distributions described below is a estimated number of displaced up the Camp facility by the Iraq- stop-gap measure to help meet until 15 September 2007 (since based Juvenile Justice Co- the immediate food needs of the Samarra) stands at 1,058,424 coordinating Council (JJCC) newly displaced before the individuals. This figure, combined highlighted many concerns Ministry of Trade can fulfill its with the 1.2 million individuals about the welfare of these responsibility of ensuring the food displaced before Samarra, gives children, including lack of security of its entire population. a total of 2.26 million IDPs in Iraq access to due legal process. to date. In response to the food needs of Concomitantly, Vice-President Iraq’s growing Internally Displaced Some areas, such as Anbar and El-Hashimi visited an Iraqi MoI Populations, WFP is planning to parts of Baghdad, have seen prison where he alleged that up distribute a supplementary food improved security and therefore to 400 children, mainly Sunni, ration for up to 750,000 IDPs decreased displacement. In other were being detained and ill- inside Iraq. The main objective of areas, such as Diyala, treated. El-Hashimi has since this project is to protect livelihoods Qadissiyah, and Salaheldin, called on the Prime Minister to in crises situations and enhance increased instability is resulting in grant these children amnesty. resilience to unforeseen continued displacement. To this end, UNICEF is working circumstances. closely with the UNAMI Human There are reports that some Rights Office (HRO) and the This 12-month operation is governorate authorities are now International Committee of the scheduled to begin in December restricting IDP entry and/or Red Cross (ICRC), as well as 2007. Numerous meetings have registration, including several liaising with the Baghdad taken place during September southern and northern Provincial Reconstruction Team between WFP and potential governorates. A recent decision to establish systematic and cooperating partners to determine by the Governments of Syria and transparent mechanisms. the implementation modalities of Jordan to introduce visa Immediate actions include a this project which will be finalized regulations in an effort to stem UNICEF-hosted meeting of the in October. the influx of Iraqi refugees is likely JJCC and key Iraqi line to force Iraqis to choose internal Ministries, to establish a The recent outbreak of water- displacement, potentially government policy on borne diseases has underlined the increasing the number of IDPs “diversion”, amnesty for children inability of the Government of Iraq per month by up to 20,000. under the age of criminal to meet the population’s safe liability and respect for Page 2 UN-Iraq Reconstruction & Development Update ● September 2007 ● [email protected] ● (+962 6) 550-4700 international norms of juvenile process, it is expected that the Federal Public Service justice. In this regard, a toolkit is CRC will be asked to play a Council and numerous others. being finalized for rapid and in- formal role in the development of OCS will continue to depth assessment of child constitutionally-mandated coordinate all three areas of detention facilities. legislation. Particular pieces of its work closely with members legislation that have been of the Baghdad-based A meeting was held with the identified by the CRC as priority international community, UNAMI HRO to agree on issues include the law on the Civil including the representation of strategies for assessment visits to Service Commission; the draft the European Commission, detention centres in the Baghdad Law on Governorates not the US and UK Embassies area. UNICEF has also engaged incorporated into a Region; the and others. In addition, OCS D-SRSG, David Shearer (and will enabling legislation for the will continue to work with the do so with the incoming SRSG), Federal Constitutional Court; as UN Office of Project Services to advocate for an in-depth well as draft legislation on water (UNOPS) and UN Country assessment of all child detention resources. In the interim, political Team, as applicable, in the facilities in Iraq. discussions on the draft