A formal action plan has been announced by the United Nations system in Cuba to support the government’s national response to get the country back on its feet.
Focus on health, water and sanitation; shelter, education and early recovery; the plan also pays particular attention to the needs of women, children and other vulnerable groups, UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq stressed.
The UN is appealing for $74 million to counter the devastation caused by Melissa.
The United Nations Aid Coordination Office (OCHA) released $4 million in emergency funding ahead of the Category 5 storm, while UN agencies released an additional $7 million, leaving a funding gap of around $64 million to meet urgent needs.
16,000 people displaced in Haiti
In crisis-ravaged Haiti, around 16,000 people have been displaced in total, with 43 dead, dozens injured and 13 still missing.
In Petit-Goâve alone, 25 people lost their lives – the highest number of victims recorded due to the hurricane.
On Wednesday, an OCHA team, along with representatives from the UN children’s and emergency food agencies, were on site to coordinate with local authorities and partners to strengthen response efforts.
The World Food Program (PAM) needs around $18 million to help nearly 190,000 people. The funds would be distributed as follows:
- Air service support: $469,000
- Cash transfers: $6.7 million
- Telecommunications and emergency logistics: $600,000
- In-kind food aid: 1,784 metric tons
Additionally, WFP reported that 40 percent of households in the hardest-hit communes now have a poor food consumption score, representing an increase of 20 percent since the disaster.
Despite the damage, WFP’s early warning system in the country proved very effective.
Strengths of the early warning system:
- 3.5 million SMS sent to alert citizens before the storm
- 47,000 vulnerable people benefiting from safety nets
- Advance cash transfers via mobile money, worth almost $1 million (around $100 per household)
The UN and its humanitarian partners are intensifying their humanitarian response in the Great South region, the area most seriously affected by Hurricane Melissa, OCHA said.
Publicado anteriormente en Almouwatin.
