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Situation Report
Haiti – No. 01/2011
Crisis and post-crisis response to earthquake
Geneva, 16 September 2011
Country highlights
• The current political stand-off between the President and Parliament are preventing political progress and exacerbating the security situation.
• A Study carried out by IOM, ACTED and CDAD report that 94% of people still living in camps would go home if they had an alternative accommodation. According to IOM data, 595,000 Haitians still leave in 894 camps, mostly scattered in and around Port-au-Prince.
• After reaching a pick of 54,339 cholera cases in June, the number of new cases has decreased to 40,873 in July, according to the Ministry for Public Health. Figures are expected to be lower in August. However, strong rains experienced these days might lead to an increase of new cases. As funding is lacking and agencies closing some of their programs, the number of cholera centres and units is decreasing.
• The Direction for Civil Protection has released the final version of the National Contingency Plan. Two simulation exercises have already taken place engaging both the national authorities and UN/OCHA. Strong differences remain between different regions in term of preparedness at local level.
ACT Forum and Coordination
In 2011 Forum Chair is NCA and vice-Chair CRWRC. There have already been 8 monthly forum meetings this year including one annual forum meeting in March. A MoU has been signed by 12 members, including the Dominican member Servicio Social de Iglesias Dominicanas and is pending signature of a 13th member, Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. The forum is also expecting, pending the ACT Governing Board decision, the membership of two Haitian organisations: Service Chrétien d’Haiti (SCH) and Mission Sociale des Eglises en Haiti (MISSEH).
An activity plan has been developed and revised, in the context of the 8 April synergy workshop, to set up objectives and indicators for the forum. Joint forum activities being carried out at the moment include:
- A contingency plan for the 2011 hurricane season, which emphasizes on early pre-impact coordination among ACT members, the ACT Secretariat and the wider ACT Alliance. The plan includes responses based on regional presence and specialization of each ACT member. The contingency plan also includes a mapping of ACT members’ regional and sectoral presence across the country, and a mapping of human resources and stocks. The ACT Contingency Plan has been shared with OCHA.
- The pilot phase 2011 – 2012 of the ACT Alliance Haiti Forum’s joint program for Climate change and Disaster Risk Reduction, consisting on a series of workshops to strengthen community awareness and capacity for advocacy and supporting the implementation of partners’ concrete initiatives on promoting CC/DRR within communities, will start in a few weeks. The project is open for funding support.
- Strengthening regional coordination, in particular with Dominican Republic. SSID has now become a member of the ACT Haiti Forum.
- Preparation of the HTI101 Appeal evaluation, with an evaluation steering committee to coordinate with the ACT Secretariat the development of this process. Right now are identifying key partners, communitarian leaders, relevant projects and logistical needs. The team of consultants should arrive in Haiti by the end of the month, beginning of next month.
- Preparation of a joint reconstruction appeal for the year 2012. A draft outline has been presented already by the working group and will be revised for the 21 September forum meeting. One of the key issues is securing funding. The appeal will target a budget of approximately 5 million USD.
A journalist visit was organised in June to cover education and housing projects from FCA, LWF and CRWRC in the region of Leogane. As a result ACT projects appeared in an article in Le Nouvelliste of 29 June, as well as twice on the Television National d’Haiti around mid-July.
The Security Coordinator continues to participate actively in the weekly Joint Humanitarian Security Forum. He has completed and shared with all ACT members a set of hibernation, relocation and evacuation tools, including check lists and road map. Earlier in the year, an Emergency Brochure has been completed, printed and distributed in Creole and English to all ACT members with a list of important phone numbers and advice on how to react in emergency situations. The Security Coordinator is now working on medical emergencies and evacuation, as well as revising security plans with ACT members, through Security Focal Point meetings.
The Emergency Coordinator has been meeting regularly throughout the year with other INGOs through the Accountability Learning Working Group, and has presented the ACT Code of Conduct and guidelines related to SEA and complains mechanism to the group. ACT members CA, NCA, LWF, DKH and CWS have also been attending the ALWG meetings and presented their respective mechanisms. Other INGOs include Concern, CRS, French Red Cross, Care, Save the Children, Habitat for Humanity etc. Through the ALWG, two HAP trainings are being organised – pending enough participation – toward the end of November: one on complaints and response mechanism, another on investigations on sexual exploitation and abuse.
The Emergency Coordinator has also been attending the UN/OCHA led Humanitarian Forum as well as the NGO Coordination Committee plenary session, of which FCA is a member and LWF was a member until the summer.
The ACT Coordination will phase out toward the end of the year. Under discussion is the possibility to hire either a full time or part time Assistant Coordinator. In a full time position, the person would also be responsible to liaise with the local media. The hiring will depend on whether ACT members can hire/finance such position.
Security Situation
The ratification of a Prime Minister by the parliament and the installation of a new government are still at an impasse. The third proposed Prime Minister, Mr. Garry Conille, is in risk of being rejected as the two other have been. In such case, the antagonism between the President and some of the parliamentarians could deteriorate and lead to some unrest in the country. In the meantime, the President is running out of time for complying with constitutional deadlines and the promise he made during its campaign.
The security situation for the last three months is dominated by a leap of security incidents such as kidnappings, burglaries and armed robberies in the capital and some other towns. Increased level of incidents is usually expected from August to September (as school reopen) and in December (Christmas), but signs show that the number of kidnapping could be higher in 2011 compared with last year. Though NGOs are not specifically targeted, national staffs remain more at risk than expatiates, because the Haitian society tend to perceive them as enjoying some privileged for working for an NGO, and the weaker target that they represent.
The Anti-Minustah Sentiment through all the country has been abruptly escalated after allegation of Uruguayan troops soldiers sexually assaulting on an 18 years old Haitian men in Port-Salut (Southern Dept). The incident would take place in the middle of July but situation exploded when the Video of the alleged rape was revealed in the press and on internet in September. This recent incident and the denunciation of the cousin's viction of being threatened other members of the troop, have aroused already existed anger from different sectors of the Haitian society against the UN Mission. Despite the recent decision by the Uruguayan Defense Ministry to repatriate their troop and its commander while carrying investigation on the case, and the announcement by UN of compensation for the victim, indignation throughout the population remain very high.
Post earthquake emergency, early recovery and reconstruction
Christian Aid
CAID completed their segment of the ACT Appeal on 31 July 2011. Their earthquake recovery programme supported beneficiaries in the sectors of shelter, livelihoods, advocacy, disaster risk reduction and gender/protection. Working through local partners, the current portfolio includes five projects which combine house construction or repairs with innovative livelihoods activities in several locations, including in and around the towns of Anse a Pitres, Jacmel, Leogane, Ganthier and Boen. These projects, as well as several others with partners working both in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, also include training and sensitization of communities in disaster preparedness and risk reduction. Advocacy on housing rights, protection issues and supporting bi-national relations between communities and institutions on both sides of the Dominican-Haitian border are also important elements of several projects. Christian Aid and its partners are now in the process of expanding their recovery project activities in all the sectors mentioned above, with the aim of transitioning into longer term developmental programming in the coming two years.
Church World Service
CWS completed their segment of the ACT Appeal on 31 August 2011, when the program for People with Disabilities ended. The program was successful in providing emergency cash support to 1,200 beneficiaries, giving working capital to start small businesses to over 400 beneficiaries, and offering psycho-social and counselling to over 3,000 people with disabilities. CWS is currently exploring ways to continue services and programming for people with disabilities in Haiti. The other component of the CWS ACT Appeal, “Logistical Support to Haiti,” ended in December 2010, and succeeded in collecting, transporting and distributing more than $2 million in aid to Haiti, serving over 500,000 Haitians.
In addition, CWS is undergoing housing projects in three main areas: house repair for people with disabilities in Port-au-Prince, house expansion for IDPs in northwest Haiti, and house repair and construction in Gantier and Boen (in collaboration with Christian Aid). In total, over 250 homes have been repaired. Also, CWS continues to support decentralization through support of agricultural cooperatives in the northwest, where IDPs are given micro-credit to create economic opportunities. Further, CWS works with local organizations serving “restavek children” (domestic servants), including a network of 18 organizations that does advocacy to abolish the restavek system in Haiti.
In May 2011, CWS and Christian Aid hosted the training “Putting Dignity First: Mainstreaming Protection.” Nearly twenty local Haitian organizations participated in the training, developed by CWS, that provides simple yet effective tools for recognizing protection threats and mainstreaming protection into regular programming.
In 2012, CWS plans to continue work in the areas of housing, agriculture, children and people with disabilities.
Christian Reformed World Relief Committee
CRWRC completed their segment of the ACT Appeal on 31 July 2011. CRWRC continues to implement reconstruction activities under the emergency mandate which ACT Alliance, CRWRC, and other funders have funded. The reconstruction activities have taken place in 11 communities in the vicinity of the city of Leogane and focused been in the following sectors: shelter, with 2,101 units built to date, water, with 19 wells and 4 water fountains, sanitation with 22 community latrines, 205 family latrines and 216 bathing areas in partnership with Oxfam Quebec. In addition, 121 houses have been repaired in 3 communities. A total of 2,000 farmers in 15 mountainous communities have benefited from livelihood activities and 400 households from micro-credit assistance. Business training and funding have been provided to 20 small and medium size enterprises, with more to come. Together with UNDP, cash for work has allowed 2,109 short term jobs to be created and 15,476 cubic meters of rubble removal.
Another 300 to 400 additional shelters are planned toward the end of the year as well as additional wash activities in partnership with Oxfam Quebec. Livelihoods activities will also continue toward the end of the year as well as rubble removal with UNDP funding.
Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe
In the context of appeal HT101 DKH is currently implementing a WASH component that has been added to the project in the context of the revision. Through this component latrines will be provided to 300 households that have benefited from the rehabilitation or reconstruction of houses in Jacmel and Bainet. Furthermore 4 public schools will receive adequate toilet blocks.
Otherwise DKH is pursuing its strategy of an integrated response to earthquake affected families in the South East Department of Haiti based on over different 10 projects that are currently being implemented (by DKH teams or partner organization Concert Action) in the sectors of food security (incl. access to water), habitat and infrastructure and disaster risk reduction in six communes (Anse a Pitre, Gand Gosier, Jacmel, La Vallee, Bainet, Cotes de Fer) of the Department.
Outside of this geographical area DKH is contributing to efforts of partner organizations in the sectors of health care (Cholera treatment project implemented by OSAPO in the West Department) as well as food security and disaster risk reduction (KORAL in the North-West Department).
ICCO & Kerk in Actie
The remaining emergency project with POZ on cholera prevention, health / HIV in PAP, Montrouis, and Cap Haitien has ended on 31 August 2011.
There are five rehabilitation projects at the moment: water and sanitation with partner Protos in Ti Boucan and Gressier, one project on shelter, food security and livelihood in Jacmel with AVSF/CICDDA, a project on protection/human rights in IDP camps in Port-au-Prince with GARR, another similar project at national level with POHD, and lastly, a project with VKM on cholera prevention and disaster and risk management in Les Cayes. A project in Carrefour on education, protection and livelihood might start soon with partner GRUEEDH. Most projects will last between the end of 2011 (AVSF and VKM) to mid 2012 (Protos and POHDH). The longest is with GARR, until July 2013.
A further ten proposals from partners are currently being reviewed. Sectors include water and sanitation, shelters, livelihood, reforestation and education and locations include Port-au-Prince (Carrefour Feuilles, Carrefour, Tabarre and Delmas), Arcahaie, Gressier and Ganthier. Specific support to ITEKA for the reconstruction of their office in Port-au-Prince is also under study. Further proposals, to be received yet, include Service Chrétien d’Haiti, Réseau National de Défense des Droits de l’Homme and Fédération Protestante d’Haiti
Finn Church Aid
FCA currently has 11 permanent schools under construction, 5 of which are funded through the ACT Appeal. The inauguration of the first of these schools, Ecole St. Mathieu, is planned for 25 September 2011 and is the first new permanent school construction in the earthquake-affected area that fulfils the new earthquake and hurricane safety requirements. The innovative school construction method is environmentally-friendly as it recycles rubble from destroyed buildings and pilots sustainable energy solutions, such as biogas latrines/kitchen, solar panels and water catchment systems. FCA is a leading education sector actor in sustainable post-earthquake reconstruction having tackled these issues as a component of the initial earthquake response, working in partnership with several ACT Alliance members. This reconstruction program is set to continue next year as FCA aims to build another 10 schools in an effort to contribute the ambitious plans outlined by the new President to ensure free universal education in Haiti.
In addition to the school reconstruction program, FCA has also reached over 24,000 families and 130 schools through a cholera-prevention program in the earthquake affected Les Palmes region, especially targeting vulnerable rural communities. This has been carried out in partnership with the Lutheran World Federation. FCA is now beginning a school feeding program in partnership with The Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund, a Canadian ACT Alliance partner, to provide 7,000 children with a daily hot meal during the upcoming school year.
The Lutheran World Federation
In this final phase of the ACT Appeal for the Haiti Earthquake, LWF has closed its activities in primary health promotion, in education, and in camp management and is transitioning livelihood activities into the long-term development projects. The construction of a permanent primary school in Palmes 9 is near completion. Nerette Camp is closed and materials for the final 120 families to rebuild have just arrived. Psychosocial workers continue to support the 68 families at Shekinah Camp/Gressier as they await housing. The programming includes constructive play activities for young children, adult literacy classes, and sewing classes for women residents. Some of these families will move to one of the 96 houses being built by the shelter unit for families in Gressier and Leogane. Land has been secured and the final details for the contractors are being negotiated for a model village in Gressier that will provide decent housing for 200 families. It is hoped that the village will be completed early in 2012.
Norwegian Church Aid
NCA completed their segment of the ACT Appeal on 31 July 2011. NCA and its partners are gradually moving from emergency response to the earthquake and cholera to long term rehabilitation and reconstruction. They are working in water, sanitation and hygiene promotion as well as continuing to strengthen the work in peace and stability and gender justice. During the last 20 months NCA and partners have concentrated their work in water provision and sanitation facilities with accompanying work of hygiene promotion in some of the poorest quarters of the capital area, Cité Soleil and Bel Air, working both in the camps and the communities in more than 30 locations. By August 2011, the gradual withdrawal from the camp setting mainly in Cité Soleil has nearly been achieved with longer term solutions found in many but unfortunately not all settings through rehabilitation of wells, supporting the organization of people to purchase water collectively, etc. The problems of inadequate water supply and sanitation conditions threaten the future for people in these quarters at large, not only camp dwellers and NCA is looking for opportunities to address the problem together with the local institutions (such as schools) and authorities.
Outside the capital, NCA, together with other ACT Alliance members and with the expertise of some of its partners is involved in constructing biogas installations and ensuring water supplies in four Episcopal schools in the Leogane and Gressier areas and is looking for other partners to develop the models of renewable energy in different pilot settings to address both the environmental concerns and the scarcity of water supplies. The key to the success of any of these projects remains with the communities and their active participation and ownership of new technologies and changing cultural patterns linked with waste. The task remains challenging and exciting.
On the other hand NCA and partners are looking for renewing and strengthening the work in peace and stability and especially gender with all the partners to ensure that the major reconstruction efforts in infrastructure, in themselves essential and needed, do not undermine the importance of focusing on people and communities. They remain the main actor to solve the problems of Haiti through an active civil society aware of its rights but also capable of negotiations and problems solving in non-violent ways.
Any funding indication or pledge should be communicated to ACT Chief Finance Officer, Jean-Daniel Birmele (jbi@actalliance.org).
ACT Appeal: http://www.actalliance.org/resources/appeals/HTI101Rev2_am.pdf
