Sector Status

Logistics

The World Food Program (WFP) is the cluster lead, supported by the UNJLC. The cluster is 15 percent funded (according to FTS). (OCHA, June 4)

Yangon Airport remains the primary hub. The template for all procedures is at http://www.logcluster.org/mm08a. Bangkok’s former international Don Muang Airport (DMK) is the main staging area for foreign relief with daily flights to Yangon. Air capacity is 190 MT a day. DMK has roughly 250 MT of cargo in the warehouse and another 650 MT in the pipeline. (LC, June 5)

The logistics cluster is now operating a 4,000 square meter (sqm) inter-agency warehouse in Yangon, a fleet of 35 trucks with four barges with four barge pushers (total capacity = 2,650 tons), and three boats (total capacity = 1,250 MT). 1 jetty identified in Yangon. Transit time to the delta by barge is between three and six days. WFP says it has a fleet of some 30 boats to help with deliveries in the delta. (IRIN, June 3)

Small boats for use in the delta have been donated by USAID. Smaller boats with a capacity of 1-5 MTs are being sought for use in the delta. Cluster continues to source small boats for purchase. (LC, June 5)

A boat (the Claudia) arrived in Yangon carrying 400 MT rice for WFP and NFIs. A barge for Labutta left June 4 carrying 106 MT of food and other relief. (LC, June 5)

USAID is expecting to continue 5 daily flights until June 15. (UNJLC, June 5) Four US navy ships from the USS Essex group have left the region after repeated efforts to send aid. US says it is still ready to offer helicopters and landing craft from amphibious ships. (AFP, June 5)

First members of the 200-strong joint ASEAN-UN Emergency Rapid Assessment Team (ERAT) flew by helicopter into Labutta and Pyapon. (AFP, June 5)

1832 MT of supplies have been moved to date (On average 410 tons a day). (LC, June 5)

The first WFP helicopter, which arrived in Yangon on May 22, began deliveries to the delta on June 2. Nine other helicopters approved by the junta are in Bangkok and expected to arrive on June 6. (LC, OCHA, June 4) Three are suited for cargo only, while seven can be used for cargo and passengers. Only seven government helicopters are operating in the delta. (AP, June 3) The helicopter flew two sorties and also flew ERAT teams to Labutta and Pyapon for assessments. (LC, AFP, June 5)

Logistics hubs storage updates:

Mawlanyaingyun: 2,000 tons available in MAPT w/h.

Labutta: 7 Mobile Storage Units (MSUs) 1,120 sqm. (240sqm for UNICEF, 240 for WFP, 240 to IOM)

Pathein: 1200 sqm under negotiation.

Pyapon: 2 MSUs up. Easily accessible by truck. (480 sqm). 240 sqm dedicated to CARE and 1,600 sqm under construction.

Bogalay: 2 MSUs up. 1,200 sqm operational. (240 sqm dedicated to UNICEF, 240 to WFP and 240 to IOM.) 720 sqm under construction.

The cluster has 16 operational warehouses and 14 additional warehouses are expected to become operational in the coming weeks. (UN, June 3)

World Vision reported the following traveling times:

Yangon – Kyaiklat: 3 hours by road

Yangon – Bogalay: 4.5 hours by road

Yangon – Pyapon: 3.5 hours by road

Pyapon –Mawlamyinegyun: 1.5 hours from Pyapon by river by boat

Food

WFP appealed for US$69.5 million to provide a complete food basket to 750,000 people, for a total of 380 MT a day, but now estimates that 1.5 million require food assistance. (IRIN, June 3). So far WFP has US$21.3 million, including US$5 million from the CERF, and has fed 575,000 people with a two-week ration of rice. If more money is not pledged, the agency says it will run out by mid-July. The food cluster is currently 21 percent funded. (OCHA, June 4)

9,938 tons of WFP food assistance have been delivered to affected areas and 4,465 tons of food have been distributed. WFP estimates it has reached approximately 501,000 beneficiaries with varying rations. 67 percent of target has been reached. (OCHA, June 4)

WFP expects a pipeline break by the end of July due to two factors: 1) Resource availability. WFP received confirmation for about 35 percent or US$25 million in contribution against the total requirement of US$70 million. Although it forecasts that 60 percent will be covered eventually, the immediate availability of cash may be a problem. 2) In-country availability of rice. The total requirement for the 6-month operation is 46,500 tons, WFP would likely need to import up to half of this to source without undue impact on the domestic market. Delay or denial by the GoM will result in a pipeline break. (OCHA, June 4)

More imports might be needed if farmers cannot plant crops by the end of July, when 80 percent of the country’s rice is normally grown. (Reuters, June 4)

WFP says that along with its partners, it can distribute some 400 MT of food a day. (IRIN, June 3) The Cluster estimates the monthly food requirement at 8,933 tons. WFP plans to cover 11 townships in Irrawaddy and eight in Yangon. WFP has two sub-offices in Labutta and Bogalay.

WFP is providing enough cash for four weeks of food to 200,000 affected people in Yangon.

WFP emergency food assistance rations are composed of 400g of rice, 100g of pulses, 30g of vegetable oil and 5g of iodized salt per day per person. The monthly food basket for a family of five has 60 kg of rice, 15 kg of pulses, 4.5 kg of oil and .75 kg of iodizes salt.

Shelter

UNHCR leads the shelter cluster and is supporting the IFRC, which was designated the in-country cluster lead. UNHCR is asking for US$6 million from the Flash Appeal to help 250,000 people with shelter materials within the next six weeks. The cluster has so far received funds of US$14,750,000 from the UN Flash Appeal and IFRC Appeal. (OCHA, June 4)

So far UNHCR has delivered about 433 MT of supplies for about 125,000 people. UNHCR is setting up field units in Labutta and Bogalay.

IFRC said at least 1.5 million people remain homeless in the delta. The UN estimates that until recently around 260,000 people had been in temporary camps in 14 townships. (IRIN, June 3) There have been reports of the government evicting people from some camps.

Agencies have reported a possible shortage of shelter goods in the coming weeks as distribution capacity exceeds the pipeline for incoming goods. The time span between arrival in country and distribution is as short as three days, and no stocks are existent to cover a possible lull in the supply line. With the increase of the in-country logistical capacity, this will become the biggest bottleneck in the near future. (OCHA, June 4)

Shelter kits have been renamed: Family kit is now called Relief kit. Shelter kit is now Tarp Kit and Hamlet kit is now Community tool kit. The cluster has standardized three types of kits. The first is a tool for a group of 10 or more households. The second is a basic building material kit, one per household. The third is a Non-Food Items (NFI) kit. 102,000 Household Tarp Kits, 13,000 Community Tool Kits and 6,300 Household Relief Kits have been distributed so far. (OCHA, June 4)

Health

The World Health Organization (WHO) leads the health cluster, which comprises 22 international NGOs and UN agencies. Merlin is cluster co-lead. Cluster projects submitted to the CERF amount to US$4 million. WHO is calling for US$28 million to fund a six-month action plan to rebuild the health care system. At least 50 percent of health structures were damaged or destroyed.

Cluster sub-groups have been formed on HIV/AIDS, Early Recovery and psychosocial support. The cluster has established three operations centers in Pathein, Labutta and Bogalay. WHO launched the Early Warning Disease Surveillance System known as the Early Warning Reporting System (EWARS).

IFRC says the southwest monsoon is intensifying, and people are reporting increasing illness. Diarrheal disease, malaria, dengue, respiratory infections and even hemorrhagic fever continue to concern the Federation. While these diseases are endemic in Myanmar – and the authorities consider the reports to be normal – the threat they pose in post-cyclone conditions remains considerable. (IFRC, June 5)

Volunteers are being trained in Yangon in hygiene promotion and disease prevention. They will be part of a network of 200 first aid and health education posts being set up in Irrawaddy and Yangon divisions. IFRC says the posts are part of a six-month emergency phase of a three-year program to strengthen the Myanmar Red Cross’ emergency health capacity. (IFRC, June 5)

International medical teams have been deployed as follows: China-Kungyangon; Thailand – Mawlamyinegyun; Bangladesh – Wakema; India – Bogalay and Pyapon; Singapore- Twantay; Philippines- Pathein; Japan- Labutta; Indonesia - Kawhmu. Medical teams from more than 70 countries are expected to arrive in the next 3-6 months.

The Health Cluster Joint Plan of Action objectives are: Assess and monitor health needs and strengthen disease surveillance; Respond to outbreaks and other health threats, strengthen disease control and fill critical health care gaps; Strengthen and repair systems and build capacity; Engage partners to coordinate a joint health sector response. (OCHA, June 2)

Nutrition

About one-third of Myanmar’s children are malnourished, including 30,000 under five who were acutely malnourished before Nargis. Save the Children says several thousand may die in the next two weeks due to a lack of food. UNICEF found in 2003 40 percent under five were chronically malnourished and ten percent were acutely malnourished. (IFRC, June 5)

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)

UNICEF leads the cluster and is appealing for US$8.2 million. The cluster is 115 percent funded (according to FTS). (OCHA, June 4)

There were 27 mobile water treatment plants as of May 26 with the capacity to provide clean water for 1 million people, according to WHO. Ten water purification units are available now but only three or four are functioning.

The Cluster has finalized a 4-month initial response plan based on an assumption of 1.5 million affected people. The cluster’s goal is to provide three liters of drinking water and 10 liters of bathing and general purpose water per person per day, availability of soap for everyone, and 1 community trained hygiene promoter per 2,000 people. Within the first 60 days, it hopes to have one toilet per 100 people, with an eventual go