IOM #Philippines Emergency Response Newsletter (January 2015)

IOM PHILIPPINES EMERGENCY RESPONSE DELIVERING RELIEF AND RECOVERY TO COMMUNITIES IN EMERGENCIES AND POST-CRISIS

January 2015

Transi onal shelter beneficiaries in Mampang Transitory Site - Masepla II © IOM 2015

Map of IOM field offices

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TYPHOON HAIYAN CAMP COORDINATION AND CAMP MANAGEMENT (CCCM)

44,623 individuals assisted with Site Management Support

12,121 individuals trained in Camp Management

18,606 individuals in camps benefi ng from Camp Management

31 displacement sites assessed as per October DTM

Conrad Navidad, IOM’s CCCM Programme Manager during the Weather 101 and Tropical Cyclone 101 Orienta on © IOM 2015

In partnership with the Government of the Philippines Na onwide Opera onal Assessment of Hazards project (Project NOAH) IOM held a Mul -Hazard Mapping for Disaster Risk Reduc on Management Workshop in six municipali es in Eastern Samar, namely in Guiuan, Mercedes, Salcedo, Quinapondan, Gen. MacArthur and Hernani. The first workshop started on 12 January 2015 and these were supported by the town’s Mayor and Vice Mayor. The workshops promoted map apprecia on, understanding of natural hazards, government efforts in disaster management, integra on of hazard maps in disaster management, and included a presenta on of mul hazard maps at the barangay level. Par cipants were encouraged to provide comments and inputs on iden fying safe areas in their locality and ascertain for their community. Each municipality was represented by the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduc on and Management Office, the Municipal Planning and Development Office and officials of each barangay. The main outcome of the workshop was the iden fica on of safe areas and possible evacua on sites as well as safe routes in each barangay mul hazard maps produced by Project NOAH that can be useful in communitybased disaster risk reduc on planning.

IOM was also invited to contribute and par cipate in the first Weather 101 and Tropical Cyclone 101 Orienta on conducted on Friday 23rd January by the Weather Philippines Founda on (WPF). The orienta on was aimed at giving par cipants a be er understanding of the weather and tropical cyclones from the perspec ve of a meteorologist, so as to be be er prepared for future disasters. Par cipants were also taught how to track and forecast a typhoon using the manual method such as weather forecast maps which give them visual/graphic aid in the absence of computers. IOM introduced the partnership with Project NOAH to produce hazard maps and share these with the communi es to increase their awareness on poten al disasters. The orienta on was a ended by 57 par cipants from Local Government Units, partners from the Tacloban City Disaster Risk Reduc on Management Office and the Tacloban City Social Welfare Development Office.

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SHELTER

49,790 Recovery Shelter Kits distributed

65,748 individuals a ended the Technical DRR Training

3,700 Transi onal Shelters completed

81 Transi onal Shelters ongoing

For over a year, IOM has been suppor ng communi es affected by Typhoon Haiyan and those by the recent Typhoon Hagupit. For instance, In Eastern Samar alone, IOM has reached 21,865 families with Emergency Shelter Kits (ESK), 18,076 families with Non-food Items (NFI), and 10,731 families with Recovery Shelter Kit (RSK) Programme and received complimentary repair kit/ materials. A total of 2,829 families received PHP 3,500 as Cash Grant.

A Rainbow A er The Rain Carlito Hugo is one of IOM’s shelter beneficiaries in Eastern Samar. “Every me heavy rain and strong wind come, our trauma c experience during the devasta on of Typhoon Yolanda always flashes back,” he says. Hugo used to live in a comfortable house along the coast of Bolusao Lawaan, Eastern Samar.

Distribu on of Recovery Shelter Kit (RSK), in Barangay Loyo Basey, Samar © IOM 2015

When Typhoon Yolanda struck, his house was swamped by a massive wave. In despera on, Hugo and his wife Renia kept swimming for several hours, un l Hugo realized that he was holding his wife’s lifeless body. “I lost my wife, partner and best friend all at the same me. I could not even imagine my life without her beside me.”

His only consola on was that all of his children were alive. He decided to stay strong to rebuild life for himself and his children. Selected as a recipient of IOM’s Recovery Shelter Kit, he has now rebuilt a decent, modest sized house just big enough for his family to live in. “I am so grateful that IOM helped me and my children, everything happened for a purpose and God has a plan for everything.”

HEALTH

131,992 Consulta ons

34,421 Expanded Programme on Immunizaon/ Vaccines

6,079 Dental consultaons

11,800 Maternal Child Health consulta ons

3,160 Medical Referrals

In Roxas, IOM donated an X-ray machine and a paging system to the Roxas Memorial Provincial Hospital, a 100-bed capacity public hospital, through funding from the Norwegian Government. The handover ceremony took place on 30 January, a ended by Provincial Governor Victor Tanco and the administra on of the hospital who expressed gra tude.

In Tacloban, IOM conducted health awareness sessions in coordina on with shelter teams, for beneficiaries of shelter materials. In total 556 male and 559 female par cipants benefited from these health sessions, which focused on preven on of communicable and noncommunicable diseases, sanita on and proper hygiene prac ce.

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In Ormoc, IOM together with the United Na ons Popula on Fund (UNFPA) transferred the opera on and ownership of a “3 in 1 Building” named Doña Felisa Mejia District Facility to the Ormoc City Government. The building was completely rehabilitated following the devastaon of Typhoon Haiyan. The facility will serve nine barangays, in the areas of health, police protec on, and social services. The repair is posi ve news to the communi es, and their excitement was seen throughout the ceremony.

This project was launched by Ormoc’s previous administra on and was designed to facilitate three essen al departments; the social welfare-, the local police-, and the health department, with a priority to address barangay community level concerns that cut across the needed services.

Health session in Barangay Buenavista, Jaro © IOM 2015

Handover ceremony of the “3 in 1 building” Doña Felisa Mejia District Facility ©IOM 2015

KJ’s Story KJ, 12-year old girl, was abandoned by her mother when she was three years old. Since then, she has been living with her aunt and her two siblings. KJ was brought to the Rural Health Unit in Pilar, Capiz, with lower abdominal pain. During the examina on, the IOM physician found that for the past three years KJ has a habit of pulling out her hair at night. She refuses to answer any ques ons and to make eye contact. She o en talks to herself and s cks objects into her ears, causing frequent ear infec ons.

Aware of the need for mental health interven on, IOM arranged KJ’s referral to a psychiatrist. Through follow-up visits, KJ began to speak up, saying that she was being bullied because of her hair loss. In addi on to medica ons for her cough, colds and recurrent ear infec on, KJ was also prescribed with psychiatric medica ons for two months.

KJ’s aunt expressed gra tude. “Now I can look a er my niece’s well-being - something that I wasn’t able to do because of the lack of resources.” KJ has scheduled follow-ups with the psychiatrist in February.

PROTECTION

52,789 individuals oriented on protec on issues

84,324 individuals reached through protec on Informa on, Educa on and Communica on materials

3,981 individuals assisted through protec on support ac vi es

2,953 individuals trained in partners’ capacity building ac vi es

The geographical loca on of Eastern Visayas and the availability of transporta on to large ci es such as Manila and Cebu are one of the reasons why trafficking was rampant in the region even before Typhoon Haiyan. A er the typhoon, the dire situa on of the people raised possibili es of their resor ng to nega ve coping mechanisms and increased vulnerability of poten al trafficking vic ms. According to official report from Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), right a er the typhoon hit, trafficking cases escalated.

To minimize occurrence of trafficking cases, IOM through its Protec on Programme strengthens awareness through Counter-Trafficking (CT) and Sexual Gender-Based Violence trainings to different schools, Local Government Units (LGUs) partners, police, internally displaced persons (IDPs), port communi es and beneficiaries reaching the vulnerable groups. It has further intensified its efforts by tapping into the transporta on sector and provided orienta on to the local port authori es, regular porters and drivers were given an orienta on on CT and gender sensi vity, and further awareness campaigns are planned to reach out to more vulnerable communi es.

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In Ormoc, in con nua on of advocacy against gender based violence, IOM along with partner agencies led the Gender Equality Forum on 12 January. The programme introduced a crea ve and interac ve approach, featuring entertaining skits and thoughtprovoking ques ons. Around 130 students from universi es in Ormoc City par cipated in the event. One of the par cipants, Charlene from Eastern Visayas State University commented: “we had so much fun, and we also learned, as a woman I now see my educa on as a form of empowerment.”

In Tacloban, on 23 January, a seminar on human trafficking was held at the Eastern Visayas State University (EVSU) organized by the IOM “Traffic Jammers”. A total of 51 high school and college students a ended the orienta on on gender and sexuality and a discussion on RA 10364, which is the Philippine Law on trafficking against persons.

Par cipants of the Gender Equality Forum in Ormoc City © IOM 2015

COMMUNICATIONS WITH COMMUNITIES (CwC) In Tacloban, IOM par cipated in a series of community consulta ons in Barangay 83-C Taguik k, San Jose, Tacloban City on 21-22 January targe ng families whose houses were par ally damaged by Typhoon Haiyan. Par cipants were informed about eligibility for the Emergency Shelter Assistance (ESA) by the Philippine Government; if they are not eligible or choose not to receive it, they may be able to receive IOM’s Recovery Shelter Programme. Around 100 barangay representa ves joined the event. Frequently asked ques ons (FAQs) and other Informa on, Educa on and Communica ons (IEC) materials were distributed.

In Roxas, 15 January saw 51 people from different interna onal and local non-governmental organiza ons a ending the Preven on of Sexual Exploita on and Abuse (PSEA) Orienta on. The event, aimed at raising awareness of interna onal standards for organiza ons against sexual exploita on and abuse was organized with the assistance of the Accountability to Affected Popula ons Working Group (AAP-WG) and IOM’s Protec on Unit. The par cipants created ac on plans to establish their own internal PSEA monitoring and informa on dissemina on systems.

Romina Sta. Clara, Protec on Programme Manager, serves as the PSEA Orienta on's resource person © IOM 2015

On 29 January, IOM organized “Isturyahanay”, a community forum on transparency and accountability. The objec ve of this forum in Panay is to create transparency among the NGOs, LGU and the communi es they serve. Par cipants shared concerns and opinions about improving transparency and accountability in disaster response. The event was also the venue for launching two thema c comics that illustrate why accountability and transparency ma er and how they can impact the lives of the affected popula on.

One of the par cipants, a barangay kagawad (community councilor), commented: “we are thankful we have events like this one. Now, you can trust us to echo what was discussed here in our barangay cons tuents. This will help us deliver correct informa on and improve accountability.”

Thema c comic on CSP, distributed at the Isturyahanays © IOM 2015

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ZAMBOANGA

Mampang transi onal shelter site © IOM 2015

SHELTER IOM completed the construcon of 300 transi onal shelters in the Mampang transi onal shelter site Masepla II. A total of 55 families have transferred from the Grandstand evacuaon centre to this site. Some essen al facili es including electrical wirings need to be installed by the City Government before more families can be transferred from the Grandstand.

An addi onal 700 transi onal shelters are to be constructed with funds from DSWD un l the end of February.

Snapshot of DSWD-funded transi onal shelter construc on © IOM 2015

Nurisa’s story Nurisa Halil, a mother of two, was formerly residing in the Grandstand evacua on centre. She recently moved to a newly constructed transi onal shelter in Mampang Transitory Site - Masepla II. “I am really happy and thankful that finally I am here. This is a be er place to live than in Grandstand; basic services are available here.” she says.

In order to ensure that the IDPs are well informed about the transfer, IOM conducts social prepara ons, community consulta ons and focus group discussions where all procedures of voluntary transfer and informa on about the transi onal shelters are explained to the people concerned. This include visits by IDPs to the actual transi onal sites to help them make informed decisions.

Nurisa at Grandstand evacua on centre (above) and at her new transi onal shelter (below) © IOM 2015 6

COTABATO Flood imposes state of calamity in Kabacan On 23 January, the town of Kabacan was placed under a state of calamity due to extensive damage caused by flash floods from the Kabacan River that submerges low-lying villages and displaced thousands of residents on 21 January. According to the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office (MSWDO) of Kabacan, a total of 12 houses were totally damaged and 14 par ally damaged. One casualty was reported due to drowning. As of 30 January, a total of 5,769 families or 28,845 individuals have been affected.

Map of Kabacan © IOM 2015

Clashes between the Philippine Na onal Police and armed groups

Map of Mamasamano in Maguindanao © IOM 2015

On 25 January, 44 police officers were killed in armed clash between Philippine Na onal Police (PNP)-Special Ac on Force (SAF) during the 11-hour firefight with members of the Moro Islamic Libera on Front (MILF) and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) in Barangay Tukanalipao in the town of Mamasapano, Maguindanao. According to a report from the Municipal Social Welfare Office from the Municipality of Mamasapano, as of 29 January, the confirmed number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) has reached over 6,000 (or over 1,300 families). They occupied one evacua on centre, but later it was closed, as they returned to their places of origin, while others are s ll living with their rela ves and friends.

On 28 January, IOM gave a presenta on on Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM) in Post-Conflict Situa ons in Cotabato City. The half-day event marked the culmina on of a sixmonth undertaking of DTM across 72 villages, 36 municipalies, and five provinces in Central Mindanao. It was a ended

by IOM's partners in Cotabato including government agencies, interna onal agencies, local CSOs, UN agencies and other stakeholders.

Also invited were Bangsamoro Transi on Commission (BTC), Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA), Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), and Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to provide insights and respond to the DTM Report. IOM also presented IEC materials on the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB), preven on of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), and promo on of referral pathways with the aim to increase awareness on these issues and risks.

Presenta on of DTM in Post-Conflict Situa ons © IOM 2015

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