Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines - Coordination of Emergency Assistance in the Camps - IOM 2013

November 19 2013 – On November 8 2013 Typhoon Haiyan (locally known as Yolanda) made landfall in the Philippines killing a reported 3 976 people and affecting 12.9 million people in 41 provinces. Some four million people have been reported as displaced from their homes and are seeking shelter in evacuation centres or with host families. The typhoon caused extensive damage to infrastructure in the hardest-hit areas making it very challenging to access affected people with emergency assistance. The latest reports indicate that the typhoon destroyed more than one million homes and that electricity and water systems are not functioning in many affected areas. The Government of the Philippines has identified the most significant needs as safe drinking water shelter food medical assistance and support to ensure adequate hygiene and sanitation. With DFATD’s support the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is addressing the immediate camp coordination and management needs of nearly 450 000 typhoon-affected people. Some project activities include: (i) enhancing existing evacuation centres by providing support for identifying coordinating and managing people rehabilitating the centres and ensuring that minimum living conditions are met; (ii) collecting and sharing information through the IOM Displacement Tracking Matrix a tool used in camps and camp-like settings to rapidly assess and gather information on the displaced population and conditions in sites; (iii) providing life-saving essential household non-food items and shelter kits including tents to affected communities; (iv) facilitating access to basic health services medical supplies and medicines and providing health referrals in coordination with partners working in the health sector; (v) providing psychosocial support in evacuation centres and displacement sites; and (vi) acting as the lead coordinator for organizations involved in camp coordination and camp management.

The expected immediate outcomes of this project include: (i) increased access to evacuation centres for displaced population; (ii) increased access to essential household non-food items; (iii) increased access to health services and to psychosocial support. The expected intermediate outcome is reduced vulnerability of typhoon-affected people especially women and children.