USAID is fully committed to providing humanitarian assistance to the
people of Iraq - to save lives, alleviate suffering, and mitigate the
impact of emergency situations. For the last several months, various
U.S. government agencies and departments, including USAID, have been
planning for a possible humanitarian emergency by:
- Assembling and training the largest-ever U.S. humanitarian
rapid response team;
- Pre-positioning stockpiles of emergency supplies and commodities;
- Communicating and coordinating with U.S. and international
humanitarian organizations; and
- Funding international organizations and non-governmental organizations'
preparatory efforts.
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USAID will rely heavily on international and non-government relief
professionals - they will be the delivers of assistance.
For instance, the largest USAID Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART)
in U.S. history-- outside of an Urban Search and Rescue response - has
been recruited. It is headquartered in Kuwait City and will have three
mobile field offices. The DART will conduct assessments, direct assistance
towards vulnerable populations and provide funding to the IO and NGO
providers.
The DART is comprised of more than 60 humanitarian response experts
from various agencies and departments, including USAID; the Department
of State's Bureau for Population, Migration, and Refugees (PRM); and
the Department of Health and Human Service's Public Health Service.
In addition to technical experts in areas such as health, food, water,
and shelter, the DART has grant making authority and includes administrative
officers in logistics, transportation, and procurement, enabling the
team to function as a turnkey response mechanism for assessment and
funding in the field.
U.S. government officials and a wide range of U.S.- based and international
organizations have been meeting for several months to plan for a humanitarian
response in Iraq. In the region, the DART will continue to serve as
a central point of contact, conducting assessments, exchanging information
and facilitating delivery of humanitarian assistance by NGOs, U.N. agencies,
international organizations (IOs), and the U.S. military, if necessary,
in support of U.N. OCHA's overall coordination mandate.
In addition, USAID has funded a significant contingency coordination
effort for many NGOs preparing to assist in Iraq called the Joint NGO
Emergency Preparedness Initiative (JNEPI), offering support to their
assessment, logistics, stockpiling, and staffing needs. PRM funding
has gone to support the contingency preparations of international humanitarian
relief organizations.
USAID is pre-positioning emergency supplies for the Iraqi people, including
material in warehouses throughout the region. In addition to pre-positioned
and in-transit food, these supplies include wool blankets; rolls of
plastic sheeting for emergency shelter; personal hygiene kits; World
Health Organization Emergency Health Kits; and water jugs, bladders,
containers, and treatment units
Areas of expertise and responsibility for humanitarian assistance include:
- Health and medicines
- Water and sanitation
- Food and nutrition
- Shelter and supplies
- Internally displaced persons
- Humanitarian assistance infrastructure
- Refugees and asylum seekers
Infrastructure and funding for distribution.
USAID has positioned $154 million for Iraq humanitarian relief, food distribution,
reconstruction and transition initiatives. Of that, approximately $35
million has been spent to date.
Department of State's Bureau for Population, Migration, and Refugees (PRM)
has spent an additional $15.6 million for pre-positioning by international
organizations. Additional funds are in the pipeline.
Of the amount spent by USAID, $17.3 million has been spent on the pre-position
of relief commodities.
That amount also includes support to UN agencies, including $2 million
to UNICEF for emergency health kits, and nutrition and water/sanitation
activities; $5 million to the World Food program for food and logistics
measures; and $1 million to the U.N.'s Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) for NGO and donor coordination.
Support to NGOs, including $900,000, has been provided to establish a
consortium to conduct chemical/biological/radiological/nuclear training
for other NGOs.
An additional $100,000 was provided to the Interaction to fund an NGO
observer to the Humanitarian Operations Center to Kuwait.
To date, PRM has contributed $15.6 million to the U.N. High Commissioners
for Refugees and the International Organization fro Migration. |
03/24/03 - 
