I am thankful to Madam Zubaida Mustafa for her commitment to reflect back on IRC efforts for flood affected people in Sindh.
Pasted below is the link which merely needs your click on it to read her full article.
Aumir
http://thewip.net/contributors/2010/11/what_the_future_holds_for_floo.html
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
An article of one of the renewed journalists Zubida Mustafa on IRC efforts for flood victims in Khairpur and Dadu-Sindh
On the point of change?
By Zubeida Mustafa
Wednesday, 27 Oct, 2010
THE tent cities for the flood-affected in Khairpur are now being dismantled. According to the EDO of the district only five remained last Friday.
As I watched the occupants of the Indus Resource Centre’s (IRC) camp prepare for their return journey, I wondered if this watershed event in their lives would also prove to be the turning point. For two months the trauma of the flood’s ravages became a distant nightmare as they lived in a new caring environment they had never known before.
The question is whether this experience will move them to change their lives radically. The two tent cities organised by the NGO in Dadu and Khairpur, where I spent several hours with the flood victims, provide a textbook example of what development is all about.
Sadiqa Salahuddin, the executive director of IRC, who is far from being a desk-bound activist, summed up the choices before the displaced people in her farewell speech. “Your children [there were 685 among the 1,221 victims] were so happy here and we hope you will also keep them happy. Be gentle with them as well as with their mothers. You were also happy here. Take back these memories to give a new direction to your lives,” she exhorted them.
From August to October, it was not just their basic necessities — mainly food, water, shelter and healthcare — that were attended to; their children received schooling, their women got guidance in handicraft and lessons in reproductive healthcare and the men learnt the virtues of living in harmony.
This was done by setting up schools in the two camps I visited, organising health and sanitation education classes, workshops for handicrafts and setting up a conciliation council comprising leaders of different clans to take collective decisions and resolve disputes.
Here was participatory governance at its best. Some teachers and camp managers had to be hired from outside (but from the local population) as expertise was not available among the affected. But assistants — teachers and managers — and manual labour for any project undertaken came from the inmates of the tent cities who received due emoluments in cash.
According to the executive director, it was a record of sorts that no violence occurred in the camps, notwithstanding the diverse backgrounds of the people thrown together by the doings of nature. It was amusing to see a police guard deployed per routine trying to make his presence felt by unnecessarily throwing his weight around.
This participatory form of governance must continue if lives have to change. Sadiqa Salahuddin’s advice to flood survivors carried weight. They could empower themselves if they lived peacefully and did not allow their enemies to hurt them by dividing their communities.
Of course it will be a challenge for the flood victims to replicate their camp life in their impoverished home environment. Lacking political empowerment they have to struggle against socio-economic odds that are daunting. Land owners can be tyrannical when it comes to exploiting their haris to extract undue privileges for themselves. Denied the benefits of good education and the basic facilities of healthcare, family planning, sanitation and nutrition, the farm workers are unaware of the rights they are entitled to.
Nevertheless, the parting message was, ‘Help yourself and we will help you’. The emphasis was on self-reliance and dignity. To show the way, gifts were handed out — tools (shovels, spades, saws, etc for the men), kitchen utensils for women and schoolbags for children (courtesy Unicef). Families were given dry rations for a fortnight and seeds to grow vegetables. Earlier they had received beddings and were allowed to take their tents with them.
Most of them live on land that they have no title to. They were leaving with mixed feelings. They were satisfied and grateful but also pensive. The good times were drawing to a close (evenings had been occasions for folk music and women had been spared the violence that was their fate earlier on). Above all, they were stepping into an uncertain future.
But at least, the first stirrings had been created in a people who had previously shown little interest in sending their children to school. The young ones had became absorbed in their lessons — there were three- and four-year-olds who tugged at my sleeve demanding that I listen to them recite rhymes and alphabets. Will this interest blossom into something more?
Many villages have no schools. There are others where the wadera uses the school building as a bara for his cattle. Others have schools but no schooling. The people lack the means and organisation to pressure the government to safeguard their rights. Two months were not enough for them, the weaker party, to acquire the skills to neutralise the levers that are traditionally used against them.
But there is hope. Seeds of awareness have been sown, new relationships forged and new friendships struck. Ingenious uses of the ubiquitous mobile phone are being discovered. Above all, they have been promised continued support to keep alight the flame that has been lighted.
Ali Madad, an IRC project officer who helped with the Khairpur camp, captured the message poignantly when he recited Shaikh Ayaz in wai-style:
When the red roses burst into bloom/We will meet again.
Much now depends on the government. Last week it appeared to be nudging the NGOs out of this space some of them have created for themselves in the life of flood-affected communities. It declared that henceforth the government will manage the $3bn additional aid it was seeking.
Will it be used to dole out meagre charity to individuals to hurt their dignity? Or will this aid be used to stimulate economic activity in the flood-ravaged regions to rebuild the infrastructure on a cash-for-work basis — albeit keeping contractors out and employing only indigenous people?
zubeidam2@gmail.com
By Zubeida Mustafa
Wednesday, 27 Oct, 2010
THE tent cities for the flood-affected in Khairpur are now being dismantled. According to the EDO of the district only five remained last Friday.
As I watched the occupants of the Indus Resource Centre’s (IRC) camp prepare for their return journey, I wondered if this watershed event in their lives would also prove to be the turning point. For two months the trauma of the flood’s ravages became a distant nightmare as they lived in a new caring environment they had never known before.
The question is whether this experience will move them to change their lives radically. The two tent cities organised by the NGO in Dadu and Khairpur, where I spent several hours with the flood victims, provide a textbook example of what development is all about.
Sadiqa Salahuddin, the executive director of IRC, who is far from being a desk-bound activist, summed up the choices before the displaced people in her farewell speech. “Your children [there were 685 among the 1,221 victims] were so happy here and we hope you will also keep them happy. Be gentle with them as well as with their mothers. You were also happy here. Take back these memories to give a new direction to your lives,” she exhorted them.
From August to October, it was not just their basic necessities — mainly food, water, shelter and healthcare — that were attended to; their children received schooling, their women got guidance in handicraft and lessons in reproductive healthcare and the men learnt the virtues of living in harmony.
This was done by setting up schools in the two camps I visited, organising health and sanitation education classes, workshops for handicrafts and setting up a conciliation council comprising leaders of different clans to take collective decisions and resolve disputes.
Here was participatory governance at its best. Some teachers and camp managers had to be hired from outside (but from the local population) as expertise was not available among the affected. But assistants — teachers and managers — and manual labour for any project undertaken came from the inmates of the tent cities who received due emoluments in cash.
According to the executive director, it was a record of sorts that no violence occurred in the camps, notwithstanding the diverse backgrounds of the people thrown together by the doings of nature. It was amusing to see a police guard deployed per routine trying to make his presence felt by unnecessarily throwing his weight around.
This participatory form of governance must continue if lives have to change. Sadiqa Salahuddin’s advice to flood survivors carried weight. They could empower themselves if they lived peacefully and did not allow their enemies to hurt them by dividing their communities.
Of course it will be a challenge for the flood victims to replicate their camp life in their impoverished home environment. Lacking political empowerment they have to struggle against socio-economic odds that are daunting. Land owners can be tyrannical when it comes to exploiting their haris to extract undue privileges for themselves. Denied the benefits of good education and the basic facilities of healthcare, family planning, sanitation and nutrition, the farm workers are unaware of the rights they are entitled to.
Nevertheless, the parting message was, ‘Help yourself and we will help you’. The emphasis was on self-reliance and dignity. To show the way, gifts were handed out — tools (shovels, spades, saws, etc for the men), kitchen utensils for women and schoolbags for children (courtesy Unicef). Families were given dry rations for a fortnight and seeds to grow vegetables. Earlier they had received beddings and were allowed to take their tents with them.
Most of them live on land that they have no title to. They were leaving with mixed feelings. They were satisfied and grateful but also pensive. The good times were drawing to a close (evenings had been occasions for folk music and women had been spared the violence that was their fate earlier on). Above all, they were stepping into an uncertain future.
But at least, the first stirrings had been created in a people who had previously shown little interest in sending their children to school. The young ones had became absorbed in their lessons — there were three- and four-year-olds who tugged at my sleeve demanding that I listen to them recite rhymes and alphabets. Will this interest blossom into something more?
Many villages have no schools. There are others where the wadera uses the school building as a bara for his cattle. Others have schools but no schooling. The people lack the means and organisation to pressure the government to safeguard their rights. Two months were not enough for them, the weaker party, to acquire the skills to neutralise the levers that are traditionally used against them.
But there is hope. Seeds of awareness have been sown, new relationships forged and new friendships struck. Ingenious uses of the ubiquitous mobile phone are being discovered. Above all, they have been promised continued support to keep alight the flame that has been lighted.
Ali Madad, an IRC project officer who helped with the Khairpur camp, captured the message poignantly when he recited Shaikh Ayaz in wai-style:
When the red roses burst into bloom/We will meet again.
Much now depends on the government. Last week it appeared to be nudging the NGOs out of this space some of them have created for themselves in the life of flood-affected communities. It declared that henceforth the government will manage the $3bn additional aid it was seeking.
Will it be used to dole out meagre charity to individuals to hurt their dignity? Or will this aid be used to stimulate economic activity in the flood-ravaged regions to rebuild the infrastructure on a cash-for-work basis — albeit keeping contractors out and employing only indigenous people?
zubeidam2@gmail.com
Friday, October 15, 2010
IRC-Tent City (A general overview)
The tent city in Khairpur is the oldest and was designed and set up before Eid. It has two blocks – Bhitai and Sachal and the road in between – Shahrah-e- Sami. Ten neighborhoods after the names of 10 communities are living harmoniously. A city council consisting of 10 representatives, one from each community facilitates the distribution of commodities, use of services, and helps in planning for the improvement. Some norms for living together have been designed and have been pasted at a visible place. Apart from cleanliness and discipline, the norms do not allow violence of any kind particularly on women and children. Only one complaint of an old father beating the young son had been reported otherwise there had been no instances of violence.
The residents of this tent city are mainly from Jacobabad. The other districts of their origin are Shikarpur, Jafarabad, Dadu and Kandhkot. Most of them are victims of Thori breach and found shelter in Khairpur in early August. By profession they are either unskilled labourers or landless farmers except very few who claim to have their own small pieces of land. Out of a population of 1221 persons in one camp, 685 are children below 15 years of age, 53 women are pregnant and 7 safe deliveries (all in city hospital) had already taken place.
Tent city has three Teaching and Learning Centres with an enrolment of159. Except a few, all of these children of various ages are out of school either because the teachers in village schools are absent or not posted or the building is used for some other purpose by the influential individuals.
Health standards of our guests are poor however, all the pregnant women in the camp now have access to pre-natal check ups. The government doctors come for OPD at least twice in a week and IRC provides ambulance service in the case of emergencies.
Now we have started a vocational centre in two large tents for women. IRC Crafts Centre staff trains women in various crafts. A crash programme by a trainer from Karachi will be held in the last three days of this week when the groups of women will learn flower making, candle making, block printing, envelopes making etc.
The constraint in expanding vocational centre is the limited number of manual sewing machines. We need at least 16 more sewing machines so that we can well equip Khairpur centre more.
The tent city receive important visitors such as district officials, donors and international agencies, multi national executives, other NGOs and media. ` Occasionally cultural programs are also organized in which the talent from IDPs participate.
Nights have become cool in Khairpur and there is a need for light woolies. We have already ordered ‘razaiyan’ and ‘gadday’ for 185 families of Khairpur Tent City.
Our mission is to make the lives of our guests enjoyable, memorable and useful. We have been receiving reasonable help from various donors in doing this. The pressing needs now are manual sewing machines, woolies particularly for children, and resources to set us skills centre for men in Dadu and Sehwan camps. We do not want to set up a skills centre in Khairpur as we expect that we will have to wind up the Tent City soon IDPs have already started planning to go back to homes districts.
The residents of this tent city are mainly from Jacobabad. The other districts of their origin are Shikarpur, Jafarabad, Dadu and Kandhkot. Most of them are victims of Thori breach and found shelter in Khairpur in early August. By profession they are either unskilled labourers or landless farmers except very few who claim to have their own small pieces of land. Out of a population of 1221 persons in one camp, 685 are children below 15 years of age, 53 women are pregnant and 7 safe deliveries (all in city hospital) had already taken place.
Tent city has three Teaching and Learning Centres with an enrolment of159. Except a few, all of these children of various ages are out of school either because the teachers in village schools are absent or not posted or the building is used for some other purpose by the influential individuals.
Health standards of our guests are poor however, all the pregnant women in the camp now have access to pre-natal check ups. The government doctors come for OPD at least twice in a week and IRC provides ambulance service in the case of emergencies.
Now we have started a vocational centre in two large tents for women. IRC Crafts Centre staff trains women in various crafts. A crash programme by a trainer from Karachi will be held in the last three days of this week when the groups of women will learn flower making, candle making, block printing, envelopes making etc.
The constraint in expanding vocational centre is the limited number of manual sewing machines. We need at least 16 more sewing machines so that we can well equip Khairpur centre more.
The tent city receive important visitors such as district officials, donors and international agencies, multi national executives, other NGOs and media. ` Occasionally cultural programs are also organized in which the talent from IDPs participate.
Nights have become cool in Khairpur and there is a need for light woolies. We have already ordered ‘razaiyan’ and ‘gadday’ for 185 families of Khairpur Tent City.
Our mission is to make the lives of our guests enjoyable, memorable and useful. We have been receiving reasonable help from various donors in doing this. The pressing needs now are manual sewing machines, woolies particularly for children, and resources to set us skills centre for men in Dadu and Sehwan camps. We do not want to set up a skills centre in Khairpur as we expect that we will have to wind up the Tent City soon IDPs have already started planning to go back to homes districts.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
EID account by Madam Sadiqa
Madam, Sadiqa Salahuddin, The one who has inspired me through her positive actions for reinforcement of positive thinking, these actions are always based on principals and values. All these actions have great impact in my life while promoting the values of human participation and investing energies on children of our country. She is really a great mentor of my journey in the development sector. Aumir
Below is an article written by Madam, Sadiqa Salahuddin which got a meaningful space in Ms Beena Sarwar's 'Jounrney through Democracy" web page.
September 14, 2010
Dear Friends,
Eid in a Tent City was a unique experience of my life. I do not remember seeing so many happy faces around on Eid as I saw this year. This might seem contrary to what we are hearing and watching on television about the deprivation and gloom among internally displaced persons (IDPs) on Eid. I have no doubt about media portraying realities but what I am saying is real too. A young journalist has captured Eid in our Tent City in Tribune. Please see this report Learning to say ‘I love you’
Eid in Sehwan Camp
Thanks to all of you who sent us donations and thanks to the untiring efforts of IRC staff that made this Eid a memorable day for 687 children (out of a total population of 1,221) of IRC Tent City in Khairpur and all our team. Preparation for Eid, along with setting up of the Tent City, was a great challenge. The staff collected information about age and sex of each and every child so that clothes and shoes to size could be purchased and prepared. With clothes and chappals, artificial jewelry, ponies, catchers, bangles, henna, small toys and sweets were also added in their Eid bags.
Distribution of Eid bags to 195 families of different sizes and backgrounds, a day before, was a nightmare but we devised ways of making it transparent and just. All this was found worth the effort when children with happy faces, clean clothes, chappals in their feet, henna on small palms, and jewelry all over greeted us the next morning. The adults although complaining about not getting new clothes, were busy in cleaning the place with brooms and picking the trash to be thrown in the bin. In solidarity, IRC team also did not wear new clothes. Eid was a relaxed and enjoyable day in our Tent city, with no anxiety and no signs of mistrust. In the morning, our team went to every tent to greet them and to give them mithai, Eid money, bangles for women, and small gifts for children.
Singing and dancing during Eid at an IRC camp
Soon we noticed that a group of internally displaced persons (IDPs), both men and women, spontaneously prepared a stage in public area and started singing happy songs in Sindhi while little girls danced on the beat. What if the homes were washed away or harvest is destroyed, they have learned to ignore their worries for a while and be contented with what they have. Eid for them was a good time in the new environment with new friends.
While all this was happening in Khairpur, another team was working with a group of 100 families consisting of 796 persons near Hyderabad Toll Plaza. In my last note, I mentioned this emerging cluster which has not yet shaped as a complete camp. It is a small effort to provide basic shelter, ration for 100 families for about a week to ten days and 200 gifts including girls’ and boys’ clothes, toys, biscuits, stationery and sweets to 100 affected families. Since they are using unfiltered water from the nearby canal, we have given them water purifying tablets with instructions about their use.
We did not forget our camp school children in Dadu and Sehwan where 301 children are registered. A team from Sehwan and Dadu spent their Eid with those children. We could not distribute clothes and shoes but we did celebrate Eid with songs, dances, juices and sweets.
We feel that we have now learned the art of camp management and the skills to gain people’s trust. The team has internalised the basic principles of participation, respect for the right to life with dignity, building capacities in the process, increasing social awareness and creating a demand for public services, and most of all mobilizing them for positive thinking and action. We want to use this learning for the benefit for many more but we have serious resource constraints. If we can get some more donations, we can at least develop Hyderabad cluster into a similar city as Khairpur and can organize many other camps.
Please forward this request to others as well. Donate us and visit us with our partner IDPs. Bank details:
Title of account: Indus Resource Centre
Bank: Habib Bank Ltd.
US$ account no. : 00120250022610
PKR account no.: 00120001651403B
SWIFTCODE: HABBPKKA
Branch Code: 0012
Address: Zamzama Branch, D.H.A Phase V, Karachi
With camp management, other interventions on a large scale such as installation of temporary latrines, distribution of food and non-food items, organising health camps at many locations, providing food to stranded families of a few villages, distribution of hygiene kits etc are going on in various locations of Khairpur, Dadu and Jamshoro districts.
We need your financial and moral support.
Sadiqa Salahuddin
Below is an article written by Madam, Sadiqa Salahuddin which got a meaningful space in Ms Beena Sarwar's 'Jounrney through Democracy" web page.
September 14, 2010
Dear Friends,
Eid in a Tent City was a unique experience of my life. I do not remember seeing so many happy faces around on Eid as I saw this year. This might seem contrary to what we are hearing and watching on television about the deprivation and gloom among internally displaced persons (IDPs) on Eid. I have no doubt about media portraying realities but what I am saying is real too. A young journalist has captured Eid in our Tent City in Tribune. Please see this report Learning to say ‘I love you’
Eid in Sehwan Camp
Thanks to all of you who sent us donations and thanks to the untiring efforts of IRC staff that made this Eid a memorable day for 687 children (out of a total population of 1,221) of IRC Tent City in Khairpur and all our team. Preparation for Eid, along with setting up of the Tent City, was a great challenge. The staff collected information about age and sex of each and every child so that clothes and shoes to size could be purchased and prepared. With clothes and chappals, artificial jewelry, ponies, catchers, bangles, henna, small toys and sweets were also added in their Eid bags.
Distribution of Eid bags to 195 families of different sizes and backgrounds, a day before, was a nightmare but we devised ways of making it transparent and just. All this was found worth the effort when children with happy faces, clean clothes, chappals in their feet, henna on small palms, and jewelry all over greeted us the next morning. The adults although complaining about not getting new clothes, were busy in cleaning the place with brooms and picking the trash to be thrown in the bin. In solidarity, IRC team also did not wear new clothes. Eid was a relaxed and enjoyable day in our Tent city, with no anxiety and no signs of mistrust. In the morning, our team went to every tent to greet them and to give them mithai, Eid money, bangles for women, and small gifts for children.
Singing and dancing during Eid at an IRC camp
Soon we noticed that a group of internally displaced persons (IDPs), both men and women, spontaneously prepared a stage in public area and started singing happy songs in Sindhi while little girls danced on the beat. What if the homes were washed away or harvest is destroyed, they have learned to ignore their worries for a while and be contented with what they have. Eid for them was a good time in the new environment with new friends.
While all this was happening in Khairpur, another team was working with a group of 100 families consisting of 796 persons near Hyderabad Toll Plaza. In my last note, I mentioned this emerging cluster which has not yet shaped as a complete camp. It is a small effort to provide basic shelter, ration for 100 families for about a week to ten days and 200 gifts including girls’ and boys’ clothes, toys, biscuits, stationery and sweets to 100 affected families. Since they are using unfiltered water from the nearby canal, we have given them water purifying tablets with instructions about their use.
We did not forget our camp school children in Dadu and Sehwan where 301 children are registered. A team from Sehwan and Dadu spent their Eid with those children. We could not distribute clothes and shoes but we did celebrate Eid with songs, dances, juices and sweets.
We feel that we have now learned the art of camp management and the skills to gain people’s trust. The team has internalised the basic principles of participation, respect for the right to life with dignity, building capacities in the process, increasing social awareness and creating a demand for public services, and most of all mobilizing them for positive thinking and action. We want to use this learning for the benefit for many more but we have serious resource constraints. If we can get some more donations, we can at least develop Hyderabad cluster into a similar city as Khairpur and can organize many other camps.
Please forward this request to others as well. Donate us and visit us with our partner IDPs. Bank details:
Title of account: Indus Resource Centre
Bank: Habib Bank Ltd.
US$ account no. : 00120250022610
PKR account no.: 00120001651403B
SWIFTCODE: HABBPKKA
Branch Code: 0012
Address: Zamzama Branch, D.H.A Phase V, Karachi
With camp management, other interventions on a large scale such as installation of temporary latrines, distribution of food and non-food items, organising health camps at many locations, providing food to stranded families of a few villages, distribution of hygiene kits etc are going on in various locations of Khairpur, Dadu and Jamshoro districts.
We need your financial and moral support.
Sadiqa Salahuddin
Monday, September 13, 2010
IRC-Tent City established in Khairpur
The IRC tent city is now ready and has occupied more than 195 families with 1300 people; this figure includes male, female, babies, young and old population.
The tent city is established under the date palm orchard so that maximum shade and protection from hot sun light can be had for an overall tent city.
The 200 tents have been allotted to 195 families according to size of the families; mainly the people are originated from, Kashmore, Jacobabad, Jaffarabad, Shikapur and Dadu areas.
The appealing features of IRC-tent city are:
√ Child friendly school spaces established and IDPs’ kids are studying
√ An indigenous date palm stem built shades called (Ladhis) established for social and cultural activities.
√ Two main blocks are mapped i.e Sachal and Bhitti whereas the Sami road is the main link to these blocks.
√ Mohallas are established for various communities such as, Shaikh, Merani, Pahore, Jafferi, Chandia and Nindwani .
√ For proper sanitation conditions some separate toilets are properly placed, like an orange colored toilets for women and some blue colored toilets for male are now become functional and being used.
√ Each mohalla has been given a separate hand pump and washing facility so that water for drinking and washing could be fetched and utilized properly.
√ A tent city secretariat is there to help support IDPs.
√ Electricity is provided across tent city for the provision of light at night time
√ Food and non food items are provided as per schedule and according to ration card.
√ Medical facility is also there to help IDPs.
Every evening is really a special evening because campers sing songs so that they should not remember an ever difficult time of their life.
MNA-Syeda Nafia Shah came to visit IRC Tent city on EID day and appreciated the efforts of IRC team.
IRC is striving very hard to raise more funds to support IDPs in their food and non food needs.
Highlights till 29th August-2010
On 28th August-10, a delegation from Concern world came to visit IRC-Khairpur. A debriefing session was held at IRC regional office.
Ms. Jeniffer and Ms. Annia were briefed by the Regional Managers of IRC Khairpur over the existing situation of IDPs and the camps being supported by the Government and the civil society organizations.
Later an out country team was coordinated by RM (IRC-Edl) and the project team working under Concern World project at Khairpur to Kacha bund areas where the affected people are settled in tents whose villages and houses have been washed away by the super flood.
IRC team facilitated the concern world team to Sports complex at Pir jo Goth area where the IDPs are currently settled and IRC under Concern World project has installed couple of hand pumps and toilets. Under this project IRC has to set up 100 washrooms and 35 hand pumps across the flood effected displaced population of Kingri Taluka. Having finished the visit in sports complex team headed towards Jamsheed Bund where IRC has setup some facilities under this project.
An out country team finished its visit at Jamsheed bund and headed towards Shikarpur.
Ms. Haider (Deputy Consulate General) Republic of Germany visited IRC Khairpur; Ms. Haider’s visit was focused on the emerging chaotic situation of flood, assessing the circumstances prevailing in the flood affected areas and the response of IRC in helping and supporting the internally displaced people. IRC is currently implementing a project on human rights education under the aegis of Consulate General of Germany. IRC SMT briefed Ms. Haider over the existing situation of flood affected population and the issues of IDPs. Later she was facilitated by an advisor to ED-IRC towards Jamsheed bund at Kingri Taluka and IRC managed relief camps at Mori and Shah Latif areas.
An emergency meeting held at IRC wherein staff reviewed the flood activities and assessed the response of IRC in helping out the flood affected people in Khairpur.
All IRC staff involved in flood relief activities brief the forum about their assigned activities. Mr. Turab Soomro shared the progress of supplying food and non food items to flood affected population of Sobhodero and Gambat talukas.
Ms. Nusrat and Neghat shared the progress of swing machines and cloths provided to IDPs settled at Mori camp.
Mr. Aslam briefed the forum about his role at warehouse established by DCO to support the flood affected population in Khairpur.
Mr. Ali Madad and Mr. Akram narrated the progress of IRC-adopted camps at Mori and Shah Latif areas.
I my self talked about the situation of School Inbox approach by Unicef for those children who are affected by flood and their study engagement plan.
Mr. Hashmat and his team shared the findings of their reproductive study conducted across the relief camps in Sobhodero and Gambat. A field rapid assessment activity was also shared by them in such a great detail by covering the spheres standards.
ED-IRC expressed her satisfaction over the emergency work being done by all the team members in Khairpur. She emphasized that, though it is very important to help support IDPs in their ever difficult time, but this is also very necessary that each one of us should dedicate our time for relief activities in future too.
Senior Management and Team leaders’ meeting held at IRC Khazana under the chairpersonship of ED-IRC, 28th August-2010 (9:30pm to 12:00am).
Meeting highlights are mentioned below:
While reviewing the overall condition of IRC-managed relief camps, it was observed that the sanitation and cleanliness situation of Shahlatif relief camps were found satisfactory whereas the issues of cleanliness and sanitation were seriously noticed at Mori Camp.
It was decided that,
The (Camp Manager) Mori will get atleast three toilets functional, rupees 10,000/- approved for maintenance and cleanliness activities.
The (Camp Manager) Shah Latif schools will also come up with a reasonable estimation for an overhauling and maintenance of non functional toilets at Shahlatif schools.
Both the managers will figure out the skills of IDPs in both the camps so that support of material for hand made products could be streamlined soon.
Sweepers will be given Rs.50/- in addition to Rs.100/- per day so that they will do cleaning of toilets twice a day.
Mr. Jaweed Tajik (Finance Manager) IRC Khairpur will submit a weekly expense report to ED-IRC for analysis and approval of further aid funds to IRC-Khairpur.
The (RM) Khairpur will talk to DCO Khairpur and ensure utensils and hygiene kits for Shah Latif camps while IRC will ensure reasonable utensils that are not included in the package of government but are very important for daily use.
The camp managers will be given weekly petty cash which will help ensure reasonable vegetables for campers and milk for morning tea.
The other agenda point of meeting was to establish IRC-Tent city in date palm orchard located at the north side of broad casting house of radio Pakistan Khairpur.
Decisions:
Mr. Hashmat Jatoi and his team will be responsible to run and manage the camp affairs. Mr. Jatoi will act as the manager for IRC tent city.
The leveling of land, establishment of tents, set up of landhis, protection wall of date palm leaves, developing bridge over the water channel and play ground will be the responsibility of Mr. Naveed Khayal, Aumir Abbas, Jaweed Abro and Syed Munir Shah.
Developing banner of camps will be the sole responsibility of Mr. Aumir.
Installation of 06 to 08 hand pumps and 20 latrines will be the responsibility of Mr. Ali Madad and Mr. Ubaidullah. Seeking support to have these facilities ensured can be gotten from district government Khairpur.
A female social mobilizer will be appointed by IRC whose reasonable salary will be decided by SMT, she will directly report to Mr. Hashmat.
Mr. Jaweed abro will get in touch with district government to have focus lights placed inside the tent city.
Lantern will be fixed inside the landhis, whose responsibility lies on Mr. Aumir and Jaweed abro.
Hopefully, IRC tent city will be ready to house IDPs from Tuesday 31st August-10.
Flood up dates till 26th August-2010
The situation of an internal displacement of people from Jacobabad, Kashmore, Shikarpur, Sukkur and the affected Kacha areas of District Khairpur is going on. Many civil society organizations and the Govt. of Sindh are taking emergency steps to help support the IDPs who have been affected by the flood and displaced from their home districts.
Since the magnitude of displacement is quite high, district Khairpur is housing many more IPDs who are coming from above districts. The current shift in policy of Govt. is announced recently that all the IDPs who are occupying Govt. owned buildings would be facilitated to shift in Karachi, so that proper mechanism of helping people in terms of food, shelter, medical assistance, cloths etc could be managed at one place.
IDPs willing to be shifted to Karachi are being facilitated by the district government Khairpur free of charge and trying to vacate the Govt. owned buildings particularly schools so as to initiate classes for those students who used to study being the local recipient of education.
In Khairpur, as it is already mentioned that IRC teams are extensively busy at couple of fronts and supporting the emergency activities.
Being the district coordinator in food committee formed by DCO-Khairpur IRC is supplying draw food items to the flood affected kacha areas that are existing in those taluka which are adversely hit by running water. IRC is also keeping the record of all the supplies received from various channels and the supplies distributed in the field. IRC team is available all the time at DCO house where the warehouse is setup.
Besides this, IRC has adopted three camps in Khairpur whose one by one explanation is mentioned below:
Camp-1 (Govt. Boys Primary School at Mori, Taluka Kingri)
The current figure of IDPs in camp is 250 out of which, there are 50 Females, 47 Male and 153 children.
Now camp life has become normal as IRC is putting its best possible efforts to support these people in terms of food, coordinating their medical needs, provided cloths and possible reasonable material for their daily use.
As reported earlier that there were two females who were in their advance stage to deliver baby. IRC team together with RHC- (Rural Health Centre) kept these two females in strict observation. Out of these two women, one has delivered a baby boy at RHC under normal condition. The other one Ms. Salemat is in her advance stage and we in a team are keeping her in observation. Networking with volunteer doctors is going on, a team from Agha Khan Karachi visited the camp and checked the IDPs, later they found out that there are some viral diseases attacked the people wherein Gastro, Hepatitis and influenza are worth mentioning. Mr. Rano Pahore was found out being the affectee of Hepatitis, doctors advised us to shift him to RHC for his proper treatment. Through RHC- Mr Rano Pahore has been shifted from camp to Khairpur and being admitted in TB-Centre as the wards in civil hospital have already been over crowded.
Ms. Nafisa Shah (MNA) Khairpur visited the camp met with IPDs inquired about their facilities in camp role of IRC. She turned satisfied and appreciated the efforts of IRC team.
Camp-2 (Govt. Boys Primary School) Shah Latif Colony Khairpur
The current figure of IDPs in camp is 119 out of which, there are 34 Females, 27 Male and 58 children.
The IDPs belong to Nindwani community have come from Taluka Tangwani district Kashmore.
IRC has adopted this camp for the last few days and have started providing cooked food for two times, lunch and dinner whereas reasonable material has been provided to them for morning breakfast. A few days back an organization called SRSO provided them the raw food items such as flour, 50 KG bag and Oil 4.5 KG.
Since, they were newly settled and requiring some basic things cloth, slippers etc some of the family members sold out their belongings and the food items given by SRSO and ensured the things for their daily use.
These IDPs are in need of utensils, cloths of children with some other items of daily use; IRC is providing whatever is possible. For breakfast, some containers have been provided along with tea, sugar and flour to those families who didn’t receive any kind of aid from any other organization except IRC. The sanitary condition is not encouraging as the current toilets of schools are non functional except one. IRC is being in touch with Sindh Urban Corporation for their repair and cleanliness.
The health profile of this camp is also meek; IRC arranged a visit of LHWs to this camp for quick medical check up of females. It was found out that a woman namely Naimat is an advance stage to deliver baby. Within IDPs and at Camp level a system is developed in a way so that any medical emergency could be addressed immediately.
The hand pump facility in this camp requires an immediate attention, Mr. Ali Madad (IRC-camp) In charge will get the hand pump issue fixed on urgent basis. IRC has provided a good plastic tank for water storage that has the capacity of more than 150lts which will be used by IDPs in their daily use of water.
Camp-3 (Govt. Girls Primary School) Shah Latif Colony Khairpur
The current figure of IDPs in camp is 36 out of which, there are 09 Females, 13 Male and 14 children.
The IDPs belong to Nindwani community have come from Taluka Tangwani district Kashmore.
IRC is providing two times cooked food whereas breakfast is prepared by IDPs by themselves whose material is provided by IRC.
Networking efforts are being done so that medical facility from District Health Department and some support in terms of utensils from DCO office could be ensured at camps.
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