Flood Response in Pakistan
In the first half of 2009, well over 1 million people fled their homes in northern Pakistan, pushed out by fighting between Taliban forces and the Pakistani military. While many of these people were able to find shelter with friends or family, or in formal camps for displaced people, some are staying in spontaneous settlements outside camps. These places have little or no water and sanitation, making the risk of disease high.
In the first half of 2009, well over 1 million people fled their homes in northern Pakistan, pushed out by fighting between Taliban forces and the Pakistani military. While many of these people were able to find shelter with friends or family, or in formal camps for displaced people, some are staying in spontaneous settlements outside camps. These places have little or no water and sanitation, making the risk of disease high.
Through a four-month emergency program, IRD is providing sanitation facilities and water and medical supplies, as well as organizing hygiene committees. An estimated 30,000 people in the North West Frontier Province will benefit from this program funded by USAID’s Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance.
Water and Sanitation
The program is rehabilitating and expanding sanitation facilities, including latrines and waste disposal; and rehabilitating, expanding, or constructing shower facilities and hand washing points for 3,000 families. This includes the construction of up to 850 latrines, built to adhere to both sanitation and local cultural standards. Emergency water supply interventions will include water point rehabilitation and new water point establishment. Each of the 30 water points will meet the water requirements for 100 families. To ensure water quality, tests will be conducted on each established point over the life of the project.
IRD is forming local hygiene committees to support ongoing hygiene awareness training as well as establish user committees for water supply and sanitation facility maintenance. The committees are working with IRD staff members to provide community-based hygiene education focused on personal hygiene practices including hand washing with soap, sanitation promotion, and safe water use.
Health
IRD is providing emergency medicines to at least eight rural health centers and functional basic health units and six maternal-child health clinics in the target communities. These facilities were chosen because they are most used by newly arriving internally displaced people. IRD is receiving $2 million worth of pharmaceuticals as a donation from United States-based METAD/MedPharm. An estimated 20,000 people will benefit from these donated drugs.
