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	USAID Responds to Cyclone Nargis USAID's Guide to Effective Giving Center for International Disaster Information ReliefWeb
	05/13/08: Photo Gallery: USAID Administrator Delivers Aid to Burma 05/12/08: USAID Administrator Delivers Aid to Burma and Announces an Additional $13 Million in Humanitarian Assistance 05/12/08: Burma Cyclone Fact Sheet #5 (pdf, 49kb) 05/11/08: USAID Administrator Visits Southeast Asia to Support Relief Efforts in Burma 05/09/08: Burma Cyclone Fact Sheet #4 (pdf, 48kb) RSS Feed for Cyclone Nargis Updates
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USAID Responds to Cyclone Nargis

KEY DEVELOPMENTS

May 12, 2008

Photo Gallery: USAID Administrator Delivers Aid to Burma and Announces an Additional $13 Million in Humanitarian Assistance

• On May 12, USAID Administrator Henrietta H. Fore and Admiral Timothy J. Keating, Commander of U.S. Pacific Command, accompanied the first airlift of USAID commodities from Utaphao, Thailand, to Rangoon. A U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) C-130 delivered 10,800 insecticide-treated mosquito nets, 8,300 bottles of water, and 1,350 blankets, valued at $67,710. Two additional flights are planned for May 13.
• Administrator Fore announced $13 million in additional aid to Burma on May 12, bringing the total value of U.S. Government (USG) assistance to more than $16.3 million. USAID's Office of Food for Peace (USAID/FFP) will provide approximately $12 million to the U.N. World Food Program (WFP) for food aid, and USAID/OFDA will provide approximately $1 million to support WFP's logistics and coordination services for non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
• The USAID Disaster Assistance Response Team (USAID/DART) remains in Bangkok, Thailand, coordinating USG assistance and awaiting Government of Burma (GOB) approval to enter Burma.

Humanitarian Assistance Fact Sheets

05/12/08: Fact Sheet #5 (pdf, 70kb)
05/12/08: Map #5 (pdf, 2.2mb )

FY 2008 HUMANITARIAN FUNDING PROVIDED TO DATE

USAID/OFDA Assistance to Burma:    $4,317,710
USAID/FFP Assistance to Burma:    $12,000,000
Total USAID Humanitarian Assistance to Burma:     $16,317,710

CURRENT SITUATION

• The cyclone severely affected approximately 1.2 million to 1.9 million people, and cyclone-related deaths could range from approximately 63,000 to more than 101,000, with approximately 220,000 people reported missing, according to OCHA. The GOB has confirmed 29,000 deaths and 42,000 missing persons, OCHA reported.
• On May 10, OCHA reported that approximately 206,000 people in four townships of Ayeyarwady Division were living in 218 makeshift camps. In Bogale, 20,000 people have settled in 50 temporary camps. In Pyapon, 16,000 people are residing in 31 camps. In Labutta, 150,000 people are living in 117 camps. In Mawlamyinegyun, 20,000 people are living in 20 camps. The U.N. World Health Organization (WHO) reported that 640 camps have been established in Rangoon Division.
• On May 11, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) reported that 10,000 people have been relocated due to overcrowding, creating concerns. Humanitarian Access
• On May 12, OCHA reported that the GOB had granted 3 of 29 visas requested for international NGO staff, and only 1 of 25 visas requested for the U.N. Informal reports indicate that NGOs have received additional visas.

  Logistics

• The GOB is facing challenges handling commodities arriving in Rangoon and is open to aid agencies distributing supplies with GOB notification, OCHA reported on May 11.
• Heavy rains in the coming week are expected to pose an additional challenge to delivering aid in the Ayeyarwady Delta, which is difficult to navigate, according to IFRC. On May 11, an IFRC ship with supplies for 1,000 people sank. No one was injured.

  Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene

• The leading concern continues to be the provision of safe drinking water and the prevention and treatment of diseases associated with poor water and sanitation conditions. On May 11, IFRC reported that some ponds are filled with dead bodies and that aquifers are saline, complicating efforts to provide safe drinking water.

  Food Security

• WFP stocks of rice in Rangoon have been depleted, according to OCHA. WFP is relocating small quantities of rice stocks from other regions of Burma and has requested $56 million to support 630,000 people for approximately six months, until after the October/November harvest. WFP has reached 24,000 people with food distributions, OCHA reported on May 11. WFP is establishing sub-offices in Labutta, Bogale, and Mawlamyinegyun townships in Ayeyarwady Division.

  Health and Nutrition

• Prior to the cyclone, Ayeyarwady Division had chronic malnutrition rates of approximately 30 percent and global acute malnutrition rates of approximately 9 percent, according to OCHA, underscoring the need for nutritional surveillance. Action Contre la Faim will conduct a nutrition assessment in several townships in the coming days. Findings are pending from the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Action Against Hunger assessment of three affected townships in Ayeyarwady Division.
• According to WHO, malaria will be a major concern in the coming weeks. WHO and other agencies are prepositioning drugs and rapid test kits, as well as distributing insecticide-treated mosquito nets.
• The U.N. Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) has allocated $4 million for health cluster activities in Burma, according to WHO.

USG HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE

• On May 5, U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Shari Villarosa declared a disaster in Burma due to the effects of Cyclone Nargis. In response, USAID/OFDA deployed a USAID/DART and immediately provided $250,000 to UNICEF, WFP, and the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for emergency food, water and sanitation, and shelter assistance.
• On May 6, an additional $3 million from USAID/OFDA was allocated for the provision of emergency relief assistance to cyclone-affected populations, including $1 million to the American Red Cross and $2 million for NGO partners.
• On May 12, USAID Administrator Fore announced $13 million in food aid and logistics assistance through WFP. A DOD plane delivered more than $67,000 of USAID/OFDA commodities to Rangoon.
• U.S. Navy ships currently remain in the vicinity of the affected areas of Burma for training exercises and could be redirected, if necessary to support relief efforts. The U.S. Military continues to make plans to support potential relief operations to Burma.

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