PAKISTAN - EARTHQUAKE: USAID/DART SITUATION

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ISLAMABAD 016834

SIPDIS

STATE ALSO PASS TO USAID
USAID/W FOR A/AID ANDREW NATSIOS, JBRAUSE
DCHA/OFDA KISAACS, GGOTTLIEB, MMARX, RTHAYER, BDEEMER
AID/W FOR DCHA/OFDA
SOUTH ASIA RESPONSE MANAGEMENT TEAM
SOUTH ASIA EARTHQUAKE TASK FORCE
DCHA/FFP FOR JONATHAN DWORKEN
ANE DEPUTY ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR MARK WARD
BANGKOK FOR OFDA SENIOR REGIONAL ADVISOR TOM DOLAN
KATHMANDU FOR OFDA REGIONAL ADVISOR WILLIAM BERGER
ROME PASS FODAG
GENEVA FOR RMA AND NKYLOH
NSC FOR JMELINE
EUCOM FOR POLA/J3/J4/J5
BRUSSELS FOR USAID PLERNER
NEW YORK FOR TMALY
SECDEF FOR SOLIC/PKHA, USDP/J3
JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC FOR J3/J4/J5
HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE FOR J3/J5

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID AEMR ASEC MASS ECON KMDR KPAO OIIP OPRC PGOV PREL PK
SUBJECT: PAKISTAN - EARTHQUAKE: USAID/DART SITUATION
REPORT #14: MEETING WITH OCHA SENIOR HUMANITARIAN ADVISOR

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Summary
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1. On November 6, the USAID Disaster Assistance Response
Team (DART) met with representatives of all seven
implementing partners in Pakistan. On November 7, Deputy
Director of the Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance
(OFDA) Greg Gottlieb and USAID/DART staff met with Kevin
Kennedy, the new U.N. Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Senior Humanitarian Advisor for
Pakistan. Building on input the USAID/DART received in the
November 6 meeting, Mr. Gottlieb, Mr. Kennedy, and others
discussed the current state of U.N. activities and
humanitarian coordination. End summary.

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Background
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2. On November 6, the USAID/DART met with representatives of
OFDA,s implementing partners in Pakistan: ACTED, Action
Against Hunger, International Rescue Committee (IRC),
Catholic Relief Services (CRS),GOAL, Mercy Corps, and Save
the Children/US. In this meeting, representatives of all
seven implementing partners stated that the U.N. is not
operational in most areas, and in areas where it is
functioning, it is ineffective. According to the
non-governmental organization (NGO) partners, the U.N. is
neither stepping up to its role as coordinating mechanism nor
sending effective representatives to the field.

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Meeting between USAID/OFDA and OCHA
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3. On November 7, Mr. Gottlieb and members of the USAID/DART
met with Mr. Kennedy, who has just arrived in Pakistan as the
OCHA Senior Humanitarian Advisor. At present, the U.N. has a
permanently positioned Resident Coordinator whose
responsibilities generally include managing emergency relief
operations. Mr. Kennedy assumed humanitarian duties that the
Resident Coordinator has previously shouldered alone.


4. In the meeting, Mr. Gottlieb drew from the information he
received at the November 6 meeting and from two days of field
visits, outlining the problems that the USAID/DART has
identified in the current U.N. cluster system. Mr. Gottlieb
stated that at present, an insufficient number of U.N.
personnel are on the ground, and those who are on the ground
lack adequate experience coordinating emergency relief
efforts. Mr. Gottlieb noted that within the U.N. cluster
system, little coordination between the cluster groups in
Islamabad and the field exists. The shelter cluster is
particularly weak, and it has not made plans for protection
in the camps. Mr. Gottlieb stated that he believes a
disconnect exists between the Government of Pakistan (GOP)
and NGO activities.


5. Mr. Kennedy stated that the international community needs
to recognize the primacy of the GOP military in the
humanitarian relief operation, relative to other disasters.
Based on his limited time in country, Mr. Kennedy agreed with
the USAID/DART,s observation that coordination in the field
appears to be much better than coordination in Islamabad. He
also remarked on the importance of coordinating helicopter
operations, which are currently being conducted by seven
groups, both military and civilian.


6. Mr. Kennedy remarked that the GOP Army Engineers,
current rate of shelter repair is far too slow. Mr. Kennedy
stated that he hoped that the Operation Winter Race concept
developed by the U.N. Joint Logistics Center (JLC) and World
Food Program (WFP) will help close the gap. Mr. Gottlieb
noted that NGO representatives throughout earthquake-affected
areas have stated that the U.N. Children,s Fund (UNICEF) is
the most effective U.N. agency in this disaster response,
while NGO representatives and others working in the field are
most concerned with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees,
(UNHCR) performance in camp management and protection and the
International Organization for Migration,s (IOM) performance
in shelter.


7. The USAID/DART team leader highlighted the importance of
influencing Major General Nadeem Ahmed, Deputy Chairman of
the Federal Relief Commission, on shelter construction. Mr.
Kennedy replied that it is critical that UNHCR staff in
Pakistan take a more active role in camp establishment and
management. He also stated that a full-time U.N. presence is
necessary in any Joint Operations Center that the GOP may
establish.

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Conclusions
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8. USAID,s NGO implementing partners in Pakistan are
unanimous in their concern with the poor performance ) and,
in some cases, total absence ) of the U.N. in the
humanitarian relief efforts.


9. The USAID/DART believes that the arrival of Mr. Kennedy
as Senior Humanitarian Advisor will have a very positive
impact on U.N. management of the emergency relief operation
as it enters a critical phase.
CROCKER