UN BRIEFS ON IMPENDING PAKISTAN IDP CRISIS: URGENT NEEDS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ISLAMABAD 000993 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREF PK AF EAID PREL PINR PTER ECON SUBJECT: UN BRIEFS ON IMPENDING PAKISTAN IDP CRISIS: URGENT NEEDS AND ASSISTANCE GAPS REF: A) Islamabad 967 B) Islamabad 940 ¶1. (U) This is an action request. See paras. 9 and 10. ¶2. (SBU) Summary: Pakistan faces an imminent humanitarian crisis. UN agencies now anticipate a total Pakistan IDP population of 1.3 million. This number includes an anticipated outflow of 800,000 from Dir, Buner and Swat Districts. Relief agencies and Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP) authorities identify the most urgent humanitarian needs and assistance funding gaps in food and non-food items (NFIs). Post requests Washington instruct USUN to push the UN to generate an immediate, revised, emergency appeal to help focus and galvanize donors and to send immediately a team to strengthen coordination of humanitarian relief efforts. Post recommends that USD 50 million in proposed FY09 supplemental funds pledged in Tokyo be provided to the Government in Pakistan for rupee purchase of local food stuffs and non-food items. End summary. ¶3. (SBU) In a May 8, OCHA-hosted General Coordination Meeting, held at Embassy's request, UN agencies and ICRC laid out estimated parameters of Pakistan's imminent humanitarian crisis. OCHA informed donors that in addition to the existing "old" IDP caseload of 540,000 (internally displaced who fled from previous military operations beginning in August 2008 in Bajaur Agency and Swat), humanitarian agencies now expect approximately a total of 800,000 additional IDPs to be displaced from Buner, Lower Dir and Swat as a result of the operations that began in late April and are ongoing. This displacement would represent 25 percent of the population of these three districts. This estimate does not include those people who may be displaced within these areas and to whom there is extremely limited or no humanitarian access. As of May 7, approximately 65,000 new caseload IDPs had been registered, of whom 13 percent had chosen to go to IDP camps. Current camp capacity is meeting current need. However, the humanitarian agencies provided dire predictions of gaps in resources available to meet the needs of IDPs over the next six months. These gaps do not include resources that would be necessary to enable people to return to devastated homes and property. ¶4. (SBU) Current Capacity and Emergency Gaps (over the next 6 mos. to address new caseload only) -------------- -------------- Assistance Sectors Available for: Gap Comment -------------- -------------- --- -------------- Shelter and Non-Food Items 300,000 500,000 NFI need most (NFI) urgent; one-time Distribution Camp Coord. 240,000 0 Rest would and Camp Mgmt choose to stay outside camps. Contingency camp sites available. Protection 800,000 0 IDP registration only Water, Sanitation 135,000 665,000 New resources and Hygiene necessary Health 125,000 675,000 Medicines only. Also need more NGO partners Nutrition 100,000 700,000 urgent need; details below Education 1,000 159,000 only small prop. of current pop. served ISLAMABAD 00000993 002 OF 002 Food 250,000 550,000 note: six-month figures for new caseload Early Recovery 0 800,000 ¶5. (SBU) The World Food Program (WFP) has food items available for 250,000 new caseload IDPs for six months. WFP reports that wheat, oil and pulses are available for three to four months. Other food items are problematic this month and will be so again after August if new resources are not made available. ¶6. (SBU) On May 7, provincial officials informed Consulate Peshawar, USAID, USAID/OFDA and Embassy officials of other steps that they are taking to meet the needs of newly displaced from Lower Dir, Buner and Swat Districts. NWFP authorities had on May 6 received 500 million rupees of the 1 billion rupees pledged by the Prime Minister for IDPs. The Provincial Relief Commissioner indicated that 40 million rupees ($1.75 million) would be used to supplement the food basket provided by WFP. The Ministry of Social Welfare has set up reception points where IDPs are registered and can receive health care, information services and onward transportation. The Minister of Social Welfare stressed to USG the need for timely delivery of relief goods and said that the most urgent needs were NFIs (including mosquito nets) and food items. ¶7. (SBU) While the UN and its partners are overwhelmed by the large numbers of new arrivals, they are making a concerted effort to establish sufficient camp space and speed up the registration process for a clearly traumatized population. Reception centers have been set up to receive Swat IDPs near mountain passes (away from urban centers where others interested in receiving food/NFIs turn up as well). These centers will also screen out those who wish to go to camps and then transport them to the camps before registration in order to decrease congestion at reception centers. Local authorities are also using banners to increase information as to where IDPs should go. Contingency camp sites have been identified for an additional 78,000 IDPs, and sites are being readied. UNHCR announced May 8 that to speed up the registration process, 75 new registration points will be set up. There will be one in each union council (a small administrative unit) in each district. ¶8. (SBU) Comment: Popular perceptions of the conditions and treatment of IDPs may well be determinative for sustaining support for the campaign against militancy in Malakand. Reports that IDPs are not being provided with adequate food, shelter, or health care may quickly sap popular sympathy for the government and military and renew calls for "peaceful" solutions to the rising extremism in the region. Thus, ensuring a strong donor effort to address IDP needs is central to achieving critical goals related to the fight against extremism and militancy. In addition to the call for enhanced multilateral and bilateral donor efforts, Charge wrote to Prime Minister Gilani, May 8, to again urge GOP leadership in coordinating IDP relief efforts and in communicating clearly to the Pakistani people the government's strategy and programs to achieve success. End comment. ¶9. (SBU) Action request: Post requests Washington instruct USUN to push UN to generate an immediate, revised, emergency appeal, based on the field's new planning assumptions, to help focus and galvanize donors. Post also recommends pushing USUN to strengthen coordination of humanitarian relief efforts by sending immediately a team, preferably with at least some members committed to deploy for at least one year. ¶10. (SBU) Action request: Post proposes that the USG use USD 50 million of the USD 400 million FY2009 cash transfer pledged in Tokyo to quickly provide the Government of Pakistan the equivalent in rupees to support the IDPs. This sum would enable the GOP at the provincial and local level in affected areas to purchase local food stuffs and NFI in a timely manner and provide other IDP assistance. FEIERSTEIN