CHAD WEEKLY HUMANITARIAN UPDATE

UNCLAS NDJAMENA 000235 STATE FOR AF/C, S/USSES AND PRM/AFR NSC FOR GAVIN LONDON FOR POL -- LORD PARIS FOR POL -- KANEDA ADDIS ABABA ALSO FOR AU E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREF PREL PHUM SU CD SUBJECT: CHAD WEEKLY HUMANITARIAN UPDATE -------------- INTERAGENCY STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING -------------- ¶1. RefCoord participated in the latest IASC meeting June 9 led by the Humanitarian Coordinator and attended by UNDSS, as well as representatives of humanitarian organizations. DSS reported that crime levels are increasing in eastern Chad as is usual at the beginning of rainy season, with a particular increase of incidents in Farchana, Goz Beida, and Abeche. In Abeche, DSS is seeing gang proliferation and a trend of incidents targeting humanitarian national staff from southern Chad. Hostility from the local population directed against organizations hiring better-educated southerners is a long-standing issue in the East, but targeted criminal acts are a new manifestation. ¶2. DSS reported that recent violence in northeastern CAR led several hundred individuals to flee toward the MINURCAT base in Birao seeking safe-haven. The fighting last week in Birao was a manifestation of ongoing conflict between Kara and Goula aimed at the Central African Republic Military (FACA) and the UFDR. This persistent insecurity poses a particular problem for humanitarian organizations assisting Central African refugees in southeastern Chad. As reported in last week's WAR, WFP was experiencing difficulty in delivering food assistance through Chad and had resorted to using CAR stocks transported from Bangui through Ndele and across the border to Daha. As a result of recent fighting, that route has been blocked. DSS reported to meeting participants that conditions in CAR are deteriorating rapidly, and these routes are likely to remain closed to humanitarian activity for the near future. Complicating the delivery of assistance on the CAR side of the border, three NGOs operating there were evacuated following the fighting. In addition, a local ICRC staff member was recently killed in Birao by armed men. UNHCR, UNICEF and relevant NGOs present in Daha will remain vigilant for further inflows but doubt that the violence in Birao will drive refugees to Daha since they would have to cross approximately 60 km of insecure territory to reach the new refugee sites in Chad. They are more likely to remain IDPs in the relatively secure vicinity of the MINURCAT base in Birao. ¶3. OCHA-Geneva representative Andreas Schuetz reported to IASC participants on his completed preparatory mission to Chad in advance of a Phase II Cluster Evaluation mission scheduled for October, ¶2009. Phase II Cluster Evaluations, which will take place in six countries including Chad, aim to evaluate the cluster approach to aide provision in terms of improving humanitarian response. Schuetz, who is part of the OCHA Evaluation Studies Section, described his role as: briefing the UN Country Team and relevant partners on the upcoming evaluation mission, establishing the necessary working relationships to facilitate effective management and implementation of the evaluation, identifying appropriate indicators for performance measurement, and analyzing possible site locations. In a separate meeting June 8, RefCoord gave Schuetz Chad specific input on the evaluation model developed by OCHA. -------------- FIELD ACTIVITIES AND DONOR COORDINATION -------------- ¶4. Embassy's Defense Attache attended a June 12 hand-over ceremony involving approximately 78 child soldiers captures after the May Chadian rebel offensive in the East; the group was transferred to UNICEF by the Chadian MoD in the presence of diplomatic representatives and local Red Cross officials. RefCoord met with UNICEF Representative Marzio Babile June 5 at his request to discuss efforts to demobilize the rebel child soldiers. RefCoord took the opportunity to raise questions regarding implementation of PRM-funded health and education programs in southern and eastern Chad. Babile acknowledged that UNICEF had not been adequately staffed in these sectors for many months. He told RefCoord he was in the process of hiring for several key positions including a health coordinator in Ndjamena. UNICEF plans to increase its staff to include teams of five in both the South and the East. This should improve the organization's ability to provide drugs and services to NGO and MOH partners as well as provide capacity-building programs and advocacy in the education sector. RefCoord and Babile agreed to discuss these plans with relevant field managers in more detail once UNICEF has completed its current proposal for PRM funding. ¶5. RefCoord and ECHO Representative Duccio Staderini met June 10 to exchange information about mutually-funded partners and discuss donor coordination for health care provision in Iriba. ECHO has completed its funding strategy for the year, while PRM/AFR is processing proposals received in the last round. Mutual NGO partners include; IRC, which is providing assistance in Bahai and Hadjr Hadid; IMC, which is working in Guereda and Iriba; and CORD, which is present in the four Farchana camps. Based on this and prior discussions, it is clear that ECHO and PRM are pursuing complementary funding strategies with common partners. RefCoord and Staderini also agreed that current fuel shortages in eastern Chad warrant a future meeting with UNHAS to better understand the possibilities for independent fuel sourcing. (Fuel shortages due to supply chain problems caused UNHAS to briefly decrease the number of flights to the field in April and continue to affect the UN peacekeepers' ability to provide escorts to humanitarian convoys in the East.) In Iriba, both IMC and CAM have representatives on the ground preparing for the takeover of the hospital and clinics from MSF-Luxembourg. Final funding arrangements have ECHO financing IMC to manage the hospital and two village health centers, while PRM supports CAM to run two camp clinics. UNHCR and UNICEF will fill in funding gaps for both operations. -------------- NGO NEWS -------------- ¶6. RefCoord met with RET Global Program Manager Guillaume Villard and Regional Program Manager Benoit Dansembourg June 5 regarding changes to RET's program included in the latest proposal for PRM funding. Dansembourg reported significant progress in negotiating an MOU with the Sudanese Ministry of Education which would provide accreditation for RET's secondary education programs in Chadian refugee camps. UNHCR and UNICEF have yet to reach an understanding on accreditation with the GOS, but provided input to RET's MOU. Based on this progress, RET is proposing to expand its current secondary education programs to build and run classes in Oure Cassoni, Touloum, Bredjing, Treguine, Djabal and Goz Amer camps. This represents a significant increase in the program for which the organization is requesting a correspondingly significant increase in its budget over last year's figures. The new proposal also includes a strategic framework for future programs based on the use of a Sudanese curriculum, which the sector has thus far lacked. RET conducted comprehensive interviews with refugees in each of the camps; the overwhelming majority indicated their preference for a Sudanese curriculum. RefCoord emphasized the need to coordinate closely with other organizations including JRS, CORD, and CARE, which are managing education programs in the same camps to avoid duplication of effort and to ensure that all are using the same curriculum. BREMNER