LAUNCH OF 2010 PAKISTAN HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE PLAN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ISLAMABAD 000406

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID IO PGOV PREF PREL ECON PINR PK

SUBJECT: LAUNCH OF 2010 PAKISTAN HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE PLAN

REF (A): 09 Islamabad 2956
REF (B): 09 Islamabad 2933
REF (C): 09 Islamabad 2880


1. (SBU) Summary. On February 9, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator,
joined by federal and provincial Pakistan government
representatives, the head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA),and a local NGO representative,
launched the Pakistan Humanitarian Response Plan (PHRP) 2010 in
Islamabad. The Plan calls for USD 537.8 million over the six-month
period from February through July 2010 to support the internally
displaced (IDPs),the early recovery of returnees and those left
behind in crisis-affected areas, and IDP-hosting families. A review
of the IDP situation in June 2010 will determine the need for a
second response plan for the final five months of 2010. The
Minister of State for Finance and Economic Affairs conveyed the
GOP's support for humanitarian assistance under the PHRP while
making clear the government's priority is for donor funding for
development and reconstruction assistance. End Summary.

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Highlighting Accomplishments in 2009
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2. (SBU) In launching the 2010 Pakistan Humanitarian Response Plan
(PHRP) on February 9, U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator (HC) for
Pakistan Martin Mogwanja began by presenting humanitarian assistance
achievements in 2009. The humanitarian community assisted 3.1
million IDPs (2.7 million from Malakand, 300,000 from South
Waziristan, and 100,000 from other areas of FATA) in 35 camps and
countless host communities and also supported 2 million (of the 2.7
million Malakand IDPs) returnees in their home areas. Eighty-four
thousand tents were distributed to out-of-camp IDPs. Eight thousand
latrines were built for men and women; 400,000 non-food item (NFI)
kits and 330,000 metric tons of food were distributed; and 500,000
people received clean drinking water. Five hundred clinics provided
a total of three million medical consultations. Camp schools
enrolled a total of 30,000 boys and girls for basic education, and
40,000 mothers were trained in infant-feeding and hygiene and
sanitation practices.

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The PHRP for 2010
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3. (SBU) In a joint effort, 13 U.N. Agencies, 22 national NGOs
(double the number in the 2009 PHRP) and 33 international NGOs, with
representation from all the humanitarian clusters, developed a total
of 169 projects to support the GOP in its effort to continue
assistance to the remaining IDPs in camps and host communities and
to support return to and early recovery in home communities. There
are currently 1.2 million displaced and 2 million returnees. A
total of $537.8 million is required to fully fund proposed PHRP
activities with the bulk of funding needed for food assistance (USD
194.7 million); shelter and NFIs (USD 80.2 million); and health
services (USD 73.5 million). Other activities proposed in the PHRP
include community restoration (USD 45.6 million); water, sanitation
and hygiene (USD 36.4 million); agriculture (USD 24.8 million);
education (USD 22.1 million ); protection (USD 22.63 million)
nutrition (USD 17.2 million); coordination (USD 9.6 million); camp
coordination and camp management (USD 8.4 million); and logistics
(USD 2.5 million).


4. (SBU) The planning assumptions of the 2010 PHRP include the
following:

-FATA will face continued instability and insecurity;

-Constrained movement of vulnerable populations will limit access to
assistance;


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-Humanitarian workers will face access restrictions and an insecure
working environment;

-Consultation with women to ensure gender mainstreaming and access
to services will remain challenging;

-The humanitarian situation may be further exacerbated by natural
disasters and/or external factors affecting already vulnerable
populations;

-Early recovery activities will continue in Malakand Division where
more returns are expected;

-More displacements are expected from the FATA agencies;

-Potential returns are expected during 2010 to South Waziristan and
other FATA agencies.


5. (SBU) The HC noted that PHRP activities will be implemented in
close consultation with provincial and district authorities and that
strengthened monitoring and reporting systems will be put in place.
(Note: increased government oversight of humanitarian activity was
required by the GOP in return for support of the launch.)


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Comments from GoP Representatives
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6. (SBU) The Minister of State for Finance and Economic Affairs Hina
Rabbani Khar thanked the provincial government of the Northwest
Frontier Province (NWFP),the Special Support Group, the donors and
the international humanitarian community for their generous response
to the IDP crisis. She highlighted the role of Pakistan as a
frontline state in the war on terrorism and reminded the audience
that 117,000 troops are deployed on the front lines. She said that
the economy of Pakistan had suffered a PKR 34.5 billion
(approximately USD 408 million) direct and indirect loss in the war
against terror. She also pointed to the 380,000 debit cards
distributed to the displaced. She noted that there can be no peace
without development and no development without peace. She supported
the launch of the PHRP and made clear that the government was
committed to work with the humanitarian community to meet early
recovery needs, but she also emphasized the government's priority on
sustained development. She pointed to the need for peace-building
and the importance of "a change in the modality" of assisting the
displaced in order to win hearts and minds. Minister Rabbani Khar
acknowledged that humanitarian access was a problem and that it will
remain a challenge. She said that she hoped to address this
challenge partially through the aforementioned changed
implementation modality in the GOP's work with NGOs, but she did not
elaborate.


7. (SBU) In closing, Minister Rabbani Khar asked the donor community
to provide the resources needed for early recovery and even more so
for development. While she acknowledged that two million IDPs still
needed assistance, she stressed that development must begin now.


8. (SBU) The Director General of the NWFP Provincial Disaster
Management Authority/Provincial Reconstruction, Rehabilitation &
Settlement Authority (PDMA/PaRRSA),Mr. Shakeel Qadir Khan,
representing the Chief Secretary, acknowledged the tremendous
support from the humanitarian community. He added "we could not
have done it without that." He noted that the coordination with the
humanitarian community had vastly improved since last summer and
that the PHRP provided means to improve the provincial government's
capacity to handle the crisis. He further stressed that NWFP did
not just host IDPs from NWFP but also from the FATA and noted that
65 percent of the IDPs overall, and over 90 percent of those in
Jalozai camp, were from FATA.


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9. (SBU) The Chief Executive of the local NGO called Strengthening
Participatory Organisation (SPO),Mr. Harris Khalique, congratulated
the PHRP team for the high quality of the "Plan". He stressed the
need for consultation with local civil society and for improving the
government's disaster response capacity. He reminded the audience
that agriculture, education, and community restoration needed strong
support and that these sectors were particularly important for
women.

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Statements from Member Countries
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10. (SBU) Five countries requested time for a statement:

- The Russian representative recognized the challenging conditions
and expressed appreciation for the effort made by Pakistan and the
humanitarian community. He pledged $100,000 in support of OCHA and
the PHRP 2010.

- The representative of Switzerland noted that his country was
looking forward to supporting federal and provincial civilian and
military elements of the GOP. He thanked OCHA for its leadership,
and the HC as well as the GoP for the close cooperation.

- U.S. Coordinator for Economic and Development Assistance
Ambassador Raphel responded to the concerns of both the UN and the
GOP by assuring all present that the U.S. would respond generously
to the humanitarian needs outlined in the PHRP but not at the
expense of our support for and to the Government of Pakistan in its
reconstruction and development efforts, and specifically to the
multi-donor trust fund. She commended the strong collaboration
between the GOP and the humanitarian community and praised the
hospitality of the Pakistani people who welcomed the vast majority
of the IDPs into their homes and communities. She highlighted
ongoing humanitarian assistance needs and the extraordinary work of
the UN humanitarians and their implementing partners at great risk
and sacrifice. She commended the work of OCHA and the Humanitarian
Coordinator and their Pakistani colleagues.

- Japan congratulated the PHRP team for their excellent work and
thanked the humanitarian community for their effort. He noted that
Japan is pledging $50 million for U.N. programs with approximately
half of the amount dedicated to humanitarian assistance.

- The Netherlands thanked the PHRP team and the field staff, in
particular those working in Jalozai camp. Referring to the "poster
girl" for the PHRP and noting that his daughter was about the same
age, he wished a safe return home for the IDP girl and all the
displaced.

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Closing the Event
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11. (SBU) To close the launch, presenters fielded five questions
from the media, and the heads of U.N. Agencies made themselves
available for individual interviews with the media. Questions
concerned the level of funding received for the PHRP 2009, the need
for transparency and accountability, the departure of some
expatriate U.N. staff, and the perceived lack of involvement of
National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) and PDMA in response to
the crisis. The HC eloquently gave the GOP credit as the sixth
largest contributor to the 2009 PHRP, outlined the structures in
place for monitoring and oversight, noted that none of the U.N.
staff engaged in life-saving programs has been relocated, and
indicated that the Provisional Disaster Management Authority, part
of the NDMA, was the lead agency in the field.

Patterson