Fact Sheet: USAID on 'Complex Emergency' in Central Asia

(Afghanistan neighbors agree to aid relief efforts) (2750)



Turkmenistan has agreed to allow relief agencies to work in its area
bordering Afghanistan, according to the United States Agency for
International Development (USAID.)


In an October 26 fact sheet, USAID said press reports indicate that
Uzbekistan will allow cross-border deliveries of humanitarian
assistance. The fact sheet states that two other countries, Kyrgystan
and Tajikistan, have agreed to keep their supply routes leading to
Afghanistan passable for use in transporting aid.


Between October 19 and 21 an estimated 15,000 Afghans crossed into
Pakistan with an equal number waiting on the Afghan side of the border
to cross, according to the fact sheet. An increasing flow of people
fleeing their homes is also reaching Afghanistan's border with Iran.


The fact sheet says relief agencies are considering using the southern
Uzbekistan border city Termez to stage humanitarian assistance
efforts.


Following is the October 25 USAID fact sheet:



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U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (USAID)

BUREAU FOR HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE (BHR)

OFFICE OF U.S. FOREIGN DISASTER ASSISTANCE (OFDA)



Central Asia Region -- Complex Emergency



Situation Report #4, Fiscal Year (FY 2002), October 25, 2001



Note: this Situation Report updates previous Central Asia Task Force
Situation Reports and Fact Sheets.


Background



Two decades of war in Afghanistan, including a decade-long Soviet
occupation and ensuing civil strife, have left Afghanistan
impoverished and mired in an extended humanitarian crisis. Government
infrastructure, including the ability to deliver the most basic
health, education, and other social services, has collapsed.
Significant resources are directed to the war effort. Severe
restrictions by the Taliban, including a restriction on women working
outside the home, have added to the impact of poverty, particularly on
the many households lacking able-bodied adult men. The Taliban
controls about 90 percent of Afghanistan's territory.


Humanitarian prospects worsened sharply in Afghanistan in September
2001 due to developments both inside and outside the country. Osama
bin Laden, who resides in Afghanistan under Taliban protection, is the
leading suspect in the September 11 terrorist attack against the
United States. Fears of a U.S. reprisal triggered a population exodus
from major Afghan cities, both towards other points in Afghanistan and
towards the country's borders. The beginning of U.S. air strikes on
October 7 caused additional movement. International staff of all
relief agencies withdrew after September 11. Even prior to the
September 11 there were signs that relations between the international
community and the Taliban were worsening significantly. These new
developments added to an existing crisis of extensive displacement
stemming from civil conflict and a debilitating three-year drought.


Afghanistan Numbers Affected at a Glance



Total population (CIA Factbook) 26,813,057



Refugees Since September 11, 2001 (UNHCR)

Pakistan                            60,000

Iran                               Unknown



Refugees Since September 2000 (UNHCR)

Pakistan                           152,000



Old Caseload Refugees (UNHCR)

Iran                             1,500,000

Pakistan                         2,000,000



Internally Displaced (U.N.)

Since September 11, 2001           180,000

Since 2000                       1,100,000

Old caseload                     1,000,000



Total FY 2001/2002 U.S. Government (USG) Assistance to Afghanistan
$258,525,475
Total FY 2001/2002 USG Assistance to Tajikistan $68,208,180


Current Situation



Overview. Efforts to bring food to Afghanistan's population continued
to gather pace, both through steadily increasing overland food aid
deliveries and through continued air drops of humanitarian daily
rations (HDRs) conducted by U.S. military planes. U.S.-led airstrikes
against Taliban and Al Qaeda terrorist facilities continued for a
third week, and reports indicated that Taliban forces in urban areas
were dispersing into residential neighborhoods and occupying homes in
an effort to hide among civilian populations. Meanwhile, The U.N. Food
and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned of a broader region-wide
crisis as a result of instability and drought.


Political/Military. On October 24, more than 1,000 Afghan leaders
gathered in Peshawar, Pakistan to discuss the establishment of a
broad-based government in the event of a Taliban collapse. The
difficulty of such an undertaking was highlighted by reports that key
political figures, including representatives of Zahir Shah, the exiled
former Afghan monarch based in Rome, did not attend the gathering.


Although previous reports had indicated that Northern Alliance forces
were poised to seize control of the key northern city of
Mazar-e-Sharif, strong Taliban resistance held the opposition at bay
through the week. Reports from inside the city indicated that fears of
ground fighting reaching the city had subsided.


Food Security and Food Aid. On October 25, FAO reiterated a warning
that Afghanistan faces famine if adequate food aid is not delivered,
and also warned that the current crisis of displacement is coinciding
with the fall planting season, meaning that crops next year will be
adversely effected. In addition, FAO warned that the entire region is
facing the consequences of a debilitating three-year drought. Wheat
production is down 70 percent below the five-year average in Pakistan.
In Iran, rural and urban populations alike are affected by acute water
shortages for both drinking and agricultural use. In Tajikistan and
Uzbekistan, the two main rivers are far below normal levels, with
grain output expected to be dramatically reduced. Turkmenistan is also
affected. FAO warned that in Pakistan and Iran, diminished resources
due the drought are seriously compromising the ability to cope with
any new refugee influx.


As of October 24, the U.N. World Food Program (WFP) had sufficient
food aid stocks in Afghanistan and the region to feed more than 5.6
million people for one month (see table). WFP reported October 24 that
despite the ongoing conflict it has increased daily food transport
into Afghanistan to 2,000 MT [metric tons], putting it on target for
the 53,000 MT per month that WFP estimates will be necessary to feed
Afghanistan's most vulnerable populations through the winter. WFP
reported that in the last seven days, it had brought food in to
Afghanistan sufficient to feed two million people.


WFP has signed agreements with 19 non-governmental organizations
(NGOs) with capacity to operate in rural areas. The NGOs will
distribute the food to local beneficiaries after WFP delivers it. WFP
has shifted its strategy towards shipping food stocks directly to
rural areas rather than using urban warehouses as hubs. The strategy
shift was prompted by last week's Taliban seizure of two key
warehouses in Kabul and Kandahar containing more than half WFP's food
stocks. Although the Taliban returned the Kabul warehouse to WFP, at
last account, the Taliban still had not relinquished control of the
Kandahar warehouse in Kandahar.


WFP is rapidly moving to preposition food in the central Hazarajat
region and the Panjshir Valley. Both of these mountainous regions
become inaccessible due to snow after mid-November. WFP hopes to
preposition more than 22,000 MT in the Hazarajat and 6,000 MT in the
Panjshir. WFP has estimated that up to two million people in these two
regions could run out of food by December without prepositioning. WFP
is currently considering the possibility of airdropping up to 5,000 MT
of food in these areas if it does not reach its goals before roads
become inaccessible. Other areas, including Kandahar in the south and
Mazar-e-Sharif and Andkhoi in the north, are expected to remain
accessible through the winter.


Current WFP Food Aid Stocks



Location         Quantity (MT)

Afghanistan        11,035

Region             35,886

Total              46,921



Logistics. Relief agencies are considering using the Uzbekistan border
city of Termez as a staging area for humanitarian aid. Termez provides
access to Afghanistan's Northern Region via bridge and barge crossings
over the Amu Darya River. October 25 press reports indicated that the
Government of Uzbekistan had agreed to allow access for cross-border
aid deliveries via barge. Uzbekistan closed the border at Termez after
the Taliban seized control of the nearby region in 1997. The area on
the Afghanistan side of the border remains under Taliban control, but
relief agencies hope to use local staff to deliver the aid once it
crosses the river.


As of October 25, the Government of Turkmenistan had also agreed to
allow relief agencies to work in the border region. Previously, this
area was designated as a military area and was closed. In addition,
WFP has reached agreement with authorities in Kyrgyzstan and
Tajikistan to keep supply routes into the northeastern province of
Badakhshan cleared of snow.


Pakistan. An influx of Afghans into Pakistan continued, bringing the
total number to between 50,000 and 60,000. From October 19 to October
21, an estimated 15,000 people crossed the border at Chaman near
Quetta, according to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
During the same period, UNHCR reported that up to 15,000 people were
waiting on the Afghan side of the border to cross. That population has
now sharply diminished; it is unclear from reports whether they were
part of the 15,000 who entered Pakistan. Some sources continue to
report that the total influx has been smaller.


Contingency campsite preparations continue in Pakistan. UNHCR is
preparing Killi Faizo, two kilometers from the Chaman border, as a
transit area to meet urgent humanitarian needs of recent arrivals.
UNHCR reported this week that two new refugee campsites are ready in
North West Frontier Province (NWFP). The Government of Pakistan has
indicated that 11 sites will be ready by the end of the month.


UNHCR Contingency Sites in Pakistan



Location                         Capacity              Pop.

Roghani/Tor Tangi (Baluch.)       50,000

Killi Faizo (Baluch.)             10,000               250

Mohmand/Khyber (NWFP)             22,000



Iran. An increasing flow of new Afghans has been arriving near Iran's
borders. On the evening of October 24 and early morning of October 25,
some 2,000 new Afghans arrived at the Iranian border, according to a
UNHCR source cited by Agence France-Presse. The IDPs were moved to the
Iranian Government/Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS)-administered
site at Makaki, in a Taliban-controlled area of Nimroz province.
Another 544 Afghans are at the Mile 46 campsite, in Northern
Alliance-controlled territory, according to UNOCHA (U.N. Office of the
Commissioner for Human Rights). Some 1,200 people have arrived inside
Iran at Zaranj, according to UNOCHA.


Iran/IRCS IDP Sites in Afghanistan



Location               Capacity          Population

Makaki (Nimroz)          7,000                3,740

Mile 46                                         544

Total                                         4,284



Afghanistan. UNOCHA estimated that there are 180,000 internally
displaced in Afghanistan since September 11, 2001. This adds to a
population displaced in the last year of up to 1.1 million, according
to the U.N. The U.N. reported that most of the new internally
displaced population are from the Central and Eastern Regions,
particularly Kunar, Laghman, Nangarhar, Kabul, Kapisa, Paktia, and
Khost.


Although reports of an increasing breakdown of law and order inside
Afghanistan continued, a few reports from the Northern Region bucked
the trend. On October 25, the Swedish Committee for Afghanistan
reported that all cars seized by the Taliban were returned in Ghazni.
Two International Organization for Migration (IOM) vehicles were also
recovered in Mazar-e-Sharif. Also in Mazar-e-Sharif, several NGOs have
been able to re-open offices due to improved security, according to an
October 25 UNOCHA report. Conversely, in the northern province of
Kunduz, UNOCHA reported October 25 that IOM operations remained
suspended. Armed men had previously blocked IOM efforts in Kunduz,
where the situation has been described as very tense. The security
situation continued to deteriorate in the southern city of Kandahar.


USG Humanitarian Assistance



Background.



On October 4, President George W. Bush announced a $320 million
assistance program for Afghanistan. Funding will support assistance to
Afghans both inside and outside Afghanistan's borders, with support
for food and a wide variety of other relief needs.


On October 4, Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs
Christina B. Rocca redeclared a complex humanitarian disaster in
Afghanistan for FY 2002. To date, FY 2001 and FY 2002 USG humanitarian
assistance for Afghans provided by USAID/OFDA, USAID/FFP,
USAID/Democracy and Governance (DG), USDA, the Department of State's
Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (State/PRM), the
Department of State/Department of Defense Demining Program, the
Department of State's Bureau International Narcotics and Law
Enforcement Affairs (State/INL) and the Centers for Disease Control
(CDC) totals $258,525,475, including both assistance inside
Afghanistan and assistance to Afghan refugees in neighboring
countries.


In Tajikistan, On October 10, 2001, U.S. Charg?d'Affaires James A.
Boughner declared a disaster due to drought, and requested funds for a
seed and fertilizer distribution program. USAID/OFDA responded by
providing $998,180 through the U.S. Embassy to CARE for the purchase
and distribution of winter wheat seeds and fertilizer.


USAID/OFDA Assistance



Personnel



USAID/OFDA is deploying personnel to Uzbekistan to assess humanitarian
activities and logistical capacity in the area.


To respond to the Afghanistan crisis, USAID/OFDA deployed DART to
Pakistan on June 17. The DART continues to operate in Islamabad. The
DART is coordinating with the Pakistan-based Afghanistan relief
community, including USG partners.


In April 2001, USAID/OFDA and State/PRM deployed an assessment team to
western and northern Afghanistan including Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif to
assess drought and nutrition conditions in affected areas.


Airlifts and Commodities - FY 2002



Airlift to Islamabad. On October 23, Bear McConnell, Director of the
USAID Central Asia Task Force, arrived in Islamabad, Pakistan aboard a
U.S. Air Force C-17 cargo plane carrying 20,400 blankets from
USAID/OFDA stockpiles. An additional 15,000 blankets arrived via
commercial transport October 25. The blankets will be provided to
UNHCR as a contingency for a possible refugee influx. Value including
transport. $312,350


Health Kits to Pakistan. USAID/OFDA is providing five health kits to
UNICEF in Islamabad as an in-kind contribution. The health kits can
support a population of 10,000 for up to three months. $29,415


Airlift to Turkmenistan. Two chartered planes carrying 1,000 rolls of
plastic sheeting for emergency shelter arrived in Ashgabat October 18
and were consigned to UNICEF. Value includes transport. $403,200


New Grants -- FY 2002 (Afghanistan)



IOM -- support for distribution of food and non-food relief
commodities in Badghis, Faryab, and Balkh provinces. $562,313


Grants -- FY 2002 (Afghanistan)



ACTED -- pre-positioning of food and non-food emergency relief items
in northeastern Afghanistan. $5,500,000


ACTED -- IDP camp management and support in Baghlan.    $630,000



FAO -- seed multiplication.                             $300,000



GOAL -- food, shelter, water/sanitation, and winterization in Samangan
and Jozjan Provinces. $5,500,000


International Medical Corps (IMC) -- health assistance for IDPs and
local residents in Herat. $735,000


UNICEF -- nutrition surveillance, health, and water/sanitation
activities country-wide. $1,650,000


Save the Children (SC)/US -- nutrition surveillance in northern
Afghanistan.
                                                        $206,488



SC/US -- food programs in Faryab and Sar-e-Pul, and emergency heating
for hospitals in Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif. $2,000,000


UNOCHA -- humanitarian coordination.                  $2,500,000



UNICEF -- Water and Environmental Sanitation activities. 

                                                      $2,500,000



ICRC -- support for pre-positioning and mobilization of food and
non-food stocks for use within Afghanistan in addressing the needs of
540,000 drought and war-displaced people, as well as support for
airlifts $2,500,000


WFP -- support for a Joint Logistics Center and humanitarian air
operations.
                                                      $2,500,000



Total USAID/OFDA FY 2002                             $27,828,766



Grants -- FY 2002 (Tajikistan)



CARE -- purchase and distribution of winter wheat seeds and
fertilizer, benefiting an estimated 4,500 drought-affected families.


Total USAID/OFDA Tajikistan FY 2002 $998,180



USAID/FFP



FY 2002



WFP -- 72,700 MT of P.L. 480 Title II wheat and complementary
commodities.


Total USAID/FFP FY 2002                                  $38,555,000



State/PRM



Note: State/PRM funds listed reflect actual contributions to the
listed agencies. Plans for funding are not included until funds have
been obligated.


UNHCR -- Contingency planning for establishment of basic
infrastructure in sectors in water, sanitation, shelter and health,
and camp management in identified potential refugee sites.


Total State/PRM FY 2002                                  $10,000,000



Department of Defense (DOD)



Between October 7 and October 24, DOD dropped 821,880 humanitarian
daily rations (HDRs), valued at $4.30 each, into Afghanistan.


Total DOD FY 2002                                        $3,534,084



USG ASSISTANCE -- AFGHANISTAN



FY 2001



Note: detailed breakdowns of FY 2001 assistance are available in
previous Central Asia Region Situation Reports.


Total USAID/OFDA
................................................................$12,599,441


Total USAID/FFP
................................................................$31,200,000


Total USAID/DG
...................................................................$310,000


Total USDA
................................................................$99,800,000


Total State/PRM................................................
$29,828,659


Total State/HDP.................................................
$2,800,000


Total State/INL
.................................................................$1,500,000


Total CDC.........................................................
$569,525


TOTAL USG Humanitarian Assistance FY 2001. . . . . . . . . . .
$178,607,625


FY 2002



TOTAL USG Humanitarian Assistance to Afghanistan FY 2002. . . .
$79,917,850


FY 2001/2002



TOTAL USG Humanitarian Assistance to Afghanistan FY 2001/2002.
$258,525,475


USG ASSISTANCE -- TAJIKISTAN



Total USG Assistance to Tajikistan FY 2001. . . . . . . . . ..
$67,210,000


Note: FY 2001 USG assistance to Tajikistan included assistance through
USAID/OFDA, USAID/FFP, USDA, the Department of State, and Freedom
Support Act funds administered through a variety of agencies.


Total USAID/OFDA Assistance to Tajikistan FY 2002. . . . . . . . .
$998,180


Total USG Assistance to Tajikistan FY 2001/2002. . . . . . . .
$68,208,180


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