Sent By Madi Njie
President Jammeh of The GambiaThe Gambia experienced heavy, torrential rains throughout July, August, and September 2010, which caused extensive flooding and resulted in loss of lives, crops and livestock, as well as large scale damage to infrastructure and household property.
National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) assessment reports conducted through the Agency's coordinators stationed in the seven regions of the country, in collaboration with partners, including The Gambia Red Cross Society, shows that the entire country, including the capital- Banjul have been affected.
Preliminary reports indicate that 21,194 people have been affected, twelve human lives have been lost, and over 6227 people are currently displaced. The displaced have sought refuge in neighboring houses, schools and community structures. Those sheltered in schools need to be relocated, to enable the schools to be rehabilitated, prior to the start of the new academic year due on 15 September 2010, indicating a slide down schedule against the end of schools' summers.
"Kotu quarry residence flooded, destroying maize farms, others"
Evacuating the displaced from schools will also prevent causing adverse effects on the children's education.
The displaced population, comprising mainly women and children, has critical food and non-food needs, being addressed, confronted with increasing overloading on demands for help.
Many of those affected have lost their homes, possessions and assets. A high proportion of those affected are extremely poor, with a number of mud-built houses and temporary dwellings completely destroyed.
Water, hygiene and sanitation have become major concerns to the affected communities. Flooding potentially exacerbates the risk of cholera, and other communication diseases, including childhood illnesses, which can lead to increase morbidity and untimely deaths among children.
"Wells over flooded by rain water"
Assessment reports records indicates 87 diarrhea and 57 fever cases, as at 15 September 2010, as a result of heavy rains with windstorm and flood related occurrence.
The consequence of such situations leads to decline in access to quality and quantity of water for households. Affected households resorts to coping strategies, such as sleeping in overcrowded and poor sanitation conditions, drinking from unsafe sources and poor hygiene practices, which have detrimental consequences on children and women. Household access to clean water is likely to be reduced, leading to worsening sanitation outcomes.
Significant loss of livelihoods has been reported, particularly for small traders and farmers whose goods have been destroyed or damaged, and whose livestock has been lost. Reports also indicate that rice fields were submerged. This is happening at a time when the farmers, who form the majority of the affected population, were busy cultivating and weeding their farmland. The affected crops include millet, coos, groundnut, and maize, etc, used for sustenance basic livelihoods. Additional heavy rains could result in moisture and further damaged these crops.
Latest updates shows that number of Children under 5 years old affected stands at 2,949, while the number of young people affected between the ages of 6 to 18 years is 3,833. 244 pregnant women and 112 physically challenged persons are among those affected.
The updates received by NDMA as 17 September 2010 indicate that 2154 houses have been either partially or completely damaged. 56 water sources, 173 Latrines and over 20 hectares of farmland. More than 200 chicken, 18 goats, 25 sheep and 5 horses have been killed, according to NDMA assessment reports. A bridge has been partially damaged Sare Alfa Village, Upper River Region, 9 roads, 9 schools and 5 health facilities have either been partially or completely damaged.
The National Disaster Management Council and partners set up an interagency Task Force to facilitate a common understanding on the emergency, and agree on the priorities and the way forward. The Task Force held discussions which recommends priority needs for immediate emergency response to provide "Emergency Food Aid; Water and Sanitation; Health; Shelter and Agriculture; and Livelihoods
The situation has prompted both the Gambian Vice President and the President respectively to, each in September 2010, conduct a two days assessment tour of some affected communities in the Gambian capital, Banjul, the Kanifing Municipal Council, and parts of Western Region, to have first hand information on the situation of the affected victims. This was preceded by earlier visit by the NDMA Executive Director in Central River Region and Upper River Region respectively in August 2010.
NDMA is soliciting urgent donor assistance required to meet the immediate basic needs of the flood affected population. Immediate support will complement the assistance already provided by The Government and other developments partners.
"Ongoing assistance to the disaster victims, coordinated BY National disaster management agency (NDMA)"
At the onset of the emergency, NDMA donated Fifty Thousand Gambian Dalasi (Approx. US$1786) to the affected victims, as immediate relief service. The Gambian President also donated Ten Million Dalasi (Approx. US$357,143), out of which Five Million Dalasi was used to purchase 4411 bags of rice and 2920 [20 ltrs] galloons of oil, for immediate delivery to target the beneficiaries in dire in all the seven regions of the country.
Muslim Aid also 400 boxes of condense Mutton. Furthermore, in July and August 2010 Green Mamba Restaurant, Insurance Association of the Gambia and B.B Electrical Construction Co. Ltd. donated D33, 000.00, D100, 000.00 and 25,000.00 respectively. This brings total of donated cash and cheques to the tune of D10, 208,000.00, as relief services.
"Food and livelihood items donated"
Gambia Scout Association provided 10 Bed liners, 15 Bunka Beds, 15 Mattresses, 15 Pillows and 15 Duvets; UNICEF through water resources supported with 2600 pieces of water containers and 1 box of chlorine; Salifu Jaiteh offered 13 bales of clothing; Humanity First donated second hand clothing and 75 bags of rice; while the Gambia Red Cross Society gave 35 Packets of Corrugate sheets, 1032 soap, 688 Blankets, 688 Buckets and 1032 Mosquito nets.
For a small population, this is a significant disaster, combined with widespread poverty and the overall impact of the food and financial crisis, the economic and livelihood situation of many Gambians is severely compromised. The nature and scope of this emergency is beyond the capacity of Government, who has recently declared state of disaster across the country. The National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA), through the Office of the Vice President, advised that it would not be able to meet the immediate needs, and is therefore officially requesting assistance to meet the urgent livelihood needs of 21,194 persons so far affected by this year's heavy rain, floods and windstorm. Assessment is still ongoing and the number of affected population is likely to rise, as heavy rains are still expected across the country.
Disasters can wipe out years of development in a matter of hours. Big one-off disasters destroy farmland, animals, and livelihoods - keeping people poor and hungry. Small recurrent disasters wear down family resources and resilience, exposing people to disease and poor health. Children may lose the chance to be educated if a disaster demolishes their school, or if parents need their help rebuilding shattered family lives.
So, reducing the risks posed by disasters is not an optional extra – it is central to the very success of development itself. Disasters threaten to derail progress towards 2015's development goals. And if development remains blind to these risks, the chances of disasters will increase. Poverty is not the only reason why communities are exposed to disaster. As Cuba's experience shows, you do not need to be rich to be well informed and well prepared.
According to world disaster reports, in 1970s natural disasters alone claimed nearly 2 million lives. People left injured, homeless or hungry tripled to 2 billion during the past decade. Direct economic losses multiplied five times over the same period to US$629 billion in the 1990s.
In West Africa, disasters triggered by natural hazard events have increased in occurrence and severity. Over the last decades impacts of disasters have resulted in high vulnerability of West African peoples and showed down the process towards sustainable development to achieve the MDGs. Disasters are projected to worsen in many countries as a result of climate change and due to increasing vulnerability and exposure of the people. The ECOWAS countries have experienced the recurrence of torrential rainfall during the 2000 to 2010 period. Recent rainy season periods (2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010) have been characterized by heavy rainfall with high intensity, providing volumes of water largely above normal. Severe flooding across the Sahel region of West Africa has left hundreds of thousands of people without food and shelter, bringing fresh misery to communities already suffering their worst food crisis in decades.
Following several seasons of drought and failed harvests, which have caused ten million people to go hungry across the Sahel, torrential rains have caused flooding in communities around Burkina Faso, Niger, Mali, Togo, Benin, Ghana, Cote d' Ivoire, The Gambia, Senegal, etc.
Severe flooding across the Sahel region of West Africa has left hundreds of thousands of people without food and shelter, bringing fresh misery to communities already suffering their worst food crisis in decades.
The storms, which began in July and have continued throughout August and September were of such intensity that many of the communities have now seen their homes, livestock and food reserves washed away.
According to reports, up to 200,000 people have been left homeless in Niger where the river Niger burst its banks and all of the country's eight regions have seen some form of flooding. An estimated 85,000 people have been directly affected in Burkina Faso and thousands more are suffering around the sub-region including The Gambia.
