IRIN
AFGHANISTAN: Aid reaches most flood victims
9 April 2007


KABUL, 9 April 2007 (IRIN) - About two weeks after flash floods and 
avalanches caused extensive damage across one third of Afghanistan, 
relief has reached almost all affected areas, say government and United 
Nations officials.

"Excluding Daykondi and Nooristan provinces, where we face severe 
logistical constrains, aid has been distributed to all flood and 
avalanches-hit provinces," Abdul Matin Adrak, director of the 
Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority (ANDMA), told IRIN in 
the capital Kabul on Monday.

The UN World Food Programme (WFP) reported that foodstuffs sufficient 
for one month have been distributed in 77 districts of 13 affected 
provinces.

"We have a massive operation of assisting some 75,000 victims," Rick 
Corsino, WFP country director, said. "We have already distributed more 
than 1,000 metric tonnes of food items, which include wheat, beans, ghee 
and salt, and more are being distributed."

More than 80 people were killed and hundreds of houses destroyed by 
floods and avalanches that besieged Afghanistan recently.

But insecurity, logistical hurdles such as damaged roads and the limited 
capacity of provincial bodies slowed the humanitarian response in many 
affected regions.

According to Corsino, the sheer magnitude of the disaster was a 
challenge in itself and further complicated prompt relief in some remote 
districts.

On Friday, a WFP vehicle was attacked in the volatile Zabul province in 
the south. And a truck carrying aid to flood victims in Nimruz province 
was plundered by gunmen in neighbouring Farah province, the UN agency 
reported.

Officials warn that Afghanistan's floods season is not yet over. With 
spring rainfalls and temperatures rising, snow on the mountains can 
quickly melt and cause further flooding.

However, Corsino said he felt that authorities were well prepared for 
any further flooding. "I'm optimistic that the government of Afghanistan 
and the UN will be able to respond promptly should more flooding happen 
in the coming days," he said.

Figures given by the Afghan government, but unverified by the UN, 
indicate that up to 10,000 houses were damaged in the recent spell of 
natural disasters. Floods have also extensively damaged rural and urban 
economies, affecting the livelihoods of hundreds of families.

Officials in Kabul say the government is unable to provide long-term 
assistance to help victims rebuild their houses and lives.

In addition, Afghanistan's centralised disaster management system allows 
only the president to authorise the disbursement of US $200 to each 
family that lost a member during a natural disaster.

"The President has not yet approved death payment for the latest 
flooding and avalanches," said Adrak of ANDMA, adding the government 
would rebuild damaged schools, hospitals and other public facilities.

However, a UN official in Kabul said the international organisation 
would consider post-disaster assistance focused on sustainable recovery 
in the affected provinces.


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