U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
BUREAU FOR DEMOCRACY, CONFLICT, AND HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE (DCHA)
OFFICE OF U.S. FOREIGN DISASTER ASSISTANCE (OFDA)
CENTRAL ASIA TASK FORCE
CENTRAL ASIA REGION - Complex Emergency
Situation Report #23, Fiscal Year (FY) 2002    March 8, 2002


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

BACKGROUND

Prior to September 2001, two decades of war in Afghanistan, including a
decade-long Soviet occupation and ensuing civil strife, 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, collapsed.  Significant local and
national resources were directed to the war effort.  Severe restrictions
by the Taliban, which controlled as much as 90 percent of the country,
including a restriction on women working outside the home, added to the
impact of poverty, particularly on the many households lacking able-bodied
adult men.

After September 11, 2001, fears of a reprisal to terrorist attacks against
the United States triggered population movements in Afghanistan, as well
as a complete exodus of international relief staff, greatly complicating
humanitarian assistance.  Nonetheless, assistance programs continued even
after October 7, when the U.S.-led campaign against the Taliban and
al-Qaeda began.  The Taliban began to collapse in November, abandoning
Mazar- e-Sharif on November 9, Kabul on November 13, and finally their
Kandahar stronghold on December 7.  The new Afghan Interim Administration
(AIA) was sworn in on December 22.  The demise of the Taliban has allowed
increased humanitarian access to Afghanistan, and relief agencies
re-established operations within the country.  USAID/DART/Islamabad, from
December 30 - January 7, 2002, made the first of an ongoing series of
trips into Afghanistan to assess the situation and meet with implementing
partners.

Afghanistan:  Numbers Affected
Total population (CIA Factbook)	26,813,057

Refugees Since September 11, 2001 (UNHCR)
   Pakistan   250,000
   Iran       Unknown

Old Caseload Refugees (UNHCR)
   Pakistan   2,000,000
   Iran       1,500,000

Internally Displaced (UN/WFP)
   Since September 11, 2001   300,000
   Old caseload             1,000,000


Refugee Returns Since January 1, 2002 (UNHCR)
   Pakistan   113,000
   Iran        30,000

Internally Displaced Returns (UNHCR)
   To Kabul           30,000
   To Shomali Plain    8,300
   To northeast      117,000

Total FY 2001/2002 U.S. Government (USG) Assistance to Afghanistan**
$422,383,113

Total FY 2001/2002 USG Assistance to Tajikistan
$88,208,180



CURRENT SITUATION

Overview.  The security situation was tense this week after plans surfaced
for potential terrorist activity in Kabul.  Insecurity affected the work
of aid agencies.  A March 3 earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale
resulted in damage in four Afghan provinces, including a massive landslide
in Samangan that blocked a river and caused flooding. U.N. World Food
Program (WFP) bakeries in Kabul are providing income to widows and bread
to vulnerable populations. The organized return of Afghan refugees and
internally displaced persons (IDPs) continued.  The World Health
Organization (WHO), U.N.  Children's Fund (UNICEF), and the Afghan
Ministry of Public Health launched a polio vaccination campaign for nearly
2 million Afghan children.  Aid agencies have begun rapid nutritional
assessments to determine the extent of malnutrition in Afghanistan.

Political/Military.  Heavy fighting between Coalition forces and Taliban
and al-Qaeda fighters was prevalent throughout the week near Gardez,
Paktia Province.  The fighting started on March 3.

Press reports indicated that the U.S. and its allies were considering a
plan to double the number of soldiers in the International Security
Assistance Force (ISAF) from 4,500 to 9,000.  The increase would allow
ISAF soldiers to provide security in urban centers other than Kabul.

Security.  U.S. intelligence discovered an al-Qaeda plan for a terrorist
attack that included a car bombing in Kabul.  The attack was reportedly
intended to encourage Western forces to withdraw from Afghanistan.  The
ISAF warned journalists of another threat on March 6 that involved plans
to kidnap journalists in Kabul in retaliation for the current U.S. attacks
near Gardez, Paktia Province.  A Canadian journalist covering the fighting
was seriously injured earlier in the week when a hand grenade was thrown
at her car.

Security incidents impeded relief efforts in Afghanistan.  WFP temporarily
suspended food distribution in Samangan Province due to insecurity in the
area.  The U.N. will monitor the situation until it is safe for aid to
resume.  Aid agencies were forced to vacate Chaman, near the Pakistan
border, for five days after Mercy Corps staff were robbed by masked and
armed men on February 28.  U.N. security staff investigated the incident
and have since cleared agencies to return to the area.

Earthquake.  On March 3, an earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale
struck Afghanistan.  The deep epicenter of the earthquake, 195 kilometers
below the Hindu Kush region, resulted in shocks felt throughout Central
Asia.  The areas most affected by the earthquake were Samangan, Takhar,
Baghlan, and Badakhshan provinces.

Hardest hit by the earthquake was Surkunda, a valley village of 5,000
people in Khulm district, Samangan, where the U.N. Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) estimated that 70- 150
people died and up to 75 were missing.  The earthquake caused a massive
landslide that left a river blockage 200 meters long with up to 30,000
cubic meters of debris.  The blockage resulted in flooding that destroyed
400 houses, threatened another 600 homes, and cut off the water supply of
at least 25,000 people downstream in Aibak.  The U.N.  was attempting to
clear the blockage with a bulldozer, while the International Committee of
the Red Cross (ICRC) worked to dig a channel with two high-pressure pumps.
Progress has been hindered by the number of large boulders in the debris,
which will impede full removal of the dam.

In other parts of Afghanistan, UNOCHA reported the destruction of 340
houses in Jurm district, Badakhshan.  In Gulbahar district near Kabul,
three people were killed, 13 houses destroyed, and 25 houses severely
damaged.  Overall, damage from the earthquake was not nearly as severe as
the 1998 Takhar earthquake that killed 8,000 people.  Furthermore, the
USAID Disaster Assistance Response Team in Islamabad
(USAID/DART/Islamabad) reported that international and non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) have responded to and met immediate emergency needs.

Food Aid and Logistics.  A USAID/DART/Islamabad program officer and food
officer visited WFP bakeries in West Kabul that employ widows.  The
bakeries, in addition to other WFP programs, provide food aid rations to
approximately 25 percent of the population of Kabul.  There are currently
21 widows bakeries in Kabul that provide a critical source of income to
widows, as well as subsidized bread to beneficiaries identified through
household vulnerability surveys.

The Government of Germany announced that it will soon begin rehabilitation
of the road from Torkham, the border crossing point for the Khyber Pass
and Pakistan's North West Frontier Province, to Jalalabad.  This road is a
critical transport link to eastern Afghanistan.

IDPs and Refugees.  The return of Afghan refugees and IDPs made steady
progress this week.  The U.N.  High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
reported a dramatic increase in the number of Afghan refugees repatriating
from Pakistan.  On March 1, when UNHCR opened the first repatriation
center outside Peshawar, 196 Afghans returned.  By March 8, a total of
nearly 14,000 Afghans had returned.  The increase was attributed to
widespread publicity efforts informing Afghans about the opening of the
new center.

On March 6, UNHCR and the Afghan government began a two-week initiative to
return 15,000 IDPs in Kabul city to their homes in Shomali Plain.  The
IDPs have been living in dismal conditions for three years in the old
Soviet compound in Kabul.  UNHCR provided the IDPs with an aid package,
including shelter materials, and WFP contributed 150 kilograms of wheat
per family.  The International Organization for Migration (IOM)
transported the IDPs to their home villages.

IOM anticipates the return through next week of some 20,000 IDPs staying
in the Mazar-e-Sharif area.  From March 6 through next week, IOM plans to
assist some 4,000 families in returning to their areas of origin in
Sharkent, Dar-e-Suf, and Alborz.

A recent UNHCR survey found more than 40,000 IDPs living in the five
makeshift sites of the Spin Boldak camp in Afghanistan.

Health.  WHO reported a significant decrease in mortality rates at Maslakh
Camp outside Herat.  The decrease was attributed to improvements such as
the establishment of nutrition centers for malnourished children, the
addition of clinics inside the camp, and improvements in the provision of
clothing and shelter.

WHO, along with the Afghan Ministry of Public Health and UNICEF, has
started a polio vaccination campaign for the southern and eastern regions
of Afghanistan for an estimated 1,950,000 children.

According to press reports, U.N. officials received information about a
suspected outbreak of hemorrhagic fever in Tajwara village in eastern
Afghanistan that may have killed up to 28 people.  Recent unconfirmed
reports suggest that the illness is instead a form of viral diarrhea.
WHO is reportedly dispatching an assessment team to the area.

With USAID/OFDA funding, the International Medical Corps (IMC) established
15 clinics in Bamiyan, Wardak, and Parwan provinces that provide primary
health and obstetric care.  IMC plans to open supplementary feeding
centers at each of the clinics over the next few weeks.  The feeding
centers will provide a means for monitoring the nutritional situation and
responding to nutritional deficiencies in the central region.

In response to reports of increasing malnutrition in Afghanistan, numerous
agencies will conduct rapid nutritional assessments to determine the
precise extent of malnutrition.  WFP has conducted helicopter assessments
in the northern region, and will conduct further assessments in the
western and central regions.  IMC will conduct assessments in Bamiyan
Province, while World Vision will focus on the Herat area, and UNICEF and
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention assess Mazar-e- Sharif and
Herat.



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 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 is provided by USAID/OFDA, Food for Peace
(USAID/FFP), Democracy & Governance (USAID/DG), Office of Transition
Initiatives (USAID/OTI), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA),
Department of State's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration
(State/PRM), Department of State's Demining Program, the Department of
State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs
(State/INL), the Department of Defense (DOD), and the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC).  The assistance is for displaced persons
inside Afghanistan and Afghan refugees in neighboring countries.

In Tajikistan, on October 10, 2001, U.S. Chargé 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 Cooperative for American
Relief Everywhere (CARE) for the purchase and distribution of winter wheat
seeds and fertilizer. USAID/OFDA ASSISTANCE

Personnel.  USAID/OFDA currently has one Disaster Assistance Response Team
(DART)  deployed to Pakistan to assess humanitarian activities and
logistical capacity in the region.  USAID/DART members are traveling into
Afghanistan to coordinate with the humanitarian relief community and
assess the humanitarian situation.



USG HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE TO CENTRAL ASIA

USG AGENCY
IMPLEMENTING PARTNER
ACTIVITY
REGION
AMOUNT


AFGHANISTAN - COMPLEX EMERGENCY FY 2002

USAID/OFDA

Airlift - Turkmenistan
20,000 blankets, 100 rolls plastic sheeting, 20 MT BP-5 High Energy
  biscuits, 1 MT sugar
$743,543

Airlift - Turkmenistan
1,000 rolls of plastic sheeting for UNICEF
$403,200

Airlift - Islamabad
35,400 blankets
$312,350

Airlift - Pakistan
5 health kits
$29,415

Airlift - Turkmenabad
5 health kits
$33,923

Airlift - Uzbekistan
350,000 wheat bags
$67,000

Airlift - Turkmenistan
10,000 kitchen sets and 20,000 blankets
$473,400

Airlift - Turkmenistan
1,000 winterized tents
$167,000

ACTED
Food, non-food items
Northeast
$5,500,000

ACTED
IDP camp management
Baghlan
$630,000

ACTED
Livelihoods, agriculture, emergency rehab
Takhar, Baghlan, Shamali, Kabul, and Faryab.
$750,000

CARE
Water/sanitation, agricultural rehabilitation, shelter
All
$3,537,035

Catholic Relief Services (CRS)
Non-Food Items for 200,000 people
Central Highlands
$988,087

Church World Service
Transport of non-food items
$49,902

Concern Worldwide
Shelter/repair 5,000 homes
Northeast
$1,203,343

Concern Worldwide
Distribution of seeds & tools, rehabilitation of agricultural
  infrastructure, income generation activities
Badakshan, Baghlan, Takhar, Bamiyan provinces
$1,737,318

Field Support
Operational support for DARTs in Central Asia Region
$1,339,456

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
Seed multiplication, procurement, and distribution
$1,095,000

FAO
Agriculture, seed multiplication
$300,000

FAO
Security surveillance, water resource management, farm power, & spring
  seed distribution
All
$2,500,000

FOCUS / Aga Khan
Seed multiplication, water supply rehabilitation, and complementary food
  distribution
Bamiyan, Baghlan, and Balkh
$1,436,134

GOAL
Food, shelter, water, sanitation, winterization
Samangan and Jowzjan provinces
$5,500,000

GOAL
Emergency agricultural, potable water and sanitation rehabilitation, and
  shelter repair
Samangan and Jowzjan provinces
$1,000,000

International Center for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas (ICARDA)
Seed multiplication, technical assistance for see procurement and
  regulation
All
$2,525,000

International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
Food, non-food items
All
$2,500,000

International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Food, non-food items
Badghis, Faryab, Balkh provinces
$562,313

IOM
Distribution of charcoal for cooking and heating fuel
Herat, Kunduz, and Faryab
$1,069,760

International Medical Corps (IMC)
Primary health care
Herat
$735,000

IMC
Primary health care
Bamiyan, Wardak, Parwan
$3,500,000

International Rescue Committee  (IRC)
Food, potable water, well rehabilitation
North
$3,650,000

IRC
Medical, public health, education & self-help programs in camps and urban
  settings
Balkh, Ghor
$3,250,104

International Resource Group (IRG)
Food Augmentation Team
$614,820

Mercy Corps
Food, water, non-food items
South, Central
$2,000,000

Mercy Corps
Rehabilitation of wells & agriculture infrastructure, seed multiplication
Nimroz, Helmand, Kandahar, Uruzgan, Takhar, Kunduz & Baghlan
$3,000,308

UNOCHA
Coordination
All
$2,500,000

UNICEF
Water, sanitation
All
$2,500,000

UNICEF
Nutrition, health, water, sanitation
All
$1,650,000

Save the Children (SC)/US
Nutrition
North
$206,488

SC/US
Food, health
Central and North
$2,000,000

SC/US
Spot reconstruction, cash-for-work, and medical clinic rehabilitation
Faryab, Sar-e-Pul
$3,262,312

Shelter for Life
Cash-for-work road reconstruction & emergency home repair for returning
  IDPs
Kunduz & Takhar
$1,294,550

Solidarites
Rehabilitation, agricultural revitalization
Balkh, Bamiyan, Samangan
$1,739,115

World Food Program (WFP)
Food  - 15,000 MT, processing, transport
$6,000,000

WFP
Purchase of trucks for food delivery
$5,000,000

WFP
Joint Logistics Center
$2,000,000

WFP
Logistics support equipment and services
All
$2,500,000

Total FY 2002 USAID/OFDA	 $83,855,876


USAID/FFP

WFP
Airlift from Quetta, Pakistan to Osh, Kyrgyzstan
$2,000,000

WFP
72,700 MT Food commodities
$38,555,000

Total FY 2002 USAID/FFP	$40,555,000



USAID/OTI
Voice of America
Radio program
All
$187,820

IOM
HEAR Bulletin and Radios
All
$1,500,000

UNDP
UNDP Trust Fund in support of the interim Afghan administration
All
$500,000

Total FY 2002 USAID/OTI	$2,187,820



STATE/PRM

ICRC
Emergency Appeal
$13,500,000

IFRC
Emergency Appeal
$5,000,000

IOM
Emergency Appeal
$2,000,000

IRC
Operational Support
$231,248

Mercy Corps
Operational support
$162,775

United Nations Development Program (UNDP)
Project Management Information System
$160,000

UNOCHA
Donor Alert for Afghans Program
$2,125,000

United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
Special Program for Afghanistan
$600,000

WFP
Operations/Logistics Support
$4,000,000

UNHCR
Emergency Appeal
$30,000,000

UNICEF
Emergency Relief
$4,000,000

Total FY 2002 State/PRM 	$61,779,023



DOD
Airdrop of 2,423,700 Humanitarian Daily Rations (HDRs)
$50,897,769

Total FY 2002 DOD **	 $50,897,769
Total FY 2002 USG Assistance to Afghanistan**	$239,275,488



TAJIKISTAN - DROUGHT FY 2002

USAID/OFDA
CARE
Purchase and distribution of winter wheat to 36,000 people
$998,180

Total FY 2002 USAID/OFDA   $998,180



USAID/FFP

WFP
35,000 MT wheat flour
$20,000,000

Total FY 2002 USAID/FFP   $20,000,000

Total FY 2002 USG Assistance to Tajikistan   $20,998,180



FY 2001/ FY 2002 SUMMARY

Total USG Humanitarian Assistance to Afghanistan for FY 2001*
$183,107,625

Total USG Humanitarian Assistance to Afghanistan for FY 2002
$239,275,488

Total USG Humanitarian Assistance to Afghanistan for FY 2002/2001
$422,383,113

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 USG Assistance to Tajikistan FY 2001/2002	 $88,208,180

*Note: detailed breakdowns of FY 2001 and FY 2002 assistance are available
in previous Central Asia Region situation reports.  USDA estimates for FY
2001 donations increased by approximately $4.5 million due to unforeseen
costs for transport.

**Note: DOD funding totals are estimates.  The previously reported total
of more than $120 million reflects the estimated total cost of the entire
four to five month airdrop operation.


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