Liberia - DHA: 22-28 August 1996
Liberia - DHA: 22-28 August 1996
HUMANITARIAN SITUATION REPORT ON LIBERIA
No. 29 - 37, covering the period 22-28 August 1996
HIGHLIGHTS
HACO met with the US Ambassador and the USAID Director to
discuss current HACO and Humanitarian Community activities
in Liberia. Discussions also focused on the international
NGO presence in Liberia determining that a stronger NGO
representation is needed while bearing in mind the concept
of limited operations in the country.
POPULATIONS-AT-RISK
On 23 August, ACF and CRS conducted a follow up mission to
River Cess County and Cestos City. After sending prior
notice to the civilian population, who reportedly reside in
remote communities the mission was able to observe a larger
number of civilians than was seen on the previous mission.
Large numbers of moderately malnourished and some severely
malnourished children were assessed using Middle-Upper arm
circumference (MUAC) measurements. ACF cautions against
attaching too much significance to the cases observed given
the lack of knowledge of the overall nutritional health of
the population.
SHELTER
Relocation efforts have been completed at Greystone and
UNOMIL Headquarters with a total of 124 families having
been moved to the Plumkor IDP centre. Construction
continues on the shelters in Plumkor and construction
commenced in Kamara on 27 August. LWD/WS has subcontracted
the national NGO, Liberians United to Care for the
Environment (LUCE) for the construction project and reports
its satisfactory performance so far. Coffee Farm structures
were completed on 27 August.
WFP and LIURD provided an emergency targeted ration to IDPs
in the SKD sports complex irregular shelter. During the
night, however, stored food commodities were lifted by
truck and removed from the complex. Those suspected to be
involved are now under investigation. This type of activity
highlights the fact that many of the irregular shelters are
being used to attract assistance for personal profit rather
than need. The Humanitarian Community underscores that it
will assist only those truly in need by relocating them to
established and supported regular IDP centres.
FOOD AND NUTRITION
During the reporting period, WFP distributed 10.97 MTs of
assorted food commodities to 1,064 residents of the LBS
Displaced Centre and the distribution of 35.56 MTs of food
commodities was completed to residents of the Catholic
Clinic and the SKD shelter. Through its implementing
partners WFP distributed 15 MTs of assorted food
commodities to 2,133 vulnerable persons residing in 8
vulnerable group feeding centres in and around Monrovia.
About 3 MTs of food commodities were also distributed as
Food for Work to volunteers working in these centres.
A WFP convoy carrying 244 MTs of assorted food commodities
is being planned to benefit 36,540 IDPs residing in 14
shelters located between Weala and Totota in Upper Margibi
and Lower Bong respectively.
A WFP workshop on warehouse management was conducted during
the reporting period with 25 participants from various
implementing partners to upgrade the skills of contractors
in warehouse management and stock control.
A Food for Peace representative is on a working visit in
Liberia to make an appraisal of the issue of diversifying
food distribution partners to ensure that complementary
resources are available to support targeted programmes and
to enhance food distribution monitoring.
ACF reports the following feeding operations for the period
11 - 17 August.
MONROVIA, MONTSERRADO COUNTY
Severely malnourished children supported
through therapeutic feeding 177
Moderately malnourished children supported
through dry ration distribution3,502
TOTAL3,679
BUCHANAN, GRAND BASSA COUNTY
Severely malnourished children supported
through therapeutic feeding 157
Moderately malnourished children supported
through supplementary feeding (wet) 1,631
Moderately malnourished children supported
through supplementary feeding (dry) 1,089
TOTAL2,877
GBARNGA, BONG COUNTY
Severely malnourished children supported
through therapeutic feeding 177
Moderately malnourished children supported
through supplementary feeding (wet) 390
Moderately malnourished children supported
through supplementary feeding (dry) 230
TOTAL797
KAKALA, MARGIBI COUNTY
Moderately malnourished children supported
through supplementary feeding (dry) 54
ACF conducted a nutritional survey in Gbarnga, Bong County
from 15-17 August with the objective of estimating both the
prevalence of malnutrition and to estimate the measles
vaccination coverage in children under 5 years of age. The
main findings are as follows:
Global acute malnutrition expressed a percentage of
children below -2 Z-Scores and/or oedema: 26.8 percent.
Severe acute malnutrition expressed as a percentage of
children below -3 Z-Scores and/or oedema: 9.7 percent.
Measles vaccination coverage proved by vaccination cards:
7.9 percent.
ACF recommends the following steps as a result of the
nutritional survey:
a. Consider a one-off food distribution to sustain the
whole population until the harvest and to implement
an appropriate monitoring programme to guarantee the
access of the vulnerable population to the food aid;
b. review the modalities of food assistance with
different humanitarian actors and establish new
guidelines for the same;
c. carry on treatment of already malnourished children
and increase the capacity of the ongoing feeding
programmes according to their needs.
d. perform a follow-up nutrition survey in the same
areas in 3-4 months; and,
e. improve the access of the population to the public
health services, including the access of children
under five for vaccinations.
WFP reports that market prices of basic commodities on 27
August are as follows:
COMMODITY PRICE-BAG COMMODITY
PRICE-GAL
Indian Long Grain RiceUSD 26.33Gasoline
USD 1.07
American Long Grain Rice USD 30.67Kerosene
USD 1.87
Bulgur Wheat USD 25.33Fuel Oil
USD 1.33
VegetableOilUSD 2.47Engine Oil
USD 4.00
The exchange rate on the parallel market is LDDollars 75.00
to USD 1.00.
WFP stock balances as of 27 August were:
Bulgur wheat 4,186MTs
Vegetable oil 654MTs
CSB34 MTs
Pulses193MTs
Miscellaneous 8 MTs
Total 5,075MTs
HEALTH
The Cholera Control Committee (CCC) reports that the
cholera outbreak is not fully under control yet but that
gains have been realized with the support of the
humanitarian community. The caseload trend now appears to
be in a gentle downward direction although whether this
trend will continue remains to be seen. Areas still
considered to be of high risk are New Kru Town, central
Monrovia and Gardnersville. A community welfare team has
been established in Moulton Corner to provide sanitary
education in the area which also has a high caseload.
The Information, Education and Communications
Sub-Committee reported that community workers have
completed training and are now fully deployed in high
risk communities where they are engaged in sewage
clearing and data collection on mortality rates caused by
cholera. DHA-HACO continues to provide transportation
support to the health workers visiting the top ten high
risk communities in Monrovia.
The Water and Sanitation Sub-Committee has succeeded in
mobilising the population in six high risk communities
for general sanitation campaigns and the Community
Organisation and Human Development Agency (COHDA) has
conducted two workshops on public sanitation in Monrovia
for 70 participants.
The Case Management Sub-Committee has completed the
training of case managers working in various health
clinics around Monrovia.
The Health Information System Sub-Committee reported that
from 1-21 August, 1,175 cases of cholera have been
reported in the five referral clinics in Monrovia of
which 999 were patients above five years of age.
The Transportation and Communication Sub-Committee
reports that normal ambulance services are now available
from 06:00 hrs to midnight on a daily basis.
UNICEF reports that the four mobile vaccination teams
visited eight displaced shelters this week and immunised
2,400 children with a total of 4,964 vaccination doses.
MSF reports that its therapeutic feeding centre at JFK
Hospital has a capacity for 120 patients while Bushrod
Island therapeutic feeding centre has a capacity for 200
patients.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS/ADVOCACY
To enhance HACOs advocacy role, copies of the Principles
and Protocols for Humanitarian Operations (PPHOs), the
Mechanisms for Ensuring Compliance with the PPHOs and
complete sets of the Liberian Humanitarian Community
Newsletter are now taken by HACO personnel to all
meetings with government, factional, embassy and visiting
officials and representatives who may not be aware of
these humanitarian documents, issues and concerns.
The National newspaper, following a meeting conducted
with the ACF Coordinator, the HACO Press Relations
Officer and the Editor, to discuss The Nationals
one-sided reports on ACFs court case in Gbarnga published
a prepared statement regarding its side of the story.
The Inquirer published, on full, the DHA press release on
the Cholera Control Committee and its activities in the
fight against the current outbreak. The article outlined
the roles of the various Humanitarian Community members
who work with the Committee including WHO, UNICEF, MSF,
DHA-HACO, MERCI, NDS and ACF, as well as discussing the
community-based public education campaigns, preventative
measures, treatment and referral clinics.
All newspapers carried articles on discussions from the
recent Abuja meetings which included reference to the
means of bringing the Liberian peace process back on
course by focusing attention on, amongst other issues,
humanitarian assistance to Liberia calling for the return
of looted vehicles and equipment. The National also
highlighted the Heads of State and Government statement
directing faction leaders to abide by the Geneva
Conventions, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
and to guarantee the safety of relief personnel in
Liberia to conduct their operations. In another issue,
the SRSG was quoted as saying that more pressure should
be exerted on faction leaders to respect the
international principles governing the delivery of
humanitarian relief assistance, pointing out the failure
of some factions to facilitate access by the humanitarian
community.
The Liberian Humanitarian Community Radio Report was
produced and broadcast daily on national radio ELBC,
featuring 4, five-minute reports, each broadcast twice
on: Humanitarian Community Activity Highlights; UNICEFs
anti-war agency, taken from the 1996 State of the Worlds
Children Report; the international and national NGO
activities of LWF/WS and NACORP; and a cholera update and
prevention report. ELBC is now broadcasting on both FM
and Shortwave, thereby broadcasting across Liberia and
into neighbouring Sierra Leone., Guinea and C=F4te dIvoire.
Previously, ELBC operated strictly on FM, limiting its
reach to Monrovia and its environs.
The UNDP Information Officer provided, and HACO
distributed, UN Radio broadcasts as of Scope and
Perspective to the three national radio stations, ELBC,
Radio Monrovia and DC101.
The weekly Liberian Humanitarian Community Activity
Highlights report was distributed to all media, featuring
the efforts of: LWS/WF, MERCI, MSF, LUCE, LNRC, SCF/UK,
NACORP, UNHCR, UNICEF, COHDA and WFP over the past week.
Other activities included weekly reports to UN Radio and
the writing of articles for the sixth Liberian
Humanitarian Community Newsletter.
WATER AND SANITATION
ICRC, in collaboration with the Liberian National Red
Cross, chlorinated 45 wells, including 35 open wells and
10 wells equipped with hand pumps in the Zwanah Town,
Kpeakor, Seigbeh, Parker Corner, Minty Allison and Kamay
Town shelters. In addition, 3 hand pumps were repaired at
Marnah Town and Logan Town during the reporting period.
With UNICEF support, the Ministry of Rural Development,
the Ministry of Lands, Mines and Energy, and various
community groups chlorinated 1,105 open wells in Monrovia
and its environs from 17 to 23 August. A total of 2,375
wells have been chlorinated since the campaign started on
6 August.
Health hygiene education information was disseminated at
five shelters in the Po River area by national NGO,
COHDA, with support from UNICEF.
National NGO, Humanitarian Emergency Relief Builders
(HERB), is continuing garbage disposal and latrine
spraying activities at the MVTC shelter where one pit
latrine was also constructed.
Following a meeting with the Monrovia City Corporation
(MCC), the Ministry of Health and the Liberian Water and
Sewer Corporation, plans are being finalized by UMCOR to
support the dislodging of community latrines in Monrovia.
SCF-UK, in collaboration with MCC, collected and disposed
of 585 cubic yards of garbage from 22 skips positioned
around Monrovia utilising two skip trucks. Two dumps
trucks were used in disposing 666 cubic yards of solid
waste from Clay Street, Camp Johnson Road and Waterside.
A total of 1,251 cubic yards of garbage and solid waste
was disposed of at the Gardnersville dump site.
DEMOBILISATION
As preparations for disarmament, demobilisation and
reintegration get underway, ECOMOG has called the first
meeting of the Disarmament Committee for 30 August. This
will be the first meeting of the Committee since the
peace process was interrupted by the 6 April fighting.
The Disarmament Committee comprises ECOMOG, UNOMIL,
DHA-HACO, LNTG, the factions and Reintegration Task Force
on 3 September. It should be noted that there is an
apparent general malaise on the part of NGOs regarding
the issue of demobilisation. The NGOs have expressed
concern about acting before analysing how the decisions
reached in Abuja play out. It is HACOs position that
efforts should move ahead regardless, in order that the
humanitarian community is ready to deal with the
demobilisation issue, whenever it comes to fruition.
The Working Group on the demobilisation of child
soldiers, chaired by UNICEF, has started reviewing
previous plans in light of the new peace agreement and in
view of the aftermath of the 6 April crisis. In order to
assist the review and reformulation process, UNICEF has
brought in a consultant on child soldiers, to work with
the Group for the next ten days.
RESETTLEMENT
Participants in the resettlement committee agreed that a
workshop should be organised in mid-September with the
aim of training participants in the resettlement process
- such as Liberian Refugee, Repatriation and Resettlement
Commission (LRRRC) field monitors, shelter and camp
managers, and national and local NGOs - in IDP
registration and resettlement issues. LRRRC, UNHCR, HACO,
UNOPS representatives will meet next week to draw up
outlines for the workshop.
The Association of Female Liberian Lawyers (AFELL) has
expressed interest in assisting in the resettlement
process, providing an impartial, independent organisation
which would monitor the integrity of the process. Plans
are being made for AFELL representatives to hold a
meeting in the next few days to discuss the issue.
CHILDREN AND EDUCATION
UNICEF has reactivated all projects under the War
Affected Youth Support (WAYS) Project with funding from
USAID. The Project will provide vocational and skills
training and trauma counselling to youths 18 years of age
and below with assistance form COHDA, Child Assistance
Programme (CAP), Sustainable Development Promoters (SDP),
NARDA and Don Bosco. UNICEF is requesting an 18 month
extension of the project as of September 1996.
A two day workshop for 35 emergency trauma counsellors
began on 22 August. The first day covered psychological
and religious techniques in treating trauma experiences
and day two covered a cross section of assessment and
data collection techniques from UNICEF inter-sectorial
units.
The Ministry of Education has begun to implement phase
one in support to the revitalisation of primary
education. Two work shops on peace education/conflict
resolution and in-service teachers training have begun in
Harbel. The two-week workshops cover testing and
evaluation, instructional materials, production, lesson
planning and classroom management.
Catholic Archbishop Michael Francis has been quoted as
saying that Catholic schools will remain closed until
there is a semblance of peace in Liberia. This could be
interpreted as meaning that Catholic schools could reopen
prior to elections, as was previously announced.
DEVELOPMENT
UNOPS field monitors visited various pre-6 April micro
project sites to assess the possibility of project
reactivation in greater Monrovia, Buchanan and Little
Bassa. Since February 1995, a total of 108 micro-projects
have been identified covering nearly all sectors of
humanitarian assistance and rehabilitation while
involving a wide range of implementing partners,
including national and international NGOs, community
groups, government and various UN Agencies.
UNOPS and Tear Fund concluded a micro-project agreement
to assist those IDPs with no alternative refuge to
permanent shelters as a result of the April-May
hostilities. The UNOPS contribution includes three months
of trucking, the construction of three transit points, as
well as the construction of 100 of the 500 family units
expected to be required by the IDP population. LWF/WS is
supervising the construction of the transit shelters.
UNOPS continues to deliver fuel to the JFK Memorial
Hospital for the running of its generator.
UNDP has commenced discussions with the Ministry of
Planning and Economic Affairs to produce guidelines for
technical assistance to the Ministry over the next 12
months as it resumes its critical coordination and
planning roles in Liberia.
UNDP continued to collect base-line data for a study of
the socio-economic impact of the April-May crisis, which
will be followed by various sub-sector studies in areas
crucial for future reintegration, rehabilitation and
resettlement programmes.
SECURITY
The security situation in Monrovia remains stable,
however, despite the Abuja-declared country-wide
cease-fire, there are continued reports of fighting in
both the north-west and south-east regions in Liberia.
ULIMO-K issued a press release which stated that it would
be disengaging and withdrawing its troops form the
Romi-Grand Cape Mount region, giving verbal assurances to
HACO that the long-awaited access to the area was
imminent. HACO immediately alerted the humanitarian task
force committees covering Bomi and Grand Cape Mount
Counties to prepare assessment missions for the provision
of humanitarian assistance. However, despite repeated
attempts by HACO to follow-up with ULIMO-K authorities on
the issue, no further progress has been made as these
authorities have become unavailable for discussion.
At the meeting held by the Program Violations and
Compliance Committee (PVCC), chaired by HACO, it was
agreed that a letter be sent to the Executive Director of
the National Disarmament and Demobilisation Commission
(NDDC), the Minister of Foreign Affairs, with a copy also
sent to the Minister of Justice, expressing concern over
what appears to be a pattern of harassment in Gbarnga.
Recently, various NGOs and their national staff have been
subject to court cases, harassment, and in one case, the
arrest and beating of two national staff members. The
PVCC, as a body, has sent the letter in an official
effort to bring these important humanitarian concerns to
the attention of those who can ensure compliance on the
freedom of movement and action of humanitarian relief
workers.
As an international NGO that is relatively new in
Liberia, the PVCC briefed the German Emergency Doctors
NGO, on the PPHOs, the Mechanisms for Ensuring Compliance
with the PPHOs and the role of HACO in Liberia.
============================================
Mr. Tesema Negash
UN Humanitarian Coordinator - Monrovia
Tel.: (231) 224 603
Fax:(874) 150 57 46 (sat.)
Complex Emergencies Division (CED) - New York
Mr. Peter Due
Tel.: (1 212) 963.1731
Fax:(1 212) 963.1388
Inter-Agency Support Branch (IASB) - Geneva
Ms. Deborah Saidy-Mr. Chris Kaye
Tel.: (41 22) 788.6384-788.6385
Fax:(41 22) 788.6386
Press to contact (DHA-Geneva)
Ms. Madeleine Moulin-Acevedo
Tel.: (41 22) 917.2856
Fax:(41 22) 917.0023
Telex: 414242 DHA CH
E-Mail:dhagva at dha.unicc.org