US embassy cable - 05ISLAMABAD16827

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ISLAMABAD 016827 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE ALSO PASS TO USAID 
USAID/W FOR A/AID ANDREW NATSIOS, JBRAUSE 
DCHA/OFDA KISAACS, GGOTTLIEB, MMARX, RTHAYER, BDEEMER 
AID/W FOR DCHA/OFDA 
SOUTH ASIA RESPONSE MANAGEMENT TEAM 
SOUTH ASIA EARTHQUAKE TASK FORCE 
DCHA/FFP FOR JONATHAN DWORKEN 
ANE DEPUTY ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR MARK WARD 
BANGKOK FOR OFDA SENIOR REGIONAL ADVISOR TOM DOLAN 
KATHMANDU FOR OFDA REGIONAL ADVISOR WILLIAM BERGER 
ROME PASS FODAG 
GENEVA FOR RMA AND NKYLOH 
NSC FOR JMELINE 
EUCOM FOR POLA/J3/J4/J5 
BRUSSELS FOR USAID PLERNER 
NEW YORK FOR TMALY 
SECDEF FOR SOLIC/PKHA, USDP/J3 
JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC FOR J3/J4/J5 
HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE FOR J3/J5 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID, AEMR, ASEC, MASS, ECON, KMDR, KPAO, OIIP, OPRC, PGOV, PREL, PK, Earthquake 
SUBJECT: PAKISTAN - EARTHQUAKE:  THE ROLE OF NGOS IN THE 
USAID/DART EMERGENCY RELIEF EFFORTS 
 
 
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Summary 
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1.  The USAID Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) 
subscribes to the overall Government of Pakistan (GOP) 
Federal Relief Commission (FRC) strategy that primary focus 
at this stage in the relief effort should be placed on 
providing in-situ shelter and food security support for 
earthquake-affected residents.  Through its non-governmental 
organization (NGO) programming, the USAID/DART supports this 
strategy with implementation activities that focus on 
commodity distribution, shelter, water and sanitation, 
livelihoods, protection, health, and education.  The 
USAID/DART has programmed its NGO funds judiciously to cover 
the key sectors in critical geographic areas in a balanced, 
strategic manner.  End summary. 
 
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Funding Strategy 
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2.  The USAID/DART subscribes to the overall GOP FRC 
strategy that primary focus at this stage in the relief 
effort should be placed on providing in-situ shelter and 
food security support for earthquake-affected residents. 
Secondary focus should be placed on camp-based needs for 
those who come down from higher elevations due to their 
inability to endure the harsh winter conditions.  This dual 
strategy both addresses the priorities of the locals and 
implements a fail-safe mechanism to assure survival. 
 
3.  USAID/DART field reports as well as reports from NGOs 
indicate that much of the earthquake-affected population 
will remain in place, but a significant number will move 
down to lowland areas to reside in both spontaneous and 
organized tented camps.  A two-pronged strategy provides the 
best means to address both situations. 
 
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NGO Programming 
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4.  Through its NGO programming, the USAID/DART supports 
this overall strategy with implementation activities that 
focus on commodity distribution, shelter, water and 
sanitation, livelihoods, protection, health, and education. 
As of November 10, nine international NGOs have been 
selected to receive an approximate total of USD 20 million 
through USAID's Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance 
(OFDA).  The activities funded in these grants emphasize the 
primary focus of in-situ shelter, livelihoods, health, and 
education.  They also cover camp-based needs in water and 
sanitation, livelihoods, health, and protection.  U.N. 
organizations have received more than USD 12.9 million in 
OFDA funding in response to the earthquake.  In addition, 
the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the 
International Organization for Migration (IOM) have received 
USD 8 million in OFDA funding.  OFDA has funded NGOs and 
U.N. organizations in order to target affected populations 
in rural and urban areas, respectively. 
 
5.  The USAID/DART is regularly meeting with the country 
directors of the NGOs currently receiving USAID funds to 
discuss their issues, bottlenecks, and collective means of 
maximizing impact.  The USAID/DART believes that targeting 
NGO activities to the greatest needs of the two-pronged 
strategy, and facilitating frequent discussions to optimize 
and possibly redirect activities, represents a targeted yet 
flexible means of addressing the greatest needs in the 
relief effort of Pakistan. 
 
6.  This support to NGOs has been provided in a deliberate, 
phased manner.  The USAID/DART has committed three tranches 
of funds.  The first round total was approximately USD 22 
million, including support for four U.N. agencies:  the U.N. 
Children's Fund (UNICEF), the U.N. Joint Logistics Center 
(JLC), the U.N. World Food Program (WFP), and the U.N. World 
Health Organization (WHO).  Through this first round of 
funding, the USAID/DART also committed support to IOM, ICRC, 
and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red 
Crescent Societies (IFRC), primarily for cluster-based 
coordination and technical support.  The second round total 
was USD 11.5 million, provided to Action Contre la Faim 
(ACF), ACTED, Catholic Relief Services (CRS), GOAL, and the 
International Rescue Committee (IRC) to kick-start field 
activities in non-food item distribution, shelter, water and 
sanitation, health, education, and livelihoods. 
 
7.  The third round of proposals is currently under review. 
For this round, international and local NGOs have submitted 
approximately 25 proposals.  The USAID/DART, including its 
technical experts, is carefully scrutinizing these proposals 
to ensure focus on strategy, high-quality implementation, 
appropriate geographical distribution based on need, 
accountability of funds, and current gaps.  Various 
proposals passed the initial screening for the third round, 
and thus far three are recommended for funding. 
 
8.  The USAID/DART is utilizing maps provided by the U.N. 
and U.S. military to determine where to meet the needs of 
the earthquake-affected population.  The USAID/DART is also 
encouraging NGOs to work in the most affected areas.  Before 
approving funding, the USAID/DART undertakes checks to 
ensure that NGOs do not overlap coverage. 
 
9.  These three tranches of grants constitute a step-by-step 
approach in order to ensure that NGOs are not only working 
effectively but also are able to address the emergency 
relief needs that evolve over the course of this disaster 
relief operation. 
 
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NGOs and GOP Military Relations 
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10.  While NGOs typically tend to be critical of government 
responses in disaster situations, the USAID/DART's NGO 
partners have praised the GOP military's participation in 
this disaster.  NGOs active in this disaster response have 
indicated that the GOP military is distributing tents in an 
appropriate manner and in critical need areas.  Despite 
media reports to the contrary, USAID cites reports from NGO 
field representatives to assert that the GOP military has 
assumed a great deal of responsibility in the relief efforts 
and performed well under difficult circumstances. 
Not only has the GOP military proven effective in this 
exercise in terms of its reach and responsiveness, but it 
has also been keen to learn from the donor community best 
practices in addressing technical issues such as camp 
management, relief commodity distribution, and water and 
sanitation interventions. 
 
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USAID/DART Collaboration with NGOs 
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11.  The USAID/DART thus continues to work closely with NGOs 
that have potential to be effective in this context, and 
will achieve the balance of providing strong and effective 
support to the relief efforts while exercising flexibility 
and judiciousness in the use of available resources. 
 
 
CROCKER