US embassy cable - 05ISLAMABAD17711

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ISLAMABAD 017711 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE ALSO PASS TO USAID 
USAID/W FOR A/AID ANDREW NATSIOS, JBRAUSE 
DCHA/OFDA 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 WASH 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:  USAID/DART COLLABORATION 
WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS IN THE RELIEF EFFORT 
 
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Summary 
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1. Coordinating relief efforts and ensuring that USAID 
implementing partners reach populations in need without 
duplicating efforts are significant aspects of the USAID 
Disaster Assistance Response Team's (DART) work.  Given the 
difficulties of this humanitarian operation, there is a need 
for collaboration and the sharing of both resources and 
information.  The USAID/DART is collaborating intensively 
with the U.S. military, other donors, the Government of 
Pakistan (GOP) military, and other GOP entities.  Members of 
the USAID/DART have greatly facilitated collaboration in 
areas of critical need.  Coordination, collaboration, and 
the sharing of information and material resources have 
helped maximize the impact of the USAID/DART's field work 
and programming.  End summary. 
 
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Overview of USAID/DART Coordination Activities 
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2. Since October 10, the USAID/DART has been on the ground 
in Pakistan to coordinate the humanitarian response to the 
October 8 earthquake.  The USAID/DART is supporting programs 
in the areas of emergency and transitional shelter, water 
and sanitation, livelihoods, and emergency health.  The 
USAID/DART is also supporting airlifts of relief 
commodities, logistical activities, and coordinating U.S. 
military contributions to the relief effort.  Coordinating 
relief efforts and ensuring that USAID implementing partners 
reach populations in need without duplicating efforts are 
significant aspects of the USAID/DART's work. 
 
3. A number of difficulties, including damaged and 
impassable roads, bottlenecks in the supply chain, and the 
rapidly narrowing window of opportunity due to the onset of 
winter, hamper the provision of humanitarian assistance. 
Given the difficulties of providing assistance in this 
setting, there is a need for relief agencies to share both 
resources and information. 
 
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Collaboration with U.S. Military 
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4. The USAID/DART has collaborated intensively with the U.S. 
military, other donors, GOP military, and other GOP entities 
such as the Federal Relief Commission (FRC).  The USAID/DART 
includes a Military Liaison Officer (MLO) who, on a regular 
basis, meets with U.S. military officers to facilitate the 
distribution of commodities to both local and international 
NGOs, as well as other organizations. 
 
5. The USAID/DART has collaborated with U.S. Disaster 
Assistance Center (DAC) officers in the planning of field 
activities.  The DAC shares its geospatial information on 
vulnerable populations, based on criteria that include road 
access, population density, earthquake-related damage, and 
altitude.  The USAID/DART is using this information to 
channel NGO implementation activities to these most 
vulnerable areas.  The DAC has also provided satellite 
photos that USAID/DART and its implementing partners use to 
target and plan interventions. 
 
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Collaboration with NGOs and other relief organizations 
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6.  The USAID/DART also collaborates with international 
NGOs, UN agencies, and aid organizations of foreign 
governments.  The USAID/DART has met with the U.K. 
Department for International Development (DFID), the 
Australian Government's Overseas Aid Program (AusAID), and 
the government of the Netherlands.  The USAID/DART has 
engaged in discussions and shared information with these 
organizations on their strategies, program priorities, 
performance of and support to the UN, and NGO funding.  In 
addition, DART is providing the part-time services of a 
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) coordinator to assist 
the UN's humanitarian information center (HIC) to establish 
base maps, obtain and interpret information on what donors 
and NGOs are implementing in the field, and present them in 
a format that will increase the efficiency and effectiveness 
of the overall relief effort. 
 
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Collaboration with GOP military 
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7.  The USAID/DART attends coordination and strategy 
meetings-both sector level and gap analysis-with the FRC and 
GOP military on a daily basis.  The USAID/DART is a key 
player in the determination of the most effective means to 
support earthquake-affected populations.  In the field, 
USAID- and USAID/DART-funded NGOs collaborate extensively 
with local GOP military officials.  NGOs work under the 
protection of the GOP military and provide technical 
information to them in their execution of important relief 
activities, particularly camp administration and the 
distribution of food and relief commodities. 
 
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Collaboration in Affected Areas 
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8.  The USAID/DART Field Officers (FOs) and Protection 
Officer (PO) have greatly facilitated collaboration in areas 
of critical need in Mansehra and Muzaffarabad.  In these 
areas, the FOs and PO have attended coordination meetings on 
a regular basis, where they meet with USAID implementing 
partners and other humanitarian relief agencies active in 
the earthquake response to help plan and better target their 
activities.  The USAID/DART FOs and PO work with 
implementing partners and others in the field to identify 
and meet needs in order of priority and solve problems that 
arise.  Technical specialists in shelter, wat/san and 
livelihoods also have collaborated extensively both in the 
field and in Islamabad to coordinate and improve the overall 
relief effort. 
 
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Conclusion 
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9.  Taken together, all of the above coordination, 
information sharing, and resource sharing activities have 
helped to maximize the impact of the USAID/DART's fieldwork 
and programming.  The USAID/DART continues to seek further 
collaboration with donors, NGO partners, U.S. government 
organizations, and GOP organizations. 
 
CROCKER