UN agencies launch joint emergency response to Jajarkot earthquake

KATHMANDU: United Nations agencies have been providing temporary shelter, food, and non-food items as part of a comprehensive and urgent response to the pressing needs of the quake-hit families in Jajarkot and Rukum West district.

“The government has immediately responded very effectively with search and rescue operation. Despite geographical remoteness and a difficult operating environment, the UN agencies and humanitarian partners are on the ground supporting the government’s efforts by reaching out to around 3,000 households with food, shelter, WASH, protection, and health support,” UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator, Hanaa Singer-Hamdy said, speaking about the joint UN response to the Jajarkot earthquake.

According to the UN Mission in Nepal, the World Food Programme (WFP) is providing logistics support to the government and humanitarian partners through the Humanitarian Staging Area, as well as has rapidly dispatched six tons of ready-to-eat emergency food to the affected areas. Likewise, the World Health Organization (WHO) is supporting local and national authorities to respond to the health needs of the affected population and has deployed two basic modules of the interagency emergency health kits to provide crucial aid, the UN Mission in Nepal said in a statement.

Similarly, UNICEF is dispatching critical emergency supplies to the affected areas and supporting response efforts to reach the most vulnerable children and families, while the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has deployed medical supplies and other supplies for women and girls to ensure that their basic sanitation, menstrual hygiene, and sexual and reproductive health needs are met in the midst of the disaster.

According to the statement, UNDP has committed resources for early recovery, including deploying human resources to the Provincial Emergency Operation Centre for vital information management. Likewise, UN Women is collaborating with women’s groups to support Community Kitchens and provide relief packages, while IOM is providing collaborative assistance to the provincial government for response and has deployed human resources to support the Provincial Emergency Operation Centre with information management.