Medair

 

At Medair, we have two core competencies that drive all of our humanitarian work:

Emergency Relief and Rehabilitation.

 

What is Emergency Relief?

The Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) defines a humanitarian emergency as: “...an unforeseen and often sudden event that causes great damage, destruction, and human suffering.”[1] In many cases, emergencies are the result of natural disasters, such as the 2005 Pakistan earthquake or the 2004 Asian tsunami.

 

However, emergencies also include responses to urgent needs in countries where Medair is already established. For example, the 2006 conflict around Gety Village in DRC led to 45,000 people being displaced into an overcrowded area, where they faced health risks that required the provision of essential drugs. Other examples include responses to disease outbreaks or to conflicts that have jeopardised essential services. 

 

Medair defines as the actions we take within approximately the first six months of a disaster or crisis. During that time, our main objective is to respond rapidly and effectively to help save lives and reduce suffering

 

Emergency relief leads naturally into rehabilitation work, which involves more focus on capacity building, and restoring services or livelihoods to a pre-existing or improved level.

 

 

Core Strengths of Medair’s Emergency Relief:

 

Experience

Medair has almost 20 years experience conducting emergency relief, working in some of the most vulnerable countries in the world including Somalia, Chechnya, Sudan, Uganda, D.R. Congo, Afghanistan, and Iraq.

Rapid Response

It is crucial to arrive quickly to the scene of a disaster or crisis in order to begin assessing needs, coordinating with government and other agencies, and starting the operational response.  Since Medair is relatively small, we have the flexibility to act quickly and efficiently in deciding where and how to respond to sudden crises.

 

Preparation

The other key element in providing a rapid response is a comprehensive preparation strategy. Medair has the following preparations in place:

 

People

An emergency roster of over 50 experienced Medair personnel – including doctors, water engineers, and managers – who are able to travel to crisis or disaster locations within 48 hours.

Equipment

Medair has a stock of essential programme start-up kits stored in our Swiss headquarters, and we are able to rapidly transport essential relief items such as tents, blankets, and medicines at short notice from a fully stocked warehouse in Brussels.

Funds

Medair has a specific emergency fund of over US$ 400,000 which is used to help launch new emergency programmes.

Consultation with Communities, Local Agencies, and Governments

Medair’s experience with providing effective relief work always involves consulting with all relevant stakeholders. We coordinate with local and international agencies to provide assistance where it is most needed; we work with governments to secure necessary permissions and also to ensure that services are not being overlapped with other relief agencies; and most importantly, we consult with the communities themselves to ensure that the aid we provide meets their needs.

Multisectoral Expertise

Medair employs a multisectoral approach to humanitarian relief, which allows us to provide the assistance that is most needed, whether for emergency relief or for rehabilitation. Our three key sectors of expertise are: Water & Sanitation, Health Services, and Shelter & Infrastructure.

For emergency relief, the collective strengths of these sectors are employed to provide the best integrated solutions to urgent needs. We also provide various other types of emergency assistance where needed, including nutrition and food support, and the distribution of basic relief items.

Case Study: The 2005 Pakistan Earthquake

Five days after the earthquake, Medair had a full operational team established in remote Poonch District, where no other NGOs were active. 95 percent of the dwellings in Poonch had been damaged or destroyed. With winter fast approaching, Medair assessed the best way to rapidly provide life-saving shelter to thousands of families. The Medair team distributed temporary shelter kits that could be easily assembled from local materials and the rubble from devastated homes.

The Results:

·  6,408 families received temporary shelter kits

·  1,273 families received tents

·  5,153 families received basic relief items such as a stove, blankets, mattresses, warm clothes

·  11,500 people received hygiene education

 

Case Study:  WatSan Intervention in Malakal, Southern Sudan 2006

After a violent conflict in the city of Malakal forced Medair staff and other international NGOs to evacuate, a serious water crisis developed. Many cases of cholera were reported, leading to the conclusion that the river water had become contaminated from the conflict. Medair partnered with UNICEF and swiftly sent a team back into Malakal to set up two Surface Water Treatment Systems (SWATs).

 

The Results:

·  Two SWATs installed

·  80,000 litres of clean water per day provided

 

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[1] International Agreed Glossary of Basic Terms Related to Disaster Management (1992) UN-DHA, IDNDR, Geneva