DEVELOPMENT: 60 Million Asians Threatened by Severe Drought

By Thalif Deen Reprint | | Print |

Thalif Deen

UNITED NATIONS, Jul 20 2000 (IPS) - A severe drought spreading across Central and South Asia is threatening the lives of over 60 million people in Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, India and Iran.

Carolyn McAskie, the UN’s Emergency Relief Co-ordinator, said Wednesday that immediate donor response is critical to prevent this “devastating natural disaster from causing greater loss of life and livelihoods.”

“The generosity of the international community is vital if we are to contain the current crisis and avoid a tragedy,” she added.

According to the United Nations, the drought has led to a significant loss of livestock and crops, a rapid deterioration of health and sanitary conditions in the affected communities, and raised the prospect of large population displacements within and across national borders.

Fearing a potentially major crisis, six UN bodies and relief agencies have formed a Drought Task Force to co-ordinate humanitarian assistance and provide food and relief supplies.

The Task Force – consisting of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) – will address immediate needs while supporting efforts to adopt drought preparedness and mitigation measures.

Of all the affected countries, the drought in Afghanistan is being described as “the greatest cause of concern in the humanitarian community.”

People already suffering from 22 years of civil conflict and a collapsed economy are now faced with an enormous cereal deficit and severe shortages of safe water for human consumption, according to the United Nations.

The WFP and FAO have estimated that the food deficit in Afghanistan over the next year will hit a record high of 2.3 million metric tons: more than double the former record level set during the previous 12-month period.

Out of a population of 21.9 million people in Afghanistan, three to four million people will be severely affected by the drought, while as many as eight to 12 million may be moderately affected.

The United Nations has already appealed for about 67 million dollars from donors to help address the impact of the drought on Afghans. The UN Task Force has called on the international community “to respond urgently and generously to this request so as to avert a major humanitarian catastrophe.”

Tajikistan has been categorised as the second most affected country in the region. After an assessment of the crop situation in the country, a UN team has concluded that wheat production in Tajikistan will be 30 percent lower than last year. The government of Tajikistan has already appealed for about 100,000 metric tons of wheat to feed its people.

In Pakistan, the spreading drought in the provinces of Baluchistan and Sindh is considered one of the worst in the nation’s history affecting about 2.2 million people and 16 million livestock.

In India, government estimates indicate that almost 50 million people have been affected by droughts in two states. Although the Indian government has not issued any appeals for international assistance, it has adopted emergency measures and provided relief supplies.

The welcome arrival of the rainy season, however, is slowing the ravages of the drought in India and helping the country’s immediate water needs, according to the world body.

In Iran, the UN said that 18 of 28 provinces have been affected by the drought, several critically. The government has estimated that 60 percent of the rural population in the 18 affected provinces, and 12 million people in urban and rural areas are experiencing shortages of potable water.

Iran has allocated about 290 million dollars from its own resources to cope with the drought. The UN, however, is working closely with the government to monitor the situation and develop long-term solutions.

Meanwhile, in a report released this week, Secretary-General Kofi Annan says that donor response to natural disasters is often uneven geographically and by sectors.

Efforts have been made to strengthen the UN inter-agency appeals, which are issued by the world body following large-scale disasters, so that the donor community can respond more objectively to the requirements listed.

“While some success has been achieved, considerable work is still needed to encourage donor governments to support what may be perceived as transitional or early rehabilitation activities, but which are essential components of an effective short-term response,” Annan points out.

Among the steps taken to enhance the response to disasters has been the appointment of regional natural disaster response advisers in Asia, Latin America and the Pacific.

According to the UN, the effectiveness of that arrangement was demonstrated in its response to the mud slides in Venezuela, and the earthquake-tsunami in Vanuatu last year, the earthquake in China and snowstorms in Mongolia in February this year, and the drought in Paraguay in March.