A series of natural disasters that occured only days apart across Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam left millions in need of assistance. 

In a matter of days in 2009, Typhoon Ketsana made landfall in the Philippines near Metro Manila on 26 September and then a major earthquake struck near the city of Padang on the Indonesian island of Sumatra on 30 September. Ketsana moved west, hitting Vietnam, and on 4 October Typhoon Parma left a trail of destruction across the northern Philippines. In all, more than five million people were significantly affected by the string of disasters and more than 1,500 died.

A subsequent landslide West of Padang in Indonesia led to further loss of life than those caused by collapsing buildings. DEC member charities assisted with health care by erecting mobile health camps.

The most immediate needs were to help those who had lost their homes in the disasters. In the aftermath, DEC members provided emergency shelter as well as helping people repair and improve their homes, building them stronger so as to be more resilient in case of future natural disasters. People were also provided with food assistance to prevent families who had lost their livelihoods from going hungry. 

Household goods and cash grants were provided to help people restore their livelihoods and educational materials allowed children to return to their educations more quickly. 

How funds were spent 

The largest areas of expenditure were:

• Shelter - 34%
• Livelihoods - 21%
• Water and sanitation - 12%