Aid Agencies have delivered in Gaza

Gaza Crisis Appeal - Over £ 7.1 m raised as of March 2009

Early Response and the Delivery of Humanitarian Aid

The early aid response is funded from various sources which will include, Agency own funds, DEC Gaza Crisis Appeal funds and possibly grants from DFID.
The list below is a summary of aid that has been delivered by DEC Agencies in the first 4 weeks since the launch of the DEC appeal.

Health & Hygiene

• Hygiene kits benefitting over 11,800 people;
• Evacuation of around 2,400 injured people, 1,200 trapped civilians and 750 bodies, as well as the evacuation of dozens of patients from Al Quds hospital(Gaza);
• Collected 22 seriously injured Palestinian patients from the Erez crossing for transfer to hospitals in Israel;
• Responded to more than 1,100 calls for help, treated 182 casualties of whom 15 had serious injuries;
• Provision of equipment, medical supplies and consumables to cover the needs of over 4,000 casualties, including a surgical team:
• Provision of health care and ambulance services in Gaza for 10,000 people, plus help for all those who indirectly benefit by access to healthcare facilities if the need arises;
• Provision of essential medical supplies and equipment, benefitting 27,812 Households;
• Provision of 850 bed sheet sets, surgical smocks and Nurses Uniforms and Towels,
• hygiene kits (Sanitary napkins, antiseptic lotion, soap, towel, antiseptic cream shampoo, tooth brush and paste, and hair brush) and First Aid kits (Gauze, plaster, cotton, creep bandage, antiseptic lotion, gauze Vaseline) benefitting 2,400 families:
• Coordinated teams of technicians facilitated essential repair work to hospitals, water and power installations and waste water treatment plants;
• Health supplies (medical equipments, drugs, disposables, ambulances and laboratory kits, generators and spare parts to hospitals;
• Care provided for 600 people affected by stress (in Israel);

Non food items (NFIs)

• Provision of emergency relief items to around 50,000 people in Atatra, Shijayi, Zaytun and Tuffah in the north and Khan Younis and Rafah in the south benefitting approx 8,772 households;
• Provision of shelter, blankets, mattresses and food for 300 people who fled to the ICRC residence in Gaza;
• Donated blankets and mattresses for 17,100 people in UNRWA collective centres benefitting 2,977 Households;
• Distribution of NFIs for Internally Displace People (IDPs) and vulnerable families in Khan Younis area of Gaza benefitting 200 families;

Food

• Food Parcels distributed to 12,186 families;
• Fresh food vouchers supplied to 240 families and 7,100 weekly household fresh food baskets;
• 120 tons of fresh food for hospitals, shelters and social institutions; benefitting 18,131 households;
• Distribution of food baskets to Internally Displace People (IDPs) and vulnerable families in Gaza benefitting 511 families;

Shelter

• Shelter materials (plastic sheeting, blankets, mats, etc.) and cleaning supplies to 7,000 households;

Water & Sanitation

• 11,804 m3 of water supplied to 7,700 families daily (often the same families each day)
• Jerry cans and Bottled water provided to 4,000 Households;
• 220 litre water tanks provided to 95 families

Protection

• Creation of 25 child-friendly spaces and formation of 6 mothers’ groups benefitting over 1,780 families;

Agriculture & Livelihoods

• 150 tons of potato seeds;
• 2,000,000 watermelon seedlings benefitting 350 Households;

Other

• Assisted the evacuation of more than 500 foreign nationals from the Gaza strip;
• Palestine Red Crescent (PRC) and ICRC collected messages from families for their relatives detained in Israel benefitting 150 Households;

DEC Agency Programme Goals:

• To immediately save lives and alleviate the suffering of vulnerable children in Gaza and support sustainable recovery of communities;
• To provide Humanitarian Assistance including food security support, non food supplies to Internally Displaced People (IDPs) and health services to the affected people in Gaza;
• War affected households are able to meet their basic food and non-food needs;
• Poor and vulnerable people can cope and recover from the impacts of the conflict through emergency and early recovery assistance;
• Access to water (storage and distribution), provision of sanitation/hygiene and provision of food;
• People affected by the crisis in Gaza receive emergency relief and medical response;
• Recovery of agricultural livelihoods for small scale farmers lost as a direct result of the recent conflict;
• Youth led community participation: early recovery processes that include community rehabilitation, psychosocial and livelihood assistance as well as community monitoring.

Read more: Aid agencies launch joint appeal to relieve Gaza humanitarian crisis (22/01/09)