Official launch of the Emergency Response Plan: Statement by Ms. Antje Grawe, UN RC/UN DRCU Co-Chair

Minister,

Deputy Minister,

Excellencies,

Heads of Missions,

Humanitarian partners,

Dear Colleagues,

Thank you for joining today’s launch of the Emergency Response Plan for Kyrgyzstan’s Batken region and the people affected by the recent escalation of violence at the Kyrgyz-Tajik border.

I wish I could be with you in the room, but I am attending the Global Meeting of Resident Coordinators in New York, which is why I am connected virtually. That said, I would have preferred for us to meet for a different reason.

But, that you are here is of utmost importance, of importance for the thousands – women and men, boys and girls - who have lost their homes, the warmth and safety of these homes, their friends and neighbors, their belongings, their playgrounds.

It is important for the thousands who have generously opened their homes to host those who have lost them. For those who are freezing as we are sitting here, who don’t know whether they will have enough food to feed their children and themselves; for those who no longer enjoy the basic right to access clean water, education or healthcare.

So thank you again for being here for the people who have been affected by the crisis that unfolded during those four days in mid-September in Batken region, and who need urgent support, who need your support, before the winter kicks in fully in just a few weeks from now.

These needs are summarized in the Emergency Response Plan in front of you, which was developed through the Disaster Response Coordination Unit (DRCU) following its activation upon request from the Government on 16 September when the Government saw that the impact of the escalation of violence on its people was of a scale that required the support of Kyrgyzstan’s humanitarian partners, national and international, in addition to its own assistance and that of the people of Kyrgyzstan.

The DRCU reacted swiftly – and let me echo the gratitude expressed by the Minister to all humanitarian partners for their swift reaction. Not only did we together convene the first meeting of the DRCU Council on the same day, but humanitarian partners immediately started supporting the Government in delivering much needed assistance whilst assessing the needs of the affected communities more comprehensively.

I would like to pay special tribute to both national and international first responders and humanitarian organizations which have worked tirelessly to provide relief to those in need with every possible resource at their disposal. But clearly, the scale of needs exceeds in-country resources of the DRCU, hence, the Emergency Response Plan.

Through an inter-agency assessment team on the ground, the DRCU identified both the number of people in need of assistance and their most pressing needs.

As a result, the Plan focuses on the most urgent lifesaving and protection needs for the most vulnerable among the affected population, or in other words:  overall, the Plan aims to provide humanitarian assistance to 77.700 people who are considered as the most vulnerable of the 146 thousand in need for support. Groups identified as most vulnerable include women and children, women-headed households, elderly with no care, and persons with disabilities.

The most pressing needs as identified are: the provision of food; shelter for the displaced population; the provision of non-food items, particularly basic household supplies for those who lost their homes and appropriate clothing and heating ahead of the winter; the procurement of hygiene and sanitation items; access to essential health services including psychological support; access to education; protection including legal assistance, and early recovery.

In detail, the Plan foresees:

• The delivery of food and cash assistance to 61,314 people to meet the immediate food needs of the affected population;
• The provision of shelter, essential household and sanitation hygiene items to 14,314 people whose homes were damaged or destroyed;
• We need to be ready to respond to education and healthcare needs of 21.000 and 65.000 people, respectively;
• Cover the protection needs of around 16.000 people, including legal assistance and child protection; and last but not least, the
• creation of short term income-generating opportunities to restore livelihoods and emergency communications in 30 villages in Batken, assisting up to 40,000 people in the affected areas.

In this context, let me remind us that the crisis affected an area which already faced a multitude of development challenges, with more than one third of the population living under the poverty line according to a World Bank Report of 2019. The region has also been particularly affected by the Global Food Crisis that has further exacerbated inequalities and vulnerabilities all over the country. Rising food and fuel prices combined with inflation are eroding the purchasing power of the most vulnerable.

This means that the affected families and communities need emergency assistance and help to rebuild their livelihoods even more. And they need it now, before the winter sets in. 

This also means that funding is urgently required, now. The funding needed to address the lifesaving needs of the most vulnerable for the next three months amounts to US$14.7 million, according to the Plan. Seventeen organizations stand ready to implement activities across the areas mentioned.

In this context, let me share with you that I just received the news that the Emergency Relief Coordinator, Martin Griffiths, has approved a funding request which we submitted to OCHA’s Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) amounting to 1 million USD, which reduces the funding requirement to 13.7 million USD. The request was approved due to the urgency for the assistance to reach people in need before winter.

Before concluding, let me also stress that beyond the provision of urgent and lifesaving humanitarian and protection assistance and the limited early recovery components covered under this plan, longer-term recovery, peacebuilding and development is needed. With the mainly development-focused context of Kyrgyzstan, the DRCU will aim at a consistent alignment of humanitarian and development activities.

While the response plan is a short-term course of action to address the most pressing lifesaving needs of the affected population, the UN and its partners will continue to support the Government to move towards medium and long-term recovery and development assistance, as guided by the principles of the 2030 Agenda and the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework for Kyrgyzstan (2023-2027).

But now, we are now in a race against time ahead of the winter season.  I therefore call on all donors to consider making funding available as soon as possible!

In closing, while humanitarian actors are working tirelessly to help alleviate the pain of the affected communities, restoration of trust and confidence is of paramount importance for local residents to be able to live in safety and revitalize their livelihoods, without fear. In this regard it is critical that the sides engage through diplomatic means only to resolve outstanding issues.

Thank you.

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Read the DRCU Emergency Response Plan Executive Summary. 

Read the press release.