Attachments
Summary of the current response
Overview of Host National Society
The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) has been on the alert and prepared for response since Typhoon Hagupit was sighted. Emergency teams were on standby and immediately dispatched when needed. To date, the National Society has mobilized some 810 staff and volunteers to provide relief assistance, conduct disease prevention education, offer psychosocial support, and distribute clean water. PRC also deployed ambulances, hot-meal vehicles, water and fuel tankers, and all-terrain vehicles to affected areas in Sorsogon and Samar.
In support of those displaced, PRC also set up 112 welfare desks in affected areas, providing some 35,300 hot meals, psychosocial support and referrals to over 1,500 people. To date, the National Society has also been distributing food packages good for 2-3 days to more than 5,000 families as well as relief items (including hygiene kits, blankets, jerry cans and sleeping mats). PRC has also conducted hygiene promotion for over 1,874 families overall, and deployed a water tanker to Albay to provide safe, drinking water to the affected people.
Overview of Red Cross Red Crescent Movement in-country
The Philippine Red Cross works with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as well as with the American Red Cross, Australian Red Cross, British Red Cross, Canadian Red Cross, Finnish Red Cross, French Red Cross, German Red Cross, Japanese Red Cross Society, Netherlands Red Cross, Norwegian Red Cross, Republic of Korea National Red Cross, Spanish Red Cross, Swiss Red Cross and Qatar Red Crescent.
Most of the Red Cross Red Crescent partners mentioned are involved in the overall Typhoon Haiyan recovery operation. Discussions are presently ongoing as to partner support for response to Typhoon Hagupit in the areas which are not covered by the ICRC or the Typhoon Haiyan operation.
Movement Coordination
The IFRC has an overall Red Cross Red Crescent Movement coordinator in place who liaises frequently and supports coordination with the Philippine Red Cross, ICRC, Partner National Societies in-country, and external organizations as needed.
The Red Cross Red Crescent Movement as a whole is supporting PRC in its response to people affected by Typhoon Hagupit. An agreement on the different roles, responsibilities, and the coordination of these, has been made through a joint statement agreed and signed on 8 December 2014. PRC continues to take the lead in the response, while IFRC supports through assessments, relief and recovery assistance, and organizational development in areas other than those covered by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). IFRC will also coordinate international communication directly related to Hagupit and the possible mobilization of its international and regional response mechanisms. In areas where ICRC takes the lead, IFRC support will be complementary to their interventions.
Participating National Societies can work either directly with PRC or through IFRC and ICRC. All support is made through the Movement coordination mechanism for Typhoon Hagupit.
Overview of non-Red Cross Red Crescent actors in-country
Coordinating with the authorities
As auxiliary to the public authorities, PRC maintains a strong relationship with government bodies through participation or collaboration with (i) the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC); (ii) the provincial, municipal and barangay (village) disaster risk reduction and management councils; and (iii) the local government units defined in the Disaster Risk Reduction and Management act from 2010.
PRC participates in NDRRMC meetings and coordinates with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the Department of Health, and the NDRRMC at provincial, municipal and barangay levels.
Inter-agency coordination
At country level, PRC and IFRC participate in Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) forums held both during disasters and non-emergency times. PRC and IFRC are involved in relevant Cluster information sharing, planning, and analysis at all levels while IFRC supports PRC coordination efforts through representation in other relevant Clusters as required. Regionally, the IFRC Asia Pacific zone office participates in regional Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) meetings, while globally, IFRC has taken part in the IASC Principles and Emergency Director meetings on the Philippines.
IFRC is the lead agency of the IASC Shelter Cluster in the Philippines and is maintaining a Shelter Cluster coordinator (from the Typhoon Haiyan Shelter Cluster) in Manila this week and part of the next one. For Typhoon Hagupit, the coordinator has been supporting the Humanitarian Country Team and donors, and held a meeting with agencies on 10 December 2014. At this time, there does not appear to be a long term need for the IFRC to lead the Shelter Cluster for this response. If the need for regional Shelter Cluster coordination arises in Eastern Samar, which is an ICRC operational area, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) may assume coordination of activities requested by the Government of Philippines.