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Afghanistan Earthquake Relief

Support local earthquake relief and recovery efforts in Afghanistan

LocationAfghanistan

Issue AreaDisaster

Tax benefit eligibilityAU

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This campaign is now closed. Please consider donating to the DisasterLink Response Fund to support our local partners in responding to disasters immediately.

Situation Report

A major earthquake hit three eastern provinces of Afghanistan at the border with Pakistan at 1 AM local time on Wednesday, June 22, 2022. It is strongest quake to hit the region in 20 years. The quake adds suffering to the people that have been experiencing a food insecurity crisis and struggling with health, education, and social support systems due to political turmoil mid-last year. 

The State Ministry for Disaster Management pointed the most affected areas are Districts of Giyan, Nika, Barmal and Zirok in Paktika Province. At least 1,000 people have lost their lives and 1,500 people were wounded. The huge number of casualties are also due to the time of the quake that happened shortly after midnight, where most residents were already sleeping. 

The earthquake also caused massive destruction to homes and public facilities. With poor infrastructure and limited communication services, the government and many international aid agencies are struggling to reach remote areas, especially those on the border with Pakistan. The government appealed to international communities to support relief and recovery efforts. 

Immediate Needs

The affected communities have limited access to food and emergency shelters. Immediate needs identified by our partners working on the ground include:

  • Shelter equipment, including blankets and beds
  • Staple food items such as flour, daal, beans, tea, sugar, rice and cooking oil
  • Basic first aid medicine and medical equipment
  • Personal hygiene items, especially for women and children
  • Recovery support for the affected communities

Our Partners

Give2Asia works with organizations in Afghanistan to provide immediate relief and support long-term recovery and rehabilitation. Our partners include:

ActionAid

ActionAid is responding – the team is now on the ground and will be working in the affected areas to address people’s immediate needs. In the short term, ActionAid will be supplying food and water, and in the longer term we will be assessing what additional support will be needed. 

ActionAid’s Response: 

  • ActionAid is planning an intervention with villages in Paktika province. The intervention will begin with a rapid assessment of the needs as well as a market assessment that can help with local procurement of emergency items. 
  • ActionAid will then proceed with a one-month intervention (following the first month, needs will be assessed again). The intervention will consist of: 

Week 1: Food and water for approximately 800-1,000 families 

Weeks 2-4: Multipurpose cash transfers. Further decisions on additional support will be based on the needs assessment. 

  • Capable ActionAid staff from Paktika province will be carrying out this intervention. The type of local response is part of ActionAid’s unique signature – it ensures that the emergency responders understand the local context, language, and community.   

AfghanAid

Afghanaid is an international charity that works alongside Afghans in the most remote and marginalized regions of the country to promote their economic, social, and political rights, helping poor communities to help themselves. Their three principle areas of work include: providing basic services, improving livelihoods and reducing the risks of natural disasters. In all of their work, they promote good governance and gender rights. Throughout all of their projects, communities are viewed as partners with essential resources and values to contribute, not merely recipients of temporary relief. 

AfghanAid local partner, The Liaison Office (TLO), conducted a rapid assessment in Paktika and Khost Provinces on June 23, 2022, and categorised five sectors which require immediate response: emergency shelters (tents) and further need for homesteads rehabilitation, food assistance, non-food items, health support and basic medicines, and WASH. In the medium and long term, multi-purpose cash should be provided to the affected families to address their basic needs, while WASH activities should be started immediately. 

CARE
CARE began working in Afghanistan in 1961 and has had continuous operations in the country since 1989. CARE has experience working and negotiating humanitarian access in the most complex humanitarian settings, including in Afghanistan. CARE’s programs in Afghanistan focus on women’s social and economic empowerment, health care, livelihood assistance, and providing vulnerable households with cash assistance, winter kits, and essential food items.
CARE deployed three mobile health units to the affected areas the day the earthquake struck. The teams comprise of a doctor, midwife, and psychosocial and nutrition counselors. CARE medical teams are providing trauma first aid and lifesaving primary care as well as supporting district and regional hospitals. Head trauma and broken bones are among the most common injuries being treated and some of the injured are pregnant women, who face a very real risk of miscarriage. CARE team is currently managing to treat between 50-70 people per day, but more resources are urgently needed to scale-up assistance to even more people affected by the earthquake.
CARE’s relief response:
  • CARE is distributing basic relief items including solar lamps and providing flexible cash assistance to help those dealing with the impacts of the earthquake get back on their feet. Over the coming days, CARE aims to reach over 3,500 people with urgent humanitarian assistance. More funding is urgently needed to scale up the response to reach tens of thousands more with medical assistance, temporary shelter, flexible cash assistance, and basic relief items.
  • The potential spread of cholera across the affected communities as water sources are damaged or polluted, and sanitation facilities destroyed, is a real concern. Cholera was already endemic in Afghanistan and cases were reported to be on the rise even before the earthquake. It is crucial we act quickly to avert a new major outbreak of waterborne diseases.
  • CARE’s mobile health teams are providing specialized treatment for pregnant women and psychosocial support to help them cope with the emotional impact of the earthquake.
  • Along with physical injuries, CARE is very worried about the immediate and longer-term psychological impacts of the earthquake on survivors who are processing the event and the loss of loved ones. Providing them with mental health support, alongside other medical assistance, is crucial. Many of these people were already struggling to provide financially for their families due to soaring prices and inflation, and extreme levels of hunger, even before this latest crisis.
The Asia Foundation (TAF) Afghanistan
The Asia Foundation (TAF) is a nonprofit international development organization committed to the development of a peaceful, prosperous, just, and open Asia-Pacific region. TAF supports programs in Asia that help improve governance, law, and civil society; women’s empowerment; economic reform and development; and international relations.
Drawing on more than 60 years of experience in Asia, TAF collaborates with private and public partners to support leadership and institutional development, exchanges, and policy research. In the emergency relief and response phase, TAF will be working with partners on the ground, especially with long-standing partner organizations working in the Country.

UNICEF USA

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) works in more than 190 countries and territories to put children first. UNICEF has helped save more children’s lives than any other humanitarian organization, by providing health care and immunizations, clean water and sanitation, nutrition, education, emergency relief and more.  

UNICEF has dispatched health teams and emergency supplies to respond to the earthquake in Paktika and Khost provinces of Southeastern Afghanistan early on June 22. The de facto authorities have requested the support of UNICEF and other UN agency teams who are joining efforts to assess the situation and respond to the needs of the affected communities. UNICEF medical and nutrition teams are working to provide first aid for those who are injured. UNICEF is also providing critical aid, including kitchen equipment, hygiene supplies including soap, detergent, towels, sanitary pads and water buckets, warm clothes, shoes and blankets, as well as tents and tarpaulins. 

How You Can Help

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About Myriad Australia

Myriad Australia (previously known as Give2Asia Australia) is a trusted partner for international philanthropy and the leader in donor-advised giving to the Asia-Pacific. Our mission is to strengthen communities around the world by making cross-border giving easier and more effective.

Myriad Australia leverages the strengths of Myriad, the Alliance for borderless giving, and its members to improve the lives of people around the world.

Tax Benefit Eligibility

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