Contribution to international development report: 2018-2019

Chapter Six: Humanitarian Emergency Fund

6.1 Introduction

Scotland has a longstanding history of contributing aid to humanitarian crises, both through the UK Government’s Department for International Development and through its, non-government organisations, local charities and individuals.

In recognition of Scotland’s role as a good global citizen, since 2005, Scottish Ministers have responded to some international humanitarian crises including in Yemen, Gaza, Syria and West Africa. In 2016 Scottish Ministers committed to delivering a Humanitarian Emergency Fund (HEF). The HEF was established from April 2017, supported by an expert Panel comprising of representatives from eight leading humanitarian aid organisations based in Scotland. The HEF is administered by the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) on behalf of Scottish Ministers.

In 2018/19 the HEF supported six humanitarian emergency responses: these are detailed in fully in Annex D. The 2018/19 Annual Report on the HEF can be found here.

6.2 Examples of HEF Activations in 2018/19

6.2.1 Natural Disaster: Indonesian Tsunami – October 2018

In September 2018, an earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale rocked the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, triggering a terrifying tsunami as high as 18 feet which left a trail of destruction in its wake. More than 2,200 people died, more than 1,300 were reported as missing and 4,400 were seriously injured.

An appeal was launched shortly after by the DEC, triggering a Stream 1 release from the HEF. In October 2018, the Scottish Government announced that £240,000 would be released from the HEF to support those affected, split as follows: the DEC received £192,000; and three non-DEC members of the HEF Panel (Mission Aviation Fellowship, Mercy Corps, and SCIAF) received an equal share of £48,000 which contributed to their wider organisational response, providing food, clean water, first aid and shelter.

HEF Case Study 1: Indonesian Tsunami

Fifteen year old Gesang* collects a shelter kit. When his family’s house in Sibalay village was damaged by the earthquake, they like thousands of others had to move to a market area in the North of Palu. The area was also hit by the tsunami with many houses swallowed up by the rare but terrifying phenomenon of liquefaction, where solid earth quickly turns to liquid mud.

With DEC funding, supported by the Scottish Government, Christian Aid’s local partner distributed a range of material including tarpaulin and rope to enable Gesang’s family to build a temporary shelter to give them some respite before attempting to rebuild their shattered lives.

*Name changed to protect identity.

Above: Gesang* collecting shelter kit

6.2.1 Conflict and Climate Emergency: Mali – December 2018

Mali has had a longstanding institutional and security crisis since 2012, with widespread displacement of communities and serious disruption of livelihoods. There has been continual violence between communities with attacks by Islamist groups, bandits and other armed actors.

The population remains extremely vulnerable to the combined effects of conflict and natural disasters such as drought and floods which has led to large unplanned population movements.

Towards the end of 2018, the central Mopti region was the epicentre of the inter-ethnic conflict and insecurity which led to a significant increase in the number of people who had become internally displaced.

In November 2018, the Scottish Government made available £200,000 from the HEF to support communities displaced by conflict in Mali. Two projects by Mercy Corps and Tearfund were awarded £100,000 each, to help meet essential food and sanitation needs of over 700 households in communities affected by the crisis.

HEF Case Study 2: Mali

Below Mercy Corps project worker discusses use of cash vouchers

Tearfund distributed cash to 340 households to purchase food & kitchen utensils, providing hygiene and sanitation kits and mosquito bed nets. As well as increasing food security, the support also boosted the social status of these group and their hopes for the future. Access to clean water also supported improvements to hygiene and sanitation whilst mosquito nets helped protect from malaria risk and further reducing vulnerability of the target community.

Below: One of the internally displaced families supported by Tearfund

Mercy Corps succeeded in meeting food needs of 478 households in this period. A voucher-based system helped give participants flexibility in their choices of food and provide an infusion of cash to support the recovery of the local economy. All voucher exchanges were carried out in a transparent and efficient manner, with participants reporting high satisfaction with the goods they were able to purchase. In a strongly patriarchal culture, 35% of the households supported were female led, 75% of the households were from the two main ethnic groups involved in the conflict.