Sichuan Quake Relief (SQR)

Red Cross updated appeal (re-post from original at ReliefWeb)

China: Sichuan Earthquake Revised Emergency and Recovery Appeal No. MDRCN003

This Revised Emergency and Recovery Appeal seeks CHF 167,102,368 (USD 137.7 million or EUR 110 million) in cash, kind, or services to support the Red Cross Society of China to assist an estimated 200,000 families (up to 1,000,000 people) affected by the earthquake for 31 months.

This revised appeal will address the specific recovery needs based on technical assessments that have been conducted by the Red Cross Society of China with support from the International Federation in the earthquake affected areas. The appeal covers the provision of life-saving relief and substantial recovery and reconstruction programmes to address widespread humanitarian needs in Sichuan, Gansu and Shaanxi provinces.

This operation is expected to be implemented over 31 months, and will therefore be completed in December 2010; a final report will be made available by March 2011, three months following the end of the operation.

Appeal history:

• An emergency appeal was launched on 30 May 2008 for CHF 96.7 million (USD 92.7 million or EUR 59.5 million) in response to the huge humanitarian needs and in recognition of the unique position of the Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) supported by Red Cross Red Crescent partners to deliver high quality disaster response and recovery programmes.
• A preliminary emergency appeal of CHF 20.1 million (USD 19.3 million and EUR 12.4 million) was issued on 15 May 2008 to support the RCSC to assist around 100,000 people affected by the earthquake for 12 months.
• CHF 250,000 (USD 240,223 or EUR 155,160) was allocated from the International Federation’s Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) on 12 May 2008, to support the RCSC to immediately start assessments of the affected areas and distribute relief items.

This Revised Emergency and Recovery Appeal reflects the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies’ continued commitment towards assisting the Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) in meeting the huge needs of communities affected by the 12 May Sichuan earthquake. It is being revised to enable the RCSC and its partners to focus efforts where needs have been identified based on technical assessments in relief, shelter, water and sanitation, psychosocial support and health services, and livelihoods. It will also enable the RCSC to strengthen its organizational capacity for relief, recovery/reconstruction and disaster risk reduction in the disaster-affected areas.

The plans of action were developed after technical assessments were conducted and are based on realistic expectations of the ability of the RCSC to scale-up the size and complexity of its programming. The processes and activities implemented under this appeal will include the provision of technical assistance to the RCSC and the joint implementation of pilot programmes that RCSC may then consider scaling up with the substantial resources raised in response to their national fundraising campaign. It is clear that the needs in the region are enormous. The only limit of the International Federation’s support will be the funding received and the joint capacity of the RCSC and International Federation to implement the planned activities. There are still limitations on the number of international delegates based in Sichuan, although it has loosened recently.

At the request of the RCSC leadership, the International Federation will continue to play a key role in the coordination of Red Cross Red Crescent Movement-supported activities. An office has been established in Chengdu with technical delegates to cover the major sectors. The recruitment of construction delegates are being planned and they will be in place shortly. The East Asia regional office in Beijing supports the Chengdu office and the RCSC headquarters with mainly strategic planning and communications with partners, and is further supported by the Asia Pacific zone office in Kuala Lumpur.

Many partner national societies have already made contributions to the appeal: American Red Cross, Australian Red Cross/Australian government, Belgian Red Cross/ Belgian government, British Red Cross, Bulgarian Red Cross, Canadian Red Cross/Canadian government, Cook Islands Red Cross, Croatian Red Cross, Czech Red Cross, Danish Red Cross/Danish government, Estonian Red Cross, Finnish Red Cross/Finnish government, German Red Cross, Icelandic Red Cross, Irish Red Cross/ Irish government, Japanese Red Cross/Japanese government, Lithuanian Red Cross, Malaysian Red Crescent, Mauritius Red Crescent, Monaco Red Cross, Netherlands Red Cross/Netherlands government, New Zealand Red Cross/New Zealand government, Norwegian Red Cross, Qatar Red Crescent, Singapore Red Cross, Spanish Red Cross, Swedish Red Cross, Sri Lanka Red Cross, and United Arab Emirates Red Crescent Society, as well as contributions from American, Greek, Italian, Luxembourg, Slovenian and South Africa governments, OPEC Fund for International Development, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and many corporate partners.

The Red Cross Society of China has also received many bi-lateral contributions of funding, including the following: Cambodian Red Cross, French Red Cross, German Red Cross, Republic of Korea Red Cross, Norwegian Red Cross, Pakistan Red Crescent, Spanish Red Cross, Swiss Red Cross, Thai Red Cross, Turkish Red Crescent and Viet Nam Red Cross. These contributions have been added to the various substantial resources raised domestically by the Red Cross Society of China in its national fundraising appeal.
To date, the initial appeal for CHF 96.7 million is 87% covered, with cash and in-kind contributions totalling CHF 84.4 million received to date. Total expenditure from May until the end of October 2008 is CHF 46.5 million.

The International Federation, on behalf of the Red Cross Society of China, would like to thank all partners for their very quick and generous response to this appeal.

Downloadable files:

• Full report
• Map of situation as of Nov 20th 2008