Pakistan: Winter Relief and Health Services for Rehabilitation of Returning IDPs

Relief Goods Distributed: December 2017

January 30, 2018

Dr. Rubina Mumtaz

Pakistan Initiative Reports

Pakistan has an existing service delivery project in District Swat, KPK composed of a healthcare hub clinic in the village of Nagoha, UC Barikot that offers comprehensive primary health care, inclusive of routine pathology investigations and ultrasound services. It links to and acts as a referral point for our new semi-mobile outreach satellite clinic that offers basic primary healthcare services. The hub clinic is also operating as the field base camp for the winterization project, providing space for office staff and storage of supplies.

Implementation Protocol

Registration of Repatriating Families

Registration of the returning IDP families and assessment of their immediate needs on a case-by-case basis was the main activity of the first implementation phase. The sites finalized were seven villages in four union councils of the tehsils Matta and Khweza Khela:

Baranavi and Dabargai, UC Madyan
Bashigran, UC Bashigran
Sattal, Tangoon, and Ayeen Ashoka, UC Bahrain
Chatekal, UC Beha

Scouting for Vulnerable Families

This was carried out with the help of local community leaders and UC councilors. They identified poor and vulnerable families who had repatriated within the previous 2–3 months and who did not have extended family networks to cushion their initial resettlement. Criteria included:

Repatriation from IDP host site within the previous 2–3 months
Preference given to female-headed households
Family includes young children and elderly members
Monthly income less than or equal to Rs15,000/- (US$150)

The total number of families was finalized at 162.

Inventory of Relief Items

A detailed needs assessment of each registered family was conducted at the time of registration, which varied slightly from family to family. The amended list of relief goods included the following elements:

Non-perishable Food Rations
One RMF food ration package is enough to feed a family of 7–8 people for one month. Each food package includes these items:

Flour 40 kg
Rice 20 kg
Cooking oil 5 kg
Tea 1 kg
Powdered milk 2 kg
Sugar 5 kg
Lentils 10 kg
Spices/salt – 1 packet o Matchboxes – 1 packet each

Coal
Our needs assessment found that cooking utensils were not a requirement. A majority of repatriating families brought back these supplies from their host camps. However, fuel for heating and cooking was a dire need. The popular source of fuel was coal, a locally available commodity.

Shelter
At the initial stage, we proposed that winterized tents be issued to families whose houses were uninhabitable. For those families whose houses were still standing but required minor repairs to make them habitable, the same budget would be used for repairs. Fortunately, our needs assessment survey showed that neither was required, as most of the families had made their homes habitable. However, for the oncoming winter, the floor surfaces required waterproof floor mats and carpets. In addition to floor weatherproofing and insulation, warm blankets were issued at the rate of 2–5 king-sized blankets per family, depending on the family size.

Warm Clothing
Clothing for the families; mainly warm coats, hats, socks, and gloves; was procured based on each family’s specific needs. This involved a fine detailing of each family member and his or her size.

Family Hygiene Kits
The composition of the family hygiene kit is based on Sphere Guidelines and UNICEF WASH requirements. One kit per family (up to seven family members) was determined as best practice. As with the clothing exercise, the family hygiene kits were also customized according to each family’s size and needs. The components of the family kit are as follows:

2 large towels (per family of 4; increased according to the family size)
1 kg laundry soap (per family of 4; increased according to family size)
4 bars of antibacterial body soap (per family of 6; increased according to family size)
1 hairbrush and comb
1 nail clipper o 100 ml toothpaste (per family of 4; increased according to family size)
Toothbrushes (one for each family member)

Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) Kits
The MHM kits, developed according to UNICEF Dignity Kit Guidance, were issued according to the number of menstruating women in each family, at one kit per menstruating woman per month. The number required for each family was evaluated in a dignified manner during the face-to-face interview by RMF Pakistan’s M&E staff with the families. The composition of the MHM kit is as follows:

2 pieces of cotton underwear
1 packet of 12 disposable sanitary napkins
1 bar of soap for handwashing
250 g of green tea

Distribution

The first distribution took place in a 3-day exercise from December 6, 2017 to December 9, 2017, well before the first snowfall. The modus operandi for distribution was based on union council location.

The total number of beneficiary families were 60 from UC Bahrain, 5 from UC Bashigran, 11 from UC Madyan and 86 from UC Beha.

Donate

Background

Real Medicine Foundation arrived in Pakistan in late 2005, and has since continued to provide humanitarian support to internally displaced persons (IDPs), underserved communities, and vulnerable groups. Building on local relationships and expertise developed through our recent earthquake relief and ongoing health clinic project in District Swat, RMF Pakistan began a 6-month program to assist IDP families returning to their homes in high-altitude, remote areas of District Swat. The program has been made possible by support from LDS Charities and targets 162 of the most vulnerable IDP families repatriated to District Swat within the previous 2–3 months.

Objectives

Provide relief shelter i.e. winterized tents, plastic floor mats, carpets and minor repair of damaged houses
Provide uncooked food rations and cooking fuel
Provide warm clothing and blankets
Provide family hygiene kits and menstrual hygiene management (MHM) kits
Provide primary health care via outreach satellite clinics and a hub clinic