The government has asked disaster-hit provinces to come up with detailed assessments of the effects of the recent drought and floods in order to help international and national authorities decide whether or not to issue a global appeal for aid, authorities said.
Hoping to get a better sense of the damage, the National Committee for Disaster Management dispatched “Damage and Needs Assessment” reports to officials in Oddar Meanchey, Battambang, Pursat, Kompong Cham, Kratie, Stung Treng, Prey Veng, Svay Rieng, Siem Reap, Kandal, Kompong Speu and Takeo provinces, a release from the national committee stated Thursday.
Although international aid groups had planned a world appeal for aid in late August, water levels dropped quickly and people began returning home, so the appeal has been put on hold for the time being, International Federation of the Red Cross delegation head Anthony Spalton said.
The needs are not as great as officials originally thought they would be, Spalton said.
But authorities are still monitoring the “food security situation” for the long term as the rainy season comes to an end, Spalton said.
Reports out of Laos have suggested that water levels may rise again in the next two weeks, but that may also be based on looking at previous years’ trends, when the Mekong River peaked twice in the late part of the annual rainy season, Spalton said.
According to the latest government statistics, this year’s floods displaced 167,000 people, caused $38 million in damage and killed 29 people.
But the drought, the worst since 1995, probably will cause the most long-term problems, authorities have said. Because of the drought, less than 37 percent of this year’s rice crop had been planted before the floods swept down on the country, authorities have said.
Whatever the outcome of the damage reports, officials will examine harvests in October, when a separate appeal for food aid could be issued, Spalton said.
The provincial officials have been told to file the damage reports by Sept 15, the national committee release stated.
