Emergency Response to Western Japan Floods

We hereby report that Japan Platform has been conducting the “Emergency Response to Western Japan Floods” program as follows.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude for your support.

The number of relief projects: 21 projects (by 12 member NGOs)

Examples of the relief projects

1. Relief Supply Distribution & Mobile Clinic at evacuation centers by Peace Winds Japan (PWJ)

• Location: Hiroshima and Okayama pref.
• Budget: 19,974,306 JPY
• Period: Jul.15^th - Nov.14th
• Results:  Beneficiaries total 7,033 people  

2. Evacuation Center Control & House Cleaning by Peace Boat Disaster Relief Volunteer Center (PBV)

•  Location :Okada Niman elementary school Evacuation center run by local gov. / Flood stricken residential area in Kurashiki, Okayama pref.
• Budget: 29,975,270 JPY
• Period: Jul.24^th - Dec.31st
• Results: Helped local government by improving 79 areas of 2 evacuation centers, including shower booth, laundry, or community space ,etc.. / By securing evacuees privacy with partition curtains, people could feel more relaxed. / Cleaned up 1023 houses heavily covered with mud.

 3. Volunteer Center Operational Support by Good Neighbors Japan (GNJP)

• Location: Aki Ward Volunteer Center, Hiroshima
• Budget: 4,651,594 JPY
• Period: Jul.22nd – Oct.21st
• Results: Specified the requests of volunteering by physical investigation & interviews at the disaster stricken area. / Helped volunteer registration with each person’s skill data. / By Oct.8th, 99% of requested voluntary work (727 out of 730) were completed by 8,982 volunteers.

 4. Providing Basic Home Appliances by Peace Winds Japan (PWJ)

• Location: Okayama & Hiroshima
• Budget: 114,524,262 JPY
• Period: Aug.3^rd - Nov.30th
• Results: This is to support vulnerable survivors moved to temporary housing without basic household goods. People are able to pick and choose 3 appliances from the catalog. / Covered 1,000 households

Other Projects

• Welfare Facilities Repair and Necessity Supply (AAR)
• Providing food/supplies and support information for the elderly affected by disaster, and providing support information for affected fisherman (PARCIC)
• Disinfection of houses (NICCO)
• Environment enhancement and operational support of personal computers to contribute to the regeneration of the community in temporary housing complexes (BHN)
• Support for providing self-learning spaces for disaster-affected children (GNJP)
• Coordination among support organizations (JPF secretariat)

Challenges and Needs

At this point and moving forward, flooding relief will shift from the initial emergency response phase to the locally-led recovery and reconstruction phase where JPF will fully back up efforts among those affected by the floods to rebuild their own communities.

Priority Area 1. Supporting Local Intermediary Support Organizations: Strengthening the Core among Local Organizations

For locally-led medium- to long-term reconstruction to be successful, it is imperative to have an organization that serves as the core NPO among all other local NPOs.

However some of the local nonprofit sector that ought to step up into this core role are not functioning fully due to lack of human resources and/or damages sustained by the disaster.

Priority Area 2. Supporting Isolated Evacuees: JPF and JPF Member NGOs Assisting Vulnerable Populations in Coordination with Local NPOs and Governments

One of the major challenges in the coming months is supporting evacuees who are prone to be isolated. Both who have left the evacuation shelters and returned to their own homes damaged by the flooding and who are still in evacuation shelters may be at a loss where to rebuild their lives. Currently, local governments and relief agencies do not have an accurate grasp of these vulnerable flooding survivors, and there is great need for a coordinated effort with the local NPOs and other relief providers to offer them flexible and hands-on support.

Your on-going support will be highly appreciated.

Links:

• https://www.japanplatform.org/E/

• Progress_Report_As_of_November_2018_Emergency_Response_to_Western_Japan_Floods.pdf (PDF)