Global Disasters/ Significant Events – March 23, 2015

Iraqi Kurdistan nears breaking point

More than 1 million people internally displaced by the terrorist group ISIL, recently calling itself Islamic State (IS), in Addition to 225,000 refugees from Syria are taking a devastating economic and social toll on Iraqi Kurdistan, says IRIN.

“The population of the semi-autonomous region has grown by 28 percent in the space of 12 months, piling pressure on education and health services. With further military offensives planned against IS, there are fears that yet more people will seek safety in the region.”

“The scale of the influx has created significant competition for jobs, pushing down wages and household incomes across the board, while demand for water, electricity and waste management is outstripping supply.”

Displaced women and girls trapped in Afghanistan’s cities

Seven out of 10 displaced Afghan female say they have never attended a school. They also face “significant constraints” to health and employment opportunities, according to a new report by the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).

• “We are imprisoned in our tents and we don’t have permission to go out. What is this sort of life worth?” says a 24 year-old woman from the Helmand province, internally displaced in Kabul and one of the respondents in the report.

• “We are being sold in exchange for money like animals. Our rights are ignored; we are often sold to widowers, blind men, disabled or old men and we have no choice to refuse marrying them”, says a 23 year-old woman from the Muhammad Aghai district in the Logar province, now living in a camp for internally displaced in Kabul.

• Displaced women and girls across Afghanistan cities are suffering unacceptable levels of hunger and high levels of psychological trauma, without any mental health assistance support to turn to, says the report.

Iraqi Kurdistan nears breaking point

More than 1 million people internally displaced by the terrorist group ISIL, recently calling itself Islamic State (IS), in Addition to 225,000 refugees from Syria are taking a devastating economic and social toll on Iraqi Kurdistan, says IRIN.

“The population of the semi-autonomous region has grown by 28 percent in the space of 12 months, piling pressure on education and health services. With further military offensives planned against IS, there are fears that yet more people will seek safety in the region.”

“The scale of the influx has created significant competition for jobs, pushing down wages and household incomes across the board, while demand for water, electricity and waste management is outstripping supply.”

Critical Food Insecurity in Central African Republic (CAR)

Farmers in the CAR urgently need seeds and tools for the planting season in April to prevent further deterioration of their livelihoods in the conflict-stricken country, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said today.

Some 1.5 million people are currently food insecure across the country and this figure is likely to rise in the absence of immediate support. Additionally, the significant food shortages across the country could worsen, population movements could result in increased tension, the return of displaced persons and refugees to their villages could be delayed.

Refugee Crisis in Cameroon

The number of internally displaced people in the north has nearly doubled since 10 February, to 117,000,  bringing the total number of displaced in Cameroon to an estimated 412,700, including 66,000 who are fleeing Boko Haram violence in Nigeria and the remainder from the Central African Republic.

More than 120,000 displaced amid fighting in southern Philippines

More than 120,000 people have fled their homes since late January after fighting broke out between government forces and armed groups in the southern Philippines island of Mindanao, reported UNHCR.

The number of displaced is expected to rise as the fighting spreads to local communities hosting the displaced, said the UN refugee agency.

An estimated 13 municipalities in Maguindanao and North Cotabato have been affected in eight weeks of clashes between the state security forces and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, said the report.

Some of the IDPs are sheltering in schools and public buildings, with unknown numbers staying with friends or relatives, according to UNHCR.