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IFAD commits initial $US 100 million to reconstruction in Tsunami-devastated communities Rome, 11 January 2005 − IFAD is committed to mobilizing an initial $US 100 million in new resources for countries affected by the tsunami. As the UN agency dedicated to eradicating poverty in rural areas, IFAD will be helping people affected by the disaster to rebuild their communities and their livelihoods. The goal is not only to help them to recover, but to increase their capacity to cope with future natural disasters by enabling them to overcome the desperate poverty that makes them so vulnerable. Poverty reduces ability to protect oneself from nature "You cannot prevent an earthquake," said Lennart Båge, president of IFAD. "You cannot prevent a tsunami. But you can minimize the effects. We see that earthquakes in rich countries have much less impact in terms of casualties. You see huge hurricanes hitting Florida , and you have a system for dealing with it. You see big earthquakes and tsunamis in Japan and there the casualties are much, much lower. So there is ultimately a strong link between poverty and the ability to protect yourself against nature, and that’s an important lesson." When natural disasters strike it is the poorest people who are most vulnerable who endure greatest hardships and have the least ability to cope. It is because of poverty that they live in disaster-prone areas. They live in fragile shelters that are easily destroyed by natural forces. They have no insurance to help them pay for lost boats, nets, seeds and other assets they need to earn a living. They have no savings to fall back on for emergency food and shelter. To make matters worse, many poor rural communities do not have safe water to drink, healthcare services or communication systems. Without rapid intervention in emergency aid followed by long-term support for reconstruction, the toll in death and human suffering in these communities will continue to climb. Development setback The tsunami not only killed tens of thousands of fisherfolk, farmers and other poor rural people, but destroyed the livelihoods of millions of others – reversing the gains they have made through hard work and pushing them into extreme poverty. "Countries like Indonesia and Sri Lanka , which have invested in rural development, are likely to see major reversals in their recent gains overcoming poverty," says James Carruthers, assistant president of IFAD. "These and other countries will need longer-term assistance and debt relief to overcome these setbacks and get them back on track to eradicating poverty." IFAD’s immediate action Shortly after the disaster struck, IFAD began working with communities, governments, UN agencies and other partners to assess the needs for support and put in place the programmes and resources needed to support communities after the journalists have gone home and the emergency phase is over. Today, IFAD is participating in Joint Needs Assessments in Indonesia , Sri Lanka and other countries, alongside the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and other partners. It is also working in India , Maldives and Somalia . IFAD’s initial commitment to mobilizing $US 100 million in new resources will be deployed through new and established projects and programmes and through new regional, country and community grants. In Tamil Nadu, IFAD and the Government of India are exploring the expansion of existing projects to help fisherfolk, farmers and micro-entrepreneurs to rebuild their livelihoods and to address the special needs of women and orphans who have no means of support. IFAD and the Government of Indonesia are expanding the P4K microfinance initiatives to help micro-entrepreneurs and communities to acquire the assets they need to make a living. They are also working together to design and finance new initiatives for affected coastal areas. In Sri Lanka , IFAD and the Government are expanding a project to meet the needs of fisherfolk, and developing new initiatives to help them rebuild their livelihoods. In addition to these projects and programmes, IFAD will respond to requests for debt relief from Indonesia, Maldives and Sri Lanka . IFAD’s new mechanism for long-term poverty eradication in tsunami-affected regions IFAD is developing a special resource-mobilization mechanism for addressing the long-term needs of affected communities. The level of funding will be based on the results of the Joint Needs Assessments, consultations with countries and participatory planning processes in communities. "The fisherfolk and small farmers in the tsunami-affected areas have an incredible ability and determination to cope with the adverse effects of the tsunami," said Bage. "I believe that development assistance should not be limited to providing immediate relief, but should focus on rebuilding their skills and assets for the future, so that they are less vulnerable and more resilient to natural and man-made disasters." Most of the world’s 1.2 billion extremely poor people live in rural areas IFAD is a specialized agency of the United Nations dedicated to eradicating rural poverty in developing countries. Seventy-five per cent of the world’s poorest people – 900 million women, children and men – live in rural areas and depend on agriculture and related activities for their livelihoods. Through low-interest loans and grants, IFAD works with governments to develop and finance programmes and projects that enable rural poor people to overcome poverty themselves. There are more than 200 ongoing IFAD-supported rural poverty eradication programmes and projects, totaling US$ 6.5 billion. IFAD has invested about US$ 3 billion in these initiatives. Co-financing has been provided by governments, beneficiaries, multilateral and bilateral donors and other partners. At full development, these programmes will help more than 100 million rural poor women and men to achieve better lives for themselves and their families. Since starting operations in 1978, IFAD has invested US$ 8.5 billion in 677 projects and programmes that have helped more than 250 million poor rural men and women achieve better lives for themselves and their families. For more information, contact: Thomas Elhaut Arabic | French | Spanish | Italian Poverty reduces ability to protect oneself from nature - videotaped quote from Lennart Båge |
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