Testimony of Gregory Gottlieb
Deputy Assistant Administrator
Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance
Before the House Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
The Political Crisis in
Thank you Chairman Payne, Ranking Member Smith, and members
of the Subcommittee for the opportunity to appear before you and to discuss
USAID’s provision of humanitarian assistance to the people of
The Kenyan people have been caught in the middle of indiscriminate violence that erupted across the country following disputed presidential election results in December. Tension between supporters of President Mwai Kibaki and opposition candidate Raila Odinga resulted in violence and looting – causing deaths, displacement, damage to homes and small businesses, and disruptions in commercial and humanitarian traffic.
Insecurity and roadblocks also interrupted cross-border
trade and the delivery of humanitarian assistance between
The areas that have been most affected by the violence
include
It is important to view the current situation in the context
of
The
USAID program in
When it comes to emergency assistance to
Quoting from the Congressional Budget Justification for
FY08, “
While Kenya seemed mostly on the right track prior to the elections, the events that followed suggest that underlying political grievances, corruption, and an imbalance in power among branches of government were too deeply rooted to prevent the current destruction and violence.
CURRENT SITUATION
The situation in
Beginning on January 23, violence
escalated in previously-affected areas, and spread to new locations including
Naivasha and Nakuru towns. Even those
already displaced are targeted. The
Government of Kenya’s
The USAID assessment team has received
multiple reports of threats to groups sheltering at police stations, schools,
churches, and other settlement sites. Multiple
sources point to the retaliatory nature and inter-connectedness between
violence in Nakuru, Naivasha, and renewed attacks in other areas, and USAID
staff are concerned about the potential for further deterioration in security
and humanitarian conditions.
Escalating insecurity, attacks on
commercial trucks and passenger vehicles, and the destruction of rail lines has
repeatedly blocked ground transport in western
Beyond the immediate humanitarian impact, the post-election crisis has significantly impacted people’s income-generating activities and resulted in substantial livelihood and asset losses. The World Bank has estimated that up to 2 million Kenyans may be driven into poverty from the effects of violence and political upheaval following the disputed election results.
Burned fields and businesses, un-harvested crops, market
disruptions, and looting are expected to have long-term consequences.
Response priorities must adapt to reflect changes in the size, location, and duration of displaced and vulnerable populations. As of late January, the political crisis remains unresolved, and relief agencies are reporting widespread fear of reprisal attacks and reluctance among some internally displaced persons (IDPs) to return home. Medium and long-term response strategies must address economic recovery, social reconciliation, and possibly include the resettlement and relocation of IDPs unable to return home. Further assessments are expected to inform planned recovery, reintegration, and reconciliation activities.
DISPLACEMENT
Although media reports indicate that as many as 300,000 people
have fled their homes and found temporary shelter in camps or with host
families, USAID field staff note that efforts to quantify
USAID is concerned by an emerging trend of camp closures and
evictions of internally displaced persons in
Protection is of the utmost concern, particularly for vulnerable groups such as women, children, and elderly persons. Concerns range from the potential for further violence, a reported increase of sexual and gender-based violence in recent weeks, and vulnerabilities associated with dense temporary settlements in a context of heightened inter-group tensions. Longer-term issues include assisting victims and witnesses of violence to recover from psychological and medical trauma, and providing appropriate counseling and psychosocial services, particularly to affected children and adolescents. USAID has prioritized the funding of protection-related activities and is working with implementing partners to incorporate protection strategies across all programs for the post-election crisis.
UNICEF estimates that between 80,000 and 100,000 children now live in camps for the internally displaced. Renewed violence beginning January 23 has led to an overall decline in school attendance, particularly among primary school children, and the Ministry of Education is reporting a shortage of teachers willing to report to work out of fear for their personal security. The violence will have a long-term impact on the lives of many students.
HUMANITARIAN NEEDS
USAID staff reports that the international humanitarian community is meeting the immediate needs of Kenyans displaced by the violence. However, additional support is needed to meet evolving needs in camp management, health, nutrition, protection, conflict mitigation, and early recovery over the next 12 to 18 months.
The Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS) and UNHCR are working
with other aid agencies to identify gaps and assist with training, technical
support, and information management, as well as to provide psychosocial support
to IDPs and refugees residing in camps.
Early Recovery
Beyond the immediate humanitarian impact, the post-election crisis has significantly impacted people’s income-generating activities and resulted in substantial livelihood losses. Burned fields and businesses, un-harvested crops, market disruptions, and looting are expected to have long-term consequences. Host communities are stretching limited available resources to meet the needs of IDP populations, yet this approach will be limited without substantial support from the international community.
In addition, all programs should be designed with the ongoing conflict in mind, and should engage affected populations to minimize, address, reduce, and/or mitigate tensions and conflicts.
Health
UNICEF, in collaboration with the
Emergency Relief Commodities
The U.N. Shelter Cluster, in conjunction with GOK officials and KRCS, will continue to conduct needs assessments in new IDP sites to determine if additional relief commodities are required.
Nutrition
Nutrition is not a critical humanitarian need at this time, but relief agencies are actively monitoring the situation. The U.N. Children's Fund is conducting nutrition screening and has identified approximately 7,500 cases of moderate malnutrition and 70 cases of severe malnutrition to date. To address potential gaps in the management of severe malnutrition resulting from the crisis, the U.N. Nutrition Cluster designed a minimum package of nutrition services for affected people, as well as tools for rapid assessment, screening, and monitoring of the nutrition situation.
It is the obligation of the international community to provide humanitarian assistance wherever it is needed.
USAID has provided more than $4.7 million for emergency
humanitarian response activities since January 3, 2008. Immediate priorities for
In response to the complex
humanitarian emergency in
A Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) from USAID’s
Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance has deployed to
The
Additionally, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration has pledged FY 2008 support to UNHCR and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to address refugee needs across Africa, including the initial emergency response to the refugee/IDP situation in Kenya and Uganda. Contributions to UNHCR and to ICRC will be made as soon as funds are formally available.
In addition to addressing the immediate humanitarian needs
of affected populations, short, medium, and long-term response activities will
be required in order to mitigate the political, economic, and social
consequences of the current crisis. The
The Government of Kenya, several Ministerial departments, local disaster response committees, churches, and national relief organizations demonstrated substantial capability during rapid response efforts for displaced and affected populations. However, emergency needs quickly overwhelmed existing capacity and these organizations required additional support. All programs should work with and strengthen the very robust civil society, including the Kenyan Red Cross and Government of Kenya mechanisms, rather than working in ways that would bypass these national assets.
OTHER DONORS
The response from donors has been robust. The UN's Central
Emergency Response Fund authorized $7,022,854 towards the Inter-Agency Standing
Committee's Humanitarian Emergency Response Plan and Flash Appeal, which was
well-allocated towards priority emergency sectors. As of
Additional mid-term needs for early recovery and education were identified in the Flash Appeal. Nearly $8 million was requested for these sectors; resources have not yet been pledged or committed.
Donor |
Amount |
Sector |
Recipient Agency |
|
$877,193 |
Food, medicines, shelter and protection |
KRCS, ICRC, UNHCR |
|
$1,019,368 |
ICRC preliminary appeal |
KRCS |
CERF |
$7,022,854 |
Camp coordination and management;
emergency health; protection; logistics; water and sanitation; shelter and
non-food items; food |
UN & NGOs |
|
$300,000 |
|
KRCS |
|
$43,305 |
|
KRCS |
DFID ( |
$5,972,000 |
Food, shelter, water and emergency
healthcare |
KRCS, ICRC |
|
$8,093,415 |
Shelter, water, sanitation, emergency
healthcare, basic household equipment, hygiene products, food, logistics |
UN, NGOs and KRCS |
|
$291,545 |
Health, food |
Action Against
Hunger and other NGOs |
|
$1,350,770 |
Health, emergency relief supplies |
German Red Cross,
ICRC, World Vision |
|
$728,863 |
Non-food items |
Trocaire |
|
$358,600 |
Assistance for Kenyan refugees in |
IFRC |
|
$ 200,000 |
|
ICRC |
|
$200,000 |
|
UNICEF and OCHA |
|
$2,207,295 |
Emergency relief supplies, water and
health |
KRCS |
|
$2,189,949 |
|
UN, KRCS, ICRC
& NGOs |
Safaricom |
$72,174 |
|
KRCS |
|
$356,526 |
|
Red Cross |
|
$183,023 |
Logistics |
ICRC, |
|
$100,000 |
|
WFP |
UNDP (Bureau for
Crisis Response and Recovery) |
$100,000 |
|
Early Recovery
Cluster |
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE
As I stated previously, it is the obligation of the
international community to provide humanitarian assistance wherever it is
needed. Some donors have hinted that
they are not planning to contribute additional funding to assist with the post-election
crisis in
It is only with the assistance of the international
community that Kenyans can move their country to a place of peace and
stability. Such assistance can assist