NFI/Shelter RRT ASSESSMENT / VERIFICATION REPORT ASSESSMENT: (X) VERIFICATION: Report Date: Assessment/Verification date(s):11 Feb 2015 to 16 Feb 2015 Location Information State Abyie Administrative Area County Abyie Payam Rumamer, Mijak, Ameth Agouk, Alal Boma Miodol, Marial Achak, Tajalie, Leu, Miyen Koor, Dungop, Noong, Kolom, Dokura Airstrip GPS Coordinates NA Team Details Name Organisation Title Contacts: Email/Mobile/Sat Phone Irfan Hameed IOM Operation Officer S-NFI ihameed@iom.int Olam Amum IOM NFI Assistant aomam@iom.int Alexander Davies IOM Operations Officer S-NFI aldavies@iom.int Bol Mading IOM D&T Assistant bmadingwak@iom.int Key Contacts Name Organization Title Contacts: Email/Mobile/Sat Phone Dhieu Bol Ding RRC RRC Director n/a Former NGOs Response in Abyei Administration Area CORDAID Emergency shelter kit distribution to 255 HH, dated Feb 2015 IOM, UNHCR, Goal NFI kit distribution to 519 HH, dated Jun 2015 CORDAID Loose items to 921 HH, dated Aug 2015 Summary of Population Type / Numbers A. Total population resident in area -Ref Census to County level B. Total number of IDPs/returnees -Households and individuals -Ref sources - can be multiple -Specify conflict IDP, disaster IDP, returnee -If returnee, in transit, stranded, or final destination? Organised or spontaneous? -Do registration list/s already exist? Made by whom? According to a 2008 census in Abyie, the population is 52,883 individuals with 25,814 females and 27,069 males. The present population figure is unknown due to geographical division between the South and North, conflict in 2008 and conflict in 2011. It is reported the area was completely abandoned in 2011. The assessment was focused on returnees in Abyie Administration Area, excluding Abyie Town. The paramount and boma chiefs, local administrators, and RRC put the figure of returnees at 20,000 individuals. The Inter Cluster Assessment Report on 10 th Dec 2015 estimated population in return villages to be around 7,000 individuals. However since Inter Cluster Assessment, the area has seen continuous return. The assessment team observed significant number of new shelters and it was confirmed by the Inter Cluster Assessment team Shelter/NFI focal point
C. Total number in need of shelter/nfi assistance -Households and individuals -Specify population type (IDP, returnee, host community) -Verified? List available? The returnees are settling in 9 different sites/bomas. The sites are adjacent to UNISFA camps or part of regular UNISFA patrol areas. The majority of the returnees are reported to be from these specific villages with a minority reported to have originally been from the surrounding villages. However, due to limited security coverage by UNISFA, these minorities are setting up their households in protected villages nearby and intend to use their original land for cultivation. A detailed registration exercise is recommended due to no prior registration. Numbers of households in need are estimated to be between 3,500 and 4,500. Situation Overview -Note any prior assessments (eg IRNA) and attach to this report -If no prior assessment has been done. summarise information gathered through questionnaire at Annex 1 On May 20 th 2011 villages in Abeyi county were attacked by the militia from the northern part of the Abyei Administration Area. Households and livelihoods were destroyed and communities fled with only the possessions they could carry. They fled to the Agok area, south of the river, with some fleeing further afield to places such as Wau, Aweil and Rumbek. While living as IDPs in Agok the situation for the communities was difficult. They were reliant on food distributions as the increased population of Agok meant that there was no land available to cultivate or graze livestock. There were also tensions with the host communities as services such as schools and clinics were overstretched. Agok was also hosting some IDPs from Twic. During the last year, a determined protection strategy from UNISFA had secured the surrounding payams of Abyei town. In addition to UNISFA security patrols, UNISFA has bases set up next to the villages visited. 80% of the villages were in close proximity to a UNISFA post. The paramount chief is also engaged in dialogue for peaceful coexistent with Misseryia leadership in north at local level. This has greatly increased the confidence of local communities and during interviews they seemed positive for boma level community peace dialogues as next step towards coexistence. Also in 2015, WFP ceased food distributions in Agok, and this year they intend to run a Food for Work program in the Abyei area. As a result of these two factors, the displaced communities began to return to their original villages to reestablish their homes and livelihoods. In many cases, families split and some members returned to the villages to construct homes while the vulnerable members such as children and the elderly remained in the Agok area, close to services, until they had shelters to return to This could potentially take up to several months as the scarcity of roofing materials presents a challenge. The majority of the returnees arrived in November 2015 but people were still returning to the villages while the assessment team was on the ground. The population is estimated to be between 25,000 and 30,000 people, although without a structured registration it is difficult to estimate with any tangible accuracy. The population is projected to increase by 100% to 120% once the family members in Agok return to the villages. Further details are provided in this report but the general conditions for the returnees are bleak. Many are living in incomplete shelters, foraging for food, rationing water and have no access to basic services. They are currently unable to cultivate the land or graze livestock. St Summary of Shelter/NFI Situation -Summarise information gathered through questionnaire at Annex 2 -Include maps and photographs where relevant - Include any information gathered on community and intra-household gender dynamics, as related to shelter and NFI Overview of shelter Situation: The Shelter situation in Abyie is challenging. The communities visited were found to be living in following type of
shelters: 1. Abandoned community building/public infrastructure (school, clinic, BHU etc.) 2. Hosted in Tukuls with host families 3. Abandoned Tukuls 4. Tukuls 5. Rakubas 6. Rakuba structures (frame only, no wall cladding or roof) Of the interviewed families; 14% were living in abandoned community buildings, 5% with host families, 5% in Tukuls and 76% in Rakubas. 85% of the Rakubas were incomplete. The returnees have managed to collect structural materials and have constructed the frames of their shelters. The structures follow a gable roof design and are of variable sizes. However, all structures are deemed small compared to Sphere Standards. The structure s joints are secured using rope made locally from reed grass, pieces of salvage nylon ropes, or old mosquito nets. Locally made grass ropes were only found on shelters of elderly women who knew how to braid the grass, whereas younger women or men have used salvaged nylon rope or old mosquito nets. In cases of such shelters only critical joints were tied while the cross overs of members in the roof and wall frames were left untied leaving the structures relatively weak. The structures observed followed the Rakuba design with thatched elephant grass wall cladding. Some reed grass knitted mats are being used as roof cladding. Of the HH interviewed and observed 85% of structures lacked roofing or had incomplete roofing. Only two villages were observed with the appropriate roofing grass but that too was of limited quantity. Of the 3 types of grass used by the local community for construction purposes, only one contains the waterproofing properties that make it suitable for roofing. The larger elephant grass resembling small diameter bamboo culms is traditionally used for wall cladding and the smaller reed grass is traditionally used for fencing or household purposes. The roofing grass has been inaccessible due to security restrictions imposed by UNISFA, the proximity (reportedly 2-3 hours walk), or it has been burned. Other than roofing grass, sufficient grass was observed for wall cladding. That showed intention of local communities to stay. The exception was Miodol village, who claimed they did not have access to any grass. OCHA is currently in discussion with UNISFA to provide force protection to communities to collect grass. However, this discussion is likely to be lengthy and an agreement is dependent on the location of the grass that is out of the Abyie box in the north. And even if that is agreed, vulnerable members of the community will find it difficult to walk up to 3 hours to collect grass. Most Rakuba shelter frames were constructed between 1 to 5 days after the returnee arrived in the village in November and December. The returnees have been unable to complete the shelter since then due to the lack of suitable materials and have been sleeping without cover or in communal buildings where possible. Therefore, for the Shelter needs, it is recommended that one plastic sheet and one bundle of rubber rope is distributed per household. This is to provide the minimum support to allow the returnees to reestablish their shelters.
Most of the shelters in each village were Rakuba frames without cover. They had been erected in November/December Overview of NFI situation: The HH interviews and the observation confirmed a lack of NFI items and minimal assistance is required for people to establish a basic living. All the villages visited had a maximum of one bore hole/water source. Communities have been rationing water to avoid conflict amongst themselves. Every HH can only collect water once every two days. The majority (95%) of the families were observed with one small jerry can (2 Ltr. Only) and 5% with 15/20 Ltr. jerry can. For the majority of returnees who did not have sleeping mats, some people had used small pieces of salvaged plastic sheets as sleeping mats. As described above in shelter section, despite access to reed grass for mats, they are highly prone to termites and hence not used for flooring or sleeping mats. Few blankets were observed and of those, many were not in a usable condition. In addition, very few mosquito nets were observed being used for their intended purpose. Due to the lack of construction materials available many returnees were using old mosquito nets as rope to bind the Rakuba frame together, rather than try and repair them. The assessment team consulted the staff of a small clinic in Miodol and confirmed that most cases being treated were respiratory or malaria related, demonstrating the impact of the conditions and the lack of appropriate NFI items were having on the community. Part of the reason the returnees returned to their original villages was to cultivate the land which was not possible in their previous locations. However, due to lack of agricultural tools they are unable to grow their own crops. The community needs to cultivate the land soon while it is still the season or they will be unable to grow crops until next year. Presently they are foraging and fishing for food but this is not a sustainable livelihood and the local population is increasing as more returnees arrive, putting additional strain on the current food sources. Therefore, for the NFI needs, it is recommended that two blankets, sleeping mats and mosquito nets, one bucket and hoe (jembe) are distributed per household. This is based on the assumption that the household size will increase as the family members who did not return will join those who did once the household is established. Initial data suggests on average, 60% of family members have not returned yet. This recommendation is to provide the minimum support to allow the returnees to reestablish their livelihood.
Of the few households that had cooking items and a large water container, their condition was generally poor Assessment/Verification Methodology -Which assessment/verification methods did you use and why (eg household interview, focus group discussion, shelter observation inside and out, market survey) -If verifying, are you working from an existing list, or are you creating a list from scratch? -How many interviews/fgds/observations did you conduct? What questions did you ask and why? -Did you use sampling techniques? If so, please describe. -Is there any information you feel less confident about? If so why? The methodology applied includes semi structured interviews with the communities and community leaders, structured interviews with key informants, and household surveys. Once the assessment team arrived in each village, a focus group discussion was held to introduce the team, assessment objectives and get general feedback on the conditions from the communities. The team then separated into smaller groups and targeted different segments of each village to conduct household observations and surveys. Bol Mading Wak from IOM Abyei introduces the assessment team to the local community in Tajalei After the first day the questionnaire was adapted to better reflect the realities of the circumstances for the returnees and provide more applicable information to the assessment team. The questionnaires and raw data are imbedded below.
Abyei Questionnaire.xls Initial Questionnaire Abyei Questionnaire v2.xls Adapted Questionnaire Abyei Raw Data.xlsx Raw data containing some data interpretation Semi Structured Interview: A semi structured interview was organized in each of the villages visited. Eight in total HH Interviews: The team conducted 56 household interviews. The target was 64 Key Informants: RRC, Abyie Administration, Paramount Chief, OCHA, UNICEF Observation: Daily living, shelter constructions activities, spot checks of HH tukuls (inside and outside) and possessions RECOMMENDATIONS If emergency shelter and/or NFI distribution is recommended: Define targeting criteria As the population of the host community (5%) is very low, a -need/vulnerability (if vulnerability, define blanket distribution is recommended. However this is only vulnerability categories) after a comprehensive registration. For registration the following two methods are proposed: Specify items to be distributed -Number and type per household - NFI/ES, full kits, loose items -Specify if quantity of items distributed will vary by household size 1. A structure to structure token distribution 2. Setting up 3 registration points simultaneously in one day for limited time to avoid people moving from one village to another and receiving more than one token. The registration team would only consider females as a representative of each household. The items being proposed for each NFI kit are: Shelter: 1. One plastic sheet 2. One bundle of rubber rope NFI: 1. Blanket: 2 2. Bucket: 1 3. Sleeping Mat: 2 4. Mosquito Net: 2 5. Hoe: 1 Key considerations for distribution The number of each NFI items is the preferred quantity. However, the number is subject to stock levels, the number of registered households, and transportation considerations. Access to Abyie is only possible during the dry season and no
-Eg access, logistics, security and protection concerns, push/pull, stakeholders/partners to work with trucks or transportation are available locally. Cordaid are transporting 1000 NFI kits to Abyei as part of the response and plan to target the 1000 most vulnerable households. If emergency shelter and/or NFI distribution is not recommended: Summarise reasons and propose next steps, if any -eg referral to other clusters Cordaid focal point in Abyei is James Andruga Moses james.andruga.moses@cordaid.net Immediate next steps Timeline Who is responsible Conduct a registration of the beneficiaries for NFI distribution. End of January To be confirmed Please submit to IOM Juba (cc your Shelter and NFI Cluster State Focal Point) If this is a verification report, and distribution is recommended, include: 1. Completed Pipeline Request Form 2. Distribution List in excel format