Cyclone Sidr hit the south and southwest Bangladesh coast on 15 November 2007. The storm arrived as a Category-4 Super Cyclone with peak winds of 250 kilometers per hour, affecting approximately 30 districts within the administrative divisions of Barisal and Khulna.
More than 3,000 people have been reported dead and many more are still missing. The cyclone damaged more than 1.6 million acres of cropland, 1.2 million houses, sanitation facilities and contaminated water sources with salt water and debris. Rural roads and many of the embankments protecting them and some 8,000 educational institutions were extensively damaged.
According to the joint UN rapid assessment mission deployed from 16 to 19 November 2007, the cyclone severely affected nine districts and over 4.7 million people. Of these, 2.2 million people are in need of immediate food assistance. Many families lost their food stocks and livestock.
The loss of crops, shrimp farms, fishing ponds, nursery hatcheries and other productive assets has led to increased unemployment of the extreme poor who depend on wage labour for their livelihood. Most of the extreme poor families affected by the cyclone can hardly afford two meals per day.
The Government of Bangladesh (GoB) has allocated funds for relief and construction of houses and announced expansion of the Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGF) in affected areas. The GoB has announced that it will continue to distribute rice to the affected people through their own Public Food Distribution System.
On 19 November 2007, WFP already started providing 300 tons of pre-positioned High Energy Biscuits to 465,000 people in the four worst affected districts of Barguna, Patuakhali, Bagerhat and Pirujpur. In addition, on 22 November 2007 WFP started to distribute 750 tons of rice to 25,000 selected households in the above-mentioned districts.
Phase I of the EMOP response (November 2007-February 2008) will focus on provision of relief assistance and micronutrient supplementation to prevent deterioration in the nutritional status of the affected population. This response will utilize key lessons captured on increased nutrition problems caused by similar disasters in the past. Phase II (February to May 2008) will focus on recovery and rebuilding of livelihoods through food-for-work/cash-for-work and emergency school feeding.
Early recovery assistance through food-for-work and cash-for-work will include assistance for shelter reconstruction, rehabilitation of roads, embankments, small bridges and culverts, tree planting, and repair of schools. The above phases are indicative parameters and the WFP Country Office would initiate recovery assistance earlier than planned depending on the situation and availability of data from in-depth assessment that will be coordinated with partners.
WFP assistance will be closely coordinated with that provided by the Government of Bangladesh and with other partners. This will include an interagency coordination mechanism related to food assistance chaired by WFP.
The EMOP is in line with WFP Strategic Objectives 1 (Saving lives in Crisis Situation) and Strategic Objective 2 (Protect livelihoods in crisis situations and enhance resilience to Shocks), Strategic Objective 4 (Support access to education) and Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 1 (Eradicate hunger and poverty), MDG 4 (reduce child mortality), MDG5 (Improve maternal health), and MDG2, (achieve universal primary education).
It supports the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) outcome on Social Protection and Disaster risk reduction, and is in line with the Government of Bangladesh’s Comprehensive Disaster Management Programme.
