The 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Nepal on 25 April 2015 and its aftershocks left 9,000 people dead and tens of thousands more injured and displaced. NORCAP focused on contributing to a coordinated and comprehensive response to the crisis, deploying cluster coordinators to support the UN and government coordination efforts. Essential support staff also worked in education, food security, protection, health, shelter and camp management.
Just a few days after the disaster, an ACAPS team arrived in Nepal to support assessments and analysis of the humanitarian situation. The updated information helped to inform the response of the authorities, NGOs and the UN system.
A pilot use of social media monitoring was particularly useful in the initial weeks of the crisis, because it increased awareness of the needs on the ground.
Responding to urgent needs
The earthquake ruined homes, buildings and historic landmarks. Nearly 500,000 homes were destroyed and250,000 damaged. Providing shelter ahead of the impending rainy season was a priority during the initial relief phase. NORCAP's camp coordination and camp management response has been lauded as a success among shelter partners.
Reconstruction has been slow however, particularly in rural and remote areas. Political challenges and a blocked border with India have hampered the import of building material and fuel, making it difficult to get the process going.
"The government and the National Reconstruction Agency have promised to give relief packages to all families who lost their homes in the earthquake. However, it is taking a long time to verify all earthquake victims and in the meantime people are forced to live in temporary shelters or damaged homes", says Omar Suleiman, NORCAP camp coordination and camp management (CCCM) expert.
"People ask us why we can't help them tear down the damaged buildings so that they can construct new ones. But we have to wait for the authorities to give the go ahead and that is a bureaucratic process", says Jamil Awan, another NORCAP CCCM-expert.
"The government has promised to give relief packages to all families who lost their homes in the earthquake. However, it is taking a long time and in the meantime people are forced to live in temporary shelters or damaged homes"Omar Suleiman, NORCAP- expert
Local involvement
Six experts deployed immediately after the earthquake to establish and lead the International Organisation for Migration's site planning unit. Their work was essential in identifying and developing safe locations for both temporary settlements and resettlement of displaced people.
To ensure buildings are more resilient in the future, the principle of building back better has been important for the long term response. NORCAP experts have trained local communities on guidelines and building techniques, and focused on involving affected populations in the decision making to build ownership and resilience.
NORCAP architects also played a vital role in planning and setting up the first rehabilitation centre in Nepal, where people with injuries and disabilities received medical help and treatment.
Protecting the most vulnerable
Trafficking, child marriage, gender-based violence, lack of civil documentation and discrimination based on caste, indigenous ethnicity and gender were widespread in Nepal before the earthquake, especially for women and girls.
The earthquake reinforced these protection concerns and deployed protection and gender advisors have been essential in identifying gender and protection gaps and challenges in many sectors.
UN Women commented that the deployees have contributed to linking humanitarian and development actors, particularly by ensuring the participation of women's organisations at the district level.
"This is key in making sure that gaps and risks identified are addressed when the country transitions from humanitarian relief to development," says Ziad Sheikh, UN Women's representative in Nepal.
Bracing for the next disaster
Nepal's mountainous geography, its scattered population and landslides caused by monsoon rains made reaching affected populations a significant challenge. In the second half of 2015, severe fuel shortages impeded humanitarian assistance and access to markets, and people in remote areas lacked basic goods and building materials as winter approached.
In spite of little support from their government, the Nepalese are a resilient people and continue to improve their lives as best they can. Nepalese authorities, organisations and communities will have to take the recovery and reconstruction work forward. Because of this, NORCAP has made capacity building, coordination and hand-over to local partners a priority throughout the response.
Earthquake experts had long predicted a major earthquake in the Kathmandu area, and future earthquakes are inevitable. NORCAP support contributed to the integration of national contingency plans and disaster management mechanisms into the international emergency response.
"The April earthquake showed that the country is not well prepared for a disaster of such magnitude. NORCAP therefore works with United Nation's Development Programme on initiatives for safer housing reconstruction and the development of district-level recovery plans and disaster risk reduction. It is vital that we continue to improve disaster preparedness and resilience in Nepal", says NORCAP Director, Benedicte Giæver.
