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| -Signs, Portents, and the Weather- |
| Tsunami Relief Effort Still Disorganized, Report Says |
| 2005-01-23 |
| JAKARTA, Indonesia, Jan. 22 -- The massive relief operation along the remote west coast of Aceh province, one of the areas hit hardest by the Dec. 26 tsunami, has brought food and medicine to most large population groups but continues to be hampered by insufficient coordination nearly a month after the tragedy, according to a draft report that offers the first detailed assessment of the effort. Highly trained medical professionals abound -- at one point there were 20 surgeons in the west coast city of Meulaboh -- but primary health care workers are lacking, according to the report, compiled by 14 government and private agencies taking part in the work. There is an abundance of antibiotics but a shortage of dressings for wounds, stethoscopes and childbirth equipment. Aid workers "do what they think is best, and sometimes a particular country or a particular agency may well send materials or equipment that may not be what is required at that stage," Rob Holden, worldwide operations manager for the World Health Organization, said in an interview in Jakarta, the Indonesian capital, on Saturday. "Or it may be that they haven't asked the wider question -- Is someone else sending that, do I need to send something else?" The six-day survey, which was led by Holden, found that despite poor coordination, the number of cases of malaria, measles and diarrhea was lower than expected. Food was reaching most large population groups through civil authorities and the Indonesian military, but it was often not targeted at the people who most need it, such as pregnant women. Schools are ready to reopen in a few areas and markets are again selling locally produced food. The report said that local and international aid groups needed to plan their efforts jointly. "If agencies . . . decide to set up an operation in a certain location, and you know nothing about it, it's very difficult to get coordinated," Holden said. The United Nations needs to send more personnel to areas with major concentrations of survivors, he said. snip |
| Posted by:Mrs. Davis |
| #5 To be really organized, someone has to take charge. It is Indonesia, so that means the govt does it or they hand it off to someone to run the show. This is in many ways like a military operation: the plans need to be already made and the org chart needs to be pretty well hammered out and ready to go for the eventuality. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2005-01-23 10:15:55 PM |
| #4 It will be fully organized when zero cents on the dollar will actually go to the needy. |
| Posted by: Glereper Craviter7929 2005-01-23 9:32:30 PM |
| #3 I guess the UN is still coordinating the catering service at the 5-star. Gotta make sure they have enough china you know... No time to coordinate anything else.... |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-01-23 9:30:10 PM |
| #2 There are so many conflicting reports surrounding this relief effort that it's hard to take any one very seriously. One would think that the UN's job, as a "world body" would be one of coordination. That appears to be a competency sorely missing. |
| Posted by: Captain America 2005-01-23 9:26:29 PM |
| #1 Any response to a disaster of this magnitude is going to have coordination problems. That's why there's something called 'lessons learned' or as the Brits say, 'lessons noted'. The United Nations needs to send more personnel to areas with major concentrations of survivors, he said. Only way that'll happen is if there's an intact Hilton within driving distance. In all seriousness, it's unlikely that the UN is going to be any better at coordinating. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2005-01-23 9:20:59 PM |