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The cyclones are coming

Market in Tamasina following cyclone IVAN. UNICEF Madagascar
Two near misses by huge storms rolling in from the Indian Ocean have signalled an early start to Madagascar's cyclone season, prompting the humanitarian community to appeal for "urgent" preparedness funding. Meteorologists forecast that four to five intense cyclones could strike Madagascar during the 2009/10 season.

The approaching Tropical Storm Bongani, hot on the heels of Cyclone Anja in mid-November, provided a wake-up call for aid agencies and the partly paralyzed national disaster management authority.

A UN Country Team statement on 25 November "raised concern over the approaching cyclone season that could seriously affect the lives of up to 600,000 people", and appealed for US$6 million "to be used for pre-positioning stocks in the most vulnerable regions of the country".

The concept of preparedness is not new to Madagascar. The island lies in the main path of storms crossing the Western Indian Ocean and is battered by cyclones every year; five have struck it in the last two years, affecting over 463,000 people.

Cyclone season usually starts in December and runs through April, hitting some of the poorest regions in the country - around 70 percent of Madagascar's people live on less than a dollar a day and coping mechanisms are quickly overwhelmed.

The focus had started shifting from a reactive approach - limited to response and recovery after an event - to a more comprehensive approach centred on preparedness.

"We can see the payoff of prepositioning stocks ahead of the cyclone season. This has made it possible to help victims immediately," IRIN quoted Colonel Jean Rakotomalala, then Executive Secretary of the disaster response agency, BNGRC, who stressed the importance of recent investments in disaster risk reduction in January 2009.

Political storms

Madagascar has also been reeling from a political storm of its own making, putting a halt to progress in disaster preparedness. The infighting that began in January 2009 ousted President Marc Ravalomanana and replaced him with his rival, Andy Rajoelina, but resulted in international donor disengagement that still holds the island hostage.

During the past year, humanitarian agencies have exhausted their stockpiles in responding to drought in the south, cyclones that hit the island in early 2009, and, according to the UN Country Team statement, as a result of "losses of supplies related to the political crisis".

BNGRC spokeswoman Dia Styvanley Soa said, "Maybe because of the political crisis ... the budget allocated to BNGRC is not sufficient." Among aid agencies also, "The problem is lack of stock," Pierre Bry, Senior Humanitarian Affairs Officer at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Madagascar, told IRIN.

To be able to ensure an initial response in the event of a cyclone, aid agencies and the BNGRC require tarpaulins, medicines, water purification tablets and health, school and recreational kits, among other items. "We have small amounts. They [BNGRC] don't have much," Bry noted.

In the previous two cyclone seasons, "We were able to stockpile food and emergency items in the 22 regions. This year we are still waiting for money for this activity, and the problem is that many of our hangars were looted during this [political] crisis," said Soa.

Out of touch

Aid agencies have found it difficult to engage their Malagasy government counterparts because the international community could not fully recognise Rajoelina's self-appointed administration, the Higher Transitional Authority.

''Because of the crisis we had not been able to work together''
"Because of the crisis we had not been able to work together," OCHA's Bry said, adding that it was now important to bring together government and humanitarian community coordination systems.

There has been some re-engagement with the BNGRC in recent weeks, but various staff members in the organization had been replaced. "The quick rotation of [key] people does not help," Bry commented.

Soa noted that "partnership with the international community has been renewed recently - we've just finished a workshop focused on updating the national contingency plan with our partners, UN agencies, International NGOs."

Out of reach

Christopher Metcalf, the interim UN Resident Coordinator in Madagascar, commented: "The tragedy is that [cyclones are] an annual event, and it appears that each year the severity and impact is potentially greater."

Moreover, poor infrastructure means that once a cyclone hits it could take weeks to reach communities left isolated and at greater risk of hunger and disease. "Investments in disaster risk reduction programmes can save lives and help communities recover more quickly," he said.

Flexible, predictable funding mechanisms are critical to a country like Madagascar, which has to deal with recurring emergencies like cyclones and droughts. "It is urgent that resources be mobilized now. We urge the international community not to ignore the plight of the Malagasy people," Metcalf said.

BNGRC's Soa agreed: "Is BNGRC ready to respond? All I can tell you is that our capacity is very low. For sure, we will need the help of all our partners."

In the meantime, Madagascar has been doing what it can to prepare. Soa said an information and sensitization campaign was underway. "This year, we will try, for the first time, a new system of warning people: we will send out cyclone alerts via sms [text messages]."

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This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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