International development agencies supporting the humanitarian assistance to typhoon Pablo survivors called for a long term plan for the recovery and rehabilitation of the areas and people affected by the disaster.

In a recent visit to Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental, officials from the Australian Aid for International Development (AusAID), US Agency for International Development (USAID), Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the Spanish government’s AECID and the Embassy of New Zealand, acknowledged the magnitude of damage left by the typhoon nearly two months after the disaster.

Australian Ambassador Bill Tweddell said his country will consider additional assistance to address remaining humanitarian needs. “We are also open to support plans by the Philippine government to recover from the impacts of typhoon Bopha (Pablo),” Twedell added.

“I was struck by the enormity of the challenge. This will take a long-term intervention,” AusAID Minister Counsellor Octavia Borthwick said in a meeting with officials from the United Nations and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), following the visit to the most affected communities.

She particularly took note of the hygiene kits distributed by the United Nations Population Fund to women and girls, especially those who are pregnant and lactating, to maintain sanitation and prevent diseases and infections. "The UNFPA hygiene kits are getting everywhere and distributed to needy women. I so much appreciate that," she said.

The aid agencies underscored the urgency of providing permanent resettlement and livelihood, which were practically wiped out by the typhoon.

“AECID has been supporting the relief efforts through specific non-government organizations… we need to analyze how we can improve our support,” said AECID General Coordinator Vicente Selles Zaragozi.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), the humanitarian community has already mobilized more than USD37 million in pledges, commitment and contributions from donors to support emergency relief and recovery for communities affected by typhoon Pablo.

As of the first week of January, the relief assistance has already provided emergency shelter kits for 25,400 households, food assistance to over 400,000 people, water and hygiene kits for 87,000 families, notebooks for 21,500 school children, psychosocial support to 8,000 survivors and maternal health care for pregnant and breastfeeding women.

The humanitarian community also assisted the government in carrying out displacement tracking for 38 sites affected by the typhoon, supported inter-cluster coordination, and airlifted some 25 metric tons of air cargo to Davao.

DSWD Secretary Dinky Soliman said that for the first half of the year, the government will shift its focus on early recovery and rehabilitation, which would include providing emergency and core shelters, cash for work programme, livelihood and continuing relief aid.

“Permanent shelter is very important at this stage. We need to provide families with a space where they can be safe from rains,” Soliman said. She added though that government cannot just build anywhere, especially in areas which have been identified as unsafe and declared as “no build zones.”

Meanwhile, the aid agencies recognized the resilience of the survivors and commended the coordination among agencies involved in the humanitarian response.

CIDA Head of Cooperation Luke Myers admired the people’s sense of faith and how they got back on their feet so quickly. New Zealand Ambassador Reuben Levermore said the experience of interacting with the survivors was “incredibly touching.”

Ugochi Daniels, acting UN Humanitarian Coordinator, emphasized the strong leadership of the government, especially the DSWD, in addressing the needs of the survivors. She also emphasized that all assistance provided by the humanitarian community – which is composed of the national and local government, UN agencies, and international and local NGOs – is part of the government’s overall response.

“There’s more to be done to bring the situation back to normal. There’s a range of issues to be addressed along with challenges to be hurdled in responding to the needs. The UN will continue to work and support the government, in coordination with the entire humanitarian community, until we are able to give the survivors a sense of normalcy and a sense of future,” said Daniels, who is also the UNFPA Country Representative.