U.S. Helps Ethiopia Prepare For and Respond to Future Flooding 

(USAID Ethiopia)
FRIDAY, AUGUST 31, 2007    

Addis Ababa (U.S. Embassy) – The United States Government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), has donated 16 rubber Zodiac boats, motors, and accessory equipment including 160 life-vests, along with 1,100 rolls of plastic sheeting and 2,500 wool blankets for the Government of Ethiopia to better anticipate and respond to flooding in areas of the country where flooding is recurrent.  The total value of this support is US $825,354.
According to national climate forecasts, heavy rains during the current rainy season in Ethiopia may have an even more devastating impact in flood prone areas in 2007 than they did in 2006, when an estimated 700 people died and approximately 600,000 individuals were displaced and stripped of their livelihoods.
The donation by the U.S. Government is contributing to efforts by the Government of Ethiopia’s Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Agency (DPPA), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), donors and non-governmental organizations to more efficiently and quickly respond to future flooding through a national 2007 flood preparation plan.  The U.S.-funded boats will be dispatched to Amhara, Gambella, Southern Nations Nationalities and Peoples Region (SNNPR) and Somali Regions.
USAID/OFDA will cover the operational and maintenance costs for the boats so UNICEF, DPPA and their implementing partners can conduct rescue activities and deliver humanitarian relief supplies, such as tents, blankets, household relief kits and water containers to isolated communities cut off by rising flood waters.  The overall effort is expected to potentially provide rescue activities and humanitarian assistance to an estimated 300,000 people.
USAID Mission Director Glenn Anders, joined Marc Rubin, Acting UNICEF Country Representative, and Simon Mechale, DPPA Director General, to hand over the donated equipment yesterday.  “This life-saving equipment will be invaluable in future emergencies, saving the lives of Ethiopians who live in areas prone to flooding every year,” Anders said.  

About USAID/OFDA

USAID/OFDA’s mandate to save lives, relieve human suffering and mitigate the economic impact of disasters allows the U.S. Government to respond to disasters and work with governments to build their capacity to respond to natural and man-made disasters. For more information please visit http://www.usaid.gov/our_work/humanitarian_assistance/disaster_assistance/

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