CARE Expands Emergency Response to Indonesian Earthquake

May 30, 2006 — CARE is expanding our emergency response in the earthquake-stricken Yogyakarta area of Indonesia. Having conducted a thorough assessment to determine the precise needs on the ground, we will be providing safe water for 10,000 families, nearly one-quarter of the affected population, and distributing market-based food and emergency supplies.

In coordination with our internationally-respected local partner, Dian Desa, we have already distributed our first shipment of water purification solution, which will provide safe, clean water for 1,200 families for one month. Clean water is absolutely essential in the early days of the disaster response to prevent a "second wave" of deaths from water-borne diseases such as diarrhea.

"CARE's program is using local resources, local staff and local solutions to provide swift and effective relief to survivors," said Johan Kieft, CARE's emergency team coordinator on the ground. "We're building on lessons learned during the tsunami, taking our successful programs from that emergency response and replicating them here."

The market-based food approach, used in the tsunami response, provides beneficiaries with monthly food vouchers to purchase food from selected vendors. In the Yogyakarta area, CARE will expand this approach to include essential household items such as toothpaste, sanitary napkins for women and soap. This program addresses food security, allows survivors freedom to buy some non-food items and uses the local marketplace to supply of food, supporting local vendors and helping the economy recover. Members of the CARE team that implemented this approach in Banda Aceh are scheduled to arrive in Yogyakarta tomorrow to begin preparations for the program.

CARE's response is targeting the rural area of Klaten, one of the most remote and hardest-hit areas after the earthquake. Part of CARE's goal is to coordinate with other agencies to ensure that aid reaches all survivors, including those difficult-to-access rural areas like Klaten — a lesson learned from our tsunami relief work.