The World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) have informed Mizzima they are gearing up to tend to humanitarian needs as Cyclone Mocha approaches the coast of Myanmar and Bangladesh.
The WFP says it is closely monitoring Cyclone Mocha, which is expected to make landfall this Sunday. Emergency preparedness is underway in areas likely to be in the cyclone’s trajectory.
Working with partners, WFP is gearing up for a large-scale emergency response, putting in place contingency plans, and prepositioning food and relief supplies, vehicles, and emergency equipment.
In Myanmar, WFP has pre-positioned enough food to cover the needs of more than 400,000 people in Rakhine State and neighboring areas for one month. Anticipating interruptions to transport and telecommunications services, WFP teams are also putting in place systems to serve the broader humanitarian community with their preparations and potential response to the cyclone.
Unimpeded humanitarian access to and support from communities in need will be critical in responding to any immediate impacts of the cyclone and for the longer-term recovery process.
WFP Myanmar Deputy Country Director Ms. Sheela Matthew said they were preparing for the worst, while hoping for the best. “Cyclone Mocha is heading to areas burdened by conflict, poverty, and weak community resilience. Many of the people most likely to be affected are already reliant on regular humanitarian assistance from WFP. They simply cannot afford another disaster.”
Likewise, the UN OCHA is gearing up to provide humanitarian support. The Myanmar humanitarian Emergency Response Preparedness Plan has been activated nationwide since the start of the week. Humanitarian organizations, especially in Rakhine, have ramped up their preparedness efforts and have been pre-positioning personnel and supplies wherever possible. Preparedness is also being stepped up in the northwest, they say.
OCHA is engaging with all relevant stakeholders to ensure timely and unimpeded access to those in need. Across Rakhine and the Northwest, there are already about six million people in need of humanitarian assistance and 1.2 million people displaced, even before the cyclone hits. An urgent injection of funds is desperately needed to facilitate a full-scale response to the Cyclone and any subsequent flooding. To date, the US$764M Humanitarian Response Plan is only 10 per cent funded.
On 11 May, the Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System (GDACS) issued a Red Storm Alert for Cyclone Mocha, which has formed in the Bay of Bengal and is currently forecast to cross the coast between Kyaukphyu in Myanmar and Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh on 14 May with maximum sustained wind speeds of 150-160 kmph, gusting to 175 kmph. A significant storm surge is expected to accompany the cyclone of 2-2.7m. Evacuation advice has been issued by local authorities in Rakhine for low-lying and coastal areas in Sittwe, Pauktaw, Myebon, Maungdaw and Buthidaung with many people already starting to move ahead of the storm. Associated heavy rains and strong winds are expected to affect Rakhine and areas of high displacement further inland in northwest Myanmar.
As UN OCHA notes, this is the first cyclone to threaten Myanmar this Monsoon season and there are grave concerns about the impact especially on the already vulnerable and displaced communities with reduced coping capacity. Of particular worry is the situation facing 232,100 people who are
displaced across Rakhine. Many of the IDP camps and sites in Rakhine are located in low-lying coastal areas susceptible to storm surge. The suffering of more than a million displaced people and other communities in the northwest is also expected to worsen over the coming days as the ex-cyclone moves inland bringing heavy rain. Displaced people in the northwest are already living in precarious conditions in camps, displacement sites or in forests often without proper shelter.
According to the 2023 Myanmar Humanitarian Needs Overview, there are already 6 million people in need of humanitarian assistance in the most likely affected areas of Rakhine (1.7M) and the northwest (4.3M – Chin, Magway and Sagaing).
