Appeal

Solomon Islands

Tsunami following earthquake - PASI71

Appeal Target: US$ 94,812

Balance requested from ACT Alliance: US$ 74,417

Geneva, 21 May 2007

A series of three earthquakes shook the western part of the Pacific Solomon Islands chain on 2 April 2007. These were followed by a tsunami, which destroyed 13 villages in the Solomon Island's Western Province. The waves, between two and ten meters high, swept inland for almost half a kilometer, crashing into shops and homes, and knocking out power and communication lines. A state of emergency has been declared for the areas of the Western Province, Choiseul Province and North Isabel.

The Government estimates that 11,322 people on the islands of Gizo, Ranonnga, Vella la Vella, parts of southern coast of Choiseul, Simbo, Shortlands, Munda and Kolombangra have been affected. The National Disaster Management Office (NDMO) confirmed that 52 people lost their life, that 916 houses had been destroyed.

The NDMO has made a strong effort to strengthen the coordination of recovery at the national and provincial levels in order to make the response more effective. It received assistance from the international community - Australia, New Zealand, USA, China and Kiribati have contributed to the relief work.

ACT member in the Pacific, the World Council of Churches Office in the Pacific (WCCOP) together with its partner, the Solomon Island Christian Association (SICA), is proposing to respond to the situation. An RRF was issued on 18 April 2007 to provide food as well as non-food relief items in the form of shelter and tools. This appeal also includes a proposal to provide support to the affected communities in the areas of trauma counseling, including training for trainer, to address the trauma faced by the affected communities and to further develop the pastors' skills in relation to working with trauma. WCCOP contacted Church of Sweden (CoS) and asked for trainers to conduct this training and to help with assessment of needs and debriefing of staff. Another component SICA will undertake is community disaster preparedness in order to build communities awareness in case of future emergencies.

Project Completion Date: 31 July 2007

Summary of Appeal Targets, Pledges/Contributions Received and Balance Requested (US$):

Total Appeal Target(s): 94,812

Less: Pledges/Contributions received: 20,395

Balance Requested from ACT Alliance: 74,417

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FOR THE FULL TEXT/BUDGET OF THE APPEAL (PDF FILE), KINDLY VISIT THE ACT SITE. THANK YOU. __________________________________________________________________________

Please kindly send your contributions to either of the following ACT bank accounts:

US dollar

Account Number - 240-432629.60A

IBAN No: CH46 0024 0240 4326 2960A

Euro

Euro Bank Account Number - 240-432629.50Z

IBAN No: CH84 0024 0240 4326 2950Z

Account Name: ACT - Action by Churches Together

UBS AG

8, rue du Rhône

P.O. Box 2600

1211 Geneva 4, SWITZERLAND

Swift address: UBSW CHZH12A

Please also inform the Finance Officer Jessie Kgoroeadira (jkg@act-intl.org) and the Programme Officer Michelle Yonetani (myo@act-intl.org) of all pledges/contributions and transfers, including funds sent direct to the implementers, now that the Pledge Form is no longer attached to the Appeal.

We would appreciate being informed of any intent to submit applications for EU, USAID and/or other back donor funding and the subsequent results. We thank you in advance for your kind cooperation.

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ACT is a global alliance of churches and related agencies working to save lives and support communities in emergencies worldwide. The ACT Coordinating Office is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in Switzerland.