Geneva
22 July 2008
The World Health Organization says it will help the government of Burmarebuild and re-equip health facilities, which had been destroyed anddamaged by Cyclone Nargis, the worst storm to hit the country in 40years. WHO says it has a clear plan as to what needs to be donefollowing a joint comprehensive assessment of the stricken areaconducted by the United Nations, World Bank, and the Association ofSouth East Asian Nations or ASEAN. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA fromWHO headquarters in Geneva.
The report assesses damage causedby Cyclone Nargis at $4 billion and estimates Burma, alsoknown as Myanmar, will need $1 billion over the next threeyears to help it recover.
The cyclone, which struck in early Maykilled more than 84,000 people, destroyed or damaged about 800,000homes, and flooded vast areas of agricultural land. About 75 percentof hospitals and clinics in the hard-hit Irawaddy Delta were destroyedor badly damaged.
Richard Garfield heads the World HealthOrganization's Department of Health and Nutrition Tracking Service. Hespent six weeks in Burma and participated in the assessment mission.
Hesays he was surprised to see that 80 percent of people in the affectedareas had had access to a health service before the Cyclone struck. Hesays that does not mean that conditions were good. But, he adds, theygot much worse after Cyclone Nargis.
"What we discoveredthrough this village-based assessment in interviewing 10 to 12households in every village and the village leader was that there hadbeen a good deal more response in the country from national assets andresources than we had known about before," said Dr. Garfield. "Not thatthat was an adequate response because the needs were overwhelming. But, there was a good deal more response than we had realized."
Dr.Garfield says he also was surprised to find the government had movedmany physicians and nurses into the region in response to the Cyclone. He says WHO plans to rebuild the health facilities which have beendamaged and destroyed and equip them.
He says the agency also will train national health workers and help them improve their communications and supply systems.
"So,that within a year, we expect them to be considerably improved to wherethey had been in that region prior to Nargis," said Dr. Garfield. "Thisis the principle of "build back better." And, now we have a basis tofigure out when we have reached that level."
In the aftermathof Cyclone Nargis, Burma's military rulers were criticized for refusingmost international help and for being slow in granting visas to UnitedNations and other aid workers. The generals also were criticized fornot allowing foreign aid workers to move around freely in the IrawaddyDelta.
Dr. Garfield says this no longer is a problem. He says U.N. aid workers can go anywhere without government interference.