Necessity
of the intervention
The Government of Iraq and the Kurdistan
Regional Government have been jointly responding to the large influx of IDPs
into major Governorates in Iraq. The governments prioritized to mobilize
resources and support to provide appropriate shelters to IDPs, while the United
Nations Humanitarian Coordination Team in Iraq also stressed the importance of
mid-term solution to needs of IDPs, both based on an understanding that security
unrest in Iraq needs to be solved in longer term. Despite the urgency of need
for convenient and durable IDP shelters, the governments have been facing
financial and institutional constraints to respond to large number of IDPs in
Iraq.
Emergency of the situation
The Islamic State has been expanding its
activities and control in Iraq and Syria. Their adroit media strategy using
internet and social media resulted in increase of numbers of the Islamic State
fighters recruited globally. Despite a series of international intervention
including air campaigns led by the United States, the Islamic State group
continues to expand its territorial control. This situation implies that the
number of IDPs in Iraq and Syria may continue to increase. Some of the major
cities in Iraq already have same number of IDPs as their original population,
and communities hosting IDPs are already under severe pressure with regard to infrastructure and basic services. Therefore,
providing durable shelters to IDPs is an emergency requirement in Iraq.
Unpredictability of the situation
In August 2014, the IS attacks on the
Yazidi community and the Christian minorities in northern Iraq triggered the
internal displacement of some 800,000 persons into three governorates of the
KRI, namely Dohuk, Erbil and Sulaymaniyah. Within a month between August and
September 2014, the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) more than
quintupled from 96,000 to 520,000 in Dohuk, and increased by 150 per cent from
117,000 to 170,000 in Erbil.
Such exponential increase of
IDPs in Iraq is mainly due to emergence of the extremists group called itself
the Islamic State and the resulting deterioration of security, which became a
serious concern only recently and was not predictable.
Non-Substitutability of the intervention
Provision of prefabricated durable shelters
to IDPs is the most suitable solution that addresses challenges faced by IDPs
and host communities. Continuing to provide tents without basic services is not
a feasible solution in medium term, because tents are not designed to last for
the long period and have to be replaced every eight months. It is also not
suitable to accommodate IDPs during the winter or extreme weather conditions in
summer. Lack of basic infrastructure such as water, latrines, sanitation and
electricity in the camp site will lead to cause more problems among the IDPs
and host communities. Both the governments and international agencies have
agreed that the provision of prefabricated durable shelters and basic services
is critical.
