The following notice has just been posted on the excellent Forced Migration
Discussion List which is moderated by the Refugee Studies Centre (RSC),
University of Oxford.
UN OCHA, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian
Affairs, has now made available online (in English and Spanish versions) a
key document on the immediate shelter needs of survivors following
disasters.
"Shelter after Disaster - Guidelines for Assistance" (UNDRO, Geneva, 1982)
differs from other manuals by encompassing the entire disaster spectrum,
such as disaster preparedness, disaster relief, post-disaster reconstruction
and prevention. Some of the findings of this study are relevant to
non-natural disasters (for example, refugee situations) and to slow-onset
disasters (such as droughts), but its main concern is with rapid-onset
disasters (such as earthquakes, floods, and cyclones).
English version:
http://www.reliefweb.int/library/documents/2003/undro-shelter-jul82.htm
Spanish version (El Alojamiento Despues de los Desastres):
http://www.reliefweb.int/library/documents/2003/undro-sheltersp-jul82.htm
Or go to http://www.reliefweb.int/mcdls/lsu/lsu.html and click on "Shelter"
in the menu on the left.
This publication (which was out of print for the last several years) was
prepared by the Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator
(now OCHA), together with a group of renowned international experts.
Lessons from it are still relevant, but, despite their simplicity, many of
them remain yet to be implemented.
With these Guidelines now available online, hopefully more widespread use
will be made of them.
For any comments or questions on this publication, please contact
[log in to unmask] (quoting "attention Logistics Support Unit" in the subject
line). For more information on the continuing development of the
transitional settlement sector see http://www.shelterproject.org
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