HIGHLIGHTS
UN launches 2018 HRP, requesting $569 million to assist 3.4 million people
Relief agencies continue to advocate for safe and voluntary IDP returns
Humanitarian stakeholders launch USAID/OFDA-supported initiative to promote accountability and address GBV in Iraq
KEY DEVELOPMENTS
On March 6, the UN released the 2018 Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP), which outlines humanitarian activities and objectives in Iraq for 2018. The HRP requests approximately $569 million in international humanitarian assistance to support approximately 3.4 million of the estimated 8.7 million people in need countrywide.
As of late February, more than 3.5 million people had returned to areas of origin and other locations in Iraq since 2014, while approximately 2.3 million people remained displaced throughout the country, U.S. Government (USG) partner the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reports. Relief agencies remain concerned regarding continued reports of forced evictions and premature camp consolidations, and continue to advocate for safe, dignified, and voluntary returns.
From February 12–14, USG representatives and other international delegations, foreign investors, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and UN agencies participated in the Kuwait Conference for Iraq Reconstruction to discuss economic and stabilization interventions in Iraq. During the conference, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced the Iraq Recovery and Resilience Program—a two-year reconstruction plan that requests more than $1 billion to repair homes, create livelihood opportunities, rehabilitate water infrastructure, and promote sustainable returns to areas of origin, among other activities.
Heavy rainfall across northern and central Iraq in mid-February resulted in flooding at more than 15 internally displaced person (IDP) camps, affecting approximately 201,700 IDPs, relief agencies report. In response, humanitarian organizations, in coordination with the Government of Iraq (GoI), distributed shelter supplies and bolstered drainage infrastructure at affected sites.