Drought, earthquakes, floods, typhoons, volcanoes, and civil unrest, compounded by limited government response capacity in some countries, present significant challenges to vulnerable populations in the East Asia and the Pacific (EAP) region. Between FY 2008 and FY 2017, USAID’s Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA) and USAID’s Office of Food for Peace (USAID/FFP) provided humanitarian assistance in response to a range of natural and complex emergencies in the region. Examples include cyclones and typhoons in Burma, the Pacific Islands, and the Philippines; earthquakes in China, Indonesia, and Japan; floods in Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam; drought in the Marshall Islands, Palau, and Vietnam; volcanic eruptions in Indonesia and the Philippines; winter emergencies in Mongolia; and conflict in Burma, the Philippines, and Timor-Leste.
USAID provided nearly $338 million to respond to disasters in the EAP region between FY 2008 and FY 2017. USAID/OFDA assistance included more than $189 million for programs in agriculture and food security; chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive hazards; economic recovery and market systems; health; humanitarian coordination and information management; logistics support and relief commodities; nutrition; protection; search and rescue; risk management policy and practice; shelter and settlements; and water, sanitation, and hygiene.
USAID/FFP support included more than $148 million for food assistance in the form of U.S.-purchased food, locally and regionally purchased food, cash transfers, food vouchers, and related activities.
In the last decade, USAID responded to 108 disasters in EAP. USAID frequently deployed humanitarian teams to the region, including six Disaster Assistance Response Teams (DARTs). USAID deployed DARTs to Burma after Cyclone Nargis in FY 2008; to Indonesia following an earthquake in FY 2010; to New Zealand following an earthquake in FY 2011; to Japan in response to an earthquake and resulting tsunami and nuclear emergency in FY 2011; to the Marshall Islands in FY 2013 due to a drought; and to the Philippines in FY 2014 for Typhoon Haiyan. USAID also activated multiple Washington, D.C.-based Response Management Teams to support coordination and response efforts.
