REACH mapping tool extended to local governance

Displacement associated with disasters and the effects of climate change is one of today’s most serious humanitarian and development issue. In the first half of 2020 alone, disasters triggered 9.8 million new displacements, and most were linked to weather-related hazards such as storms, floods and droughts. In northwest Syria, extreme flooding events are devastating families already reeling from ten years of violence conflict, displacement, economic ruin, and the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In late 2019, a destructive flood event that occurred in the months of October and November in the Central African Republic (CAR) occasioned the displacement of over 100,000 individuals and causing considerable damage. Through remote-sensing, REACH conducted a flood susceptibility analysis to classify areas within CAR that are more likely to flood, in an effort to inform enhanced preparedness.

Living in a country where a quarter of the land lives barely above sea-level, the people of Bangladesh are especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change and the havoc wrought by natural hazards. REACH focuses on improving the preparedness and informing the needs of vulnerable host and refugee populations along the coastlines in Cox’s Bazar.

Eight months into the world’s fastest growing refugee crisis, humanitarian actors are confronted with a new challenge. The upcoming monsoon season is likely to bring floods, landslides and cyclones to the densely populated Rohingya camps in Bangladesh, putting an estimated 800,000 people at risk. In this context, REACH in close collaboration with the Intersector Coordination […]

Since the onset of the disaster caused by the tsunami, REACH has supported the Government of Indonesia and the PP Cluster by assessing the scale of the damage through remote sensing. With the aid of satellite images, the collaboration resulted in a series of maps identifying damaged buildings, displacement sites and locations of liquefaction and landslides.

Since 25 August 2017, more than half a million Rohingya have fled conflict in Myanmar across the border to Bangladesh. The majority have settled in makeshift settlements and spontaneous sites, in self-built shelters established primarily with bamboo and tarpaulin bought upon arrival. The speed and scale of displacement, continued movement of people within the area, […]

The outbreak of violence between armed groups in South Kordofan in June 2011, which later spread to Blue Nile State in September 2011, caused thousands of people to flee their homes – the vast majority of which crossed the border to neighbouring South Sudan. While those from South Kordofan primarily fled to Pariang County, in […]

Remote damage assessments carried out through the REACH Initiative have enabled humanitarian actors to better understand the situation in Syria in areas with limited humanitarian access. Satellite imagery and analysis have shown conflict-related damage across the country, and allowed emergency responders to monitor humanitarian access, track population movement and assess conditions for displaced persons in camps. The role of […]