One year and three months after a devastating earthquake struck Pakistan and Northeastern India, the lives of those living in the affected areas have not yet returned to normal.

The South Asian Earthquake is at the top of the annual list of "Ten Stories the World Should Hear More About", prepared by the United Nations Department of Public Information. The list aims to raise global awareness of problems that are too often under-reported by the media and as a consequence are underestimated by the world community. More often than not, those incidents take place in regions that seem to be too small or too remote to be kept in mind, or are simply replaced by more immediate emergencies in other areas of the world. In some cases, due to political considerations, the stories may not be told or discussed at all. Issues of natural disasters receive a tremendous amount of media coverage in their early stages, but unfortunately fade from the spotlight too soon, and the affected communities are almost immediately forgotten. But attention needs to be sustained while these communities recover from the disaster. Every territory in the world is susceptible to natural calamities and overcoming them becomes a matter of survival, especially for developing countries, as their means to deal with such adversities are limited by lack of capital and expertise.

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The 2005 earthquake in Pakistan-a country that continues to suffer from a multitude of natural disasters, including floods, landslides and seismic activities-illustrates this point. On 8 October, a 7.6-magnitude earthquake struck the country, affecting mostly the northern areas, particularly Balakot, Muzaffarabad and Masehra. The devastating effects were also felt as far away as Afghanistan and northern India. Hundreds of villages in Pakistan were destroyed, schools collapsed during class session, trapping students inside, and hospitals were shut down. The impact on medical services was particularly severe, because it slowed down first aid and surgical care for the injured. The earthquake has been catastrophic: estimates recorded 75,000 casualties and 3.5 million people left homeless. The typical stone- and mud-sided houses, which are common in the rural areas, have been especially vulnerable to such cataclysm.
Even old government buildings could not maintain their structure, suffering heavy damage.

The United Nations started its intervention efforts in the affected areas with resources on the ground within 24 hours, followed by a humanitarian appeal, requested by the Pakistani Government, calling for global aid and support. Secretary-General Kofi Annan told a concerned audience during a conference in Geneva on 10 October 2005: "Every hour counts and I urge the world to respond and respond generously and willingly." According to the Flash Humanitarian Appeal issued immediately after the disaster by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, health and nutrition were the priority sectors in need of intervention, followed by shelter and camp management, and then communications and recovery.

South Korean Emergency Relief Centre sets up kitchen stoves in the Bassian relief camp, near Balakot, Pakistan. UNHCR PHOTO/B. Baloch

One month after the disaster, the UN General Assembly, in its resolution on "strengthening emergency relief, rehabilitation, reconstruction and prevention in the aftermath of the South Asian earthquake disaster", called on Governments, international organizations and the private sector for a worldwide contribution to relief and recovery efforts. The recovery programme was targeted in particular at the most vulnerable groups, such as widows and orphans, who were in need of physical and psychological assistance. The global response to the appeal included substantial disaster recovery funds from the European Community.

United Nations agencies worked resolutely in the weeks immediately following the earthquake, sending supplies and teams of workers to the affected areas. Joint efforts by national and international groups, working together on "Operation Winter Race", succeeded in avoiding a feared second flood of casualties due to the possible spread of infectious diseases and the expected harsh winter across the region. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme (WFP) took the lead on food and nutrition assistance, while the World Health Organization (WHO) provided immediate health services. The problem of health and hygiene during the monsoon season was a prominent concern as incidences of diarrhoea and other gastrointestinal infections can spread easily, particularly among children. UNICEF, WHO and other non-governmental partners have been working together to keep the diarrhoea outbreak under control. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) also played a prominent role in leading on-site operations for disaster relief and post-crisis recovery, including natural disaster mitigation. The UNDP Crisis Prevention and Recovery Unit, based in Islamabad, supplied the necessary means to deal with humanitarian crises and combined disaster relief with recovery and development.

The purpose of the early recovery framework was to provide strategic guidance to the affected population and stakeholders. According to the Secretary-General's report on the implementation of international disaster reduction strategy, "a real-time evaluation in Pakistan showed that many challenges remain to integrate long-term risk-reduction perspectives in the early phases of life-saving humanitarian assistance". The UN response in the first six months was irrefutably indispensable in terms of early recovery and relief, and supported people's own reconstruction initiatives, thus sustaining their productive capacity. One of the most challenging objectives faced after the disaster was preparing the ground for a sustainable long-term reconstruction, including reduction of further risks.

In March 2006, UNDP released an assessment report of the achievements of the Early Recovery Initiatives in Pakistan, noting that 425,000 transitional shelters were built, and the Government introduced a cash compensation scheme to assist survivors in reconstruction, paying particular attention to seismically resilient houses built of cement and steel. A typical Pakistani house in the rural area lacks modern structural components, and new building technologies required by the State have raised the cost of living for families. The World Bank-funded compensation scheme provided each homeowner with about $3,000, although this is not enough to rebuild. The majority of survivors therefore will spend another winter in makeshift shelters.

In early September 2006, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Pakistan, Jan Vandemoortele, in an interview reported that reconstruction had taken place successfully and several houses, schools and hospitals were being rebuilt. "The relief effort was efficient and impressive", he said. Despite the obvious progress, many challenges remain: people are still unable to rebuild, because they were either left landless or used to live in a so-called "red zone"-a high-risk area susceptible to further geological movements and possible seismic activity-which has been declared a "no rebuilding" area. However, even if many of the buildings will not be finished by winter, Mr. Vandemoortele said, these people will have rooms to keep them warm and dry. In the urban areas, tents are being replaced by alternative shelters, made of corrugated iron sheets with wooden frames. Pakistan and other countries, including Saudi Arabia, are also providing the families with pre-fabricated structures.

UN agencies are working continually to strengthen communication and information in the area. For instance, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has distributed 10,000 radio sets to update survivors about health and hygiene, as well as the rehabilitation process. It is also interviewing experts and people living in the camps to keep the affected communities an active part of the recovery process. The International Labour Organization (ILO) supported a programme that included emergency employment services for the repair of roads, camp cleaning activities and short-cycle skills training. WFP helps by offering jobs to people who are unable to generate income quickly and providing food to workers in exchange for their work in reconstruction and rebuilding.

National and international aid has been indispensable for the recovery and improvement of the South Asian-afflicted countries. Although much progress has taken place, there are still a lot of joint efforts to be accomplished: fields must be cleared, cities must be rebuilt and people must again find income-generating work. The 3.5 million earthquake survivors have had to start their life from zero, and they need special support during the recovery period.