Papua New Guinea—comprising the eastern half of New Guinea Island and approximately 600 offshore islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean—is highly vulnerable to recurring climatic shocks and natural hazards. Such events, including earthquakes, floods, storms, and volcanic eruptions, can result in deaths and injuries, displacement, and other humanitarian impacts. These disasters can also generate significant crop loss, damage to infrastructure, and increased transmission of vector-borne and waterborne diseases, disrupting local livelihoods and exacerbating food needs. Furthermore, poor security conditions driven by civil unrest and tribal violence in the country’s Highlands Region beginning in mid-2022 resulted in widespread displacement and humanitarian needs.
On March 27, Ambassador Ann Marie Yastishock issued a declaration of humanitarian need due to the combined effects of a magnitude 6.9 earthquake that struck Momase Region’s East Sepik Province and catastrophic flooding in East Sepik and the Highlands Region. In response, USAID/BHA provided $900,000 to a humanitarian partner to support disaster-affected populations with emergency shelter, humanitarian logistics support, protection, and water, sanitation, and hygiene assistance. This emergency funding was allocated in addition to ongoing USAID/BHA assistance to conflict-affected populations and longstanding investments in disaster risk reduction programs in Papua New Guinea and across the Pacific.
