Urgent Myanmar Earthquake Relief

Thank you for your support of this project. I'm writing to share some updates about ActionAid's response to the earthquake in Myanmar.

Since the devastating 7.7 magnitude earthquake hit Myanmar in March of this year, we have shifted from initial stages of emergency relief to an early recovery phase, focusing on community resilience and building long-term solutions. Working alongside residents and local partners, our response is rooted in the expressed needs of the community.

In Inle Lake, where much of our response is focused, we’ve piloted and launced innovative floating bamboo shelters and improved WASH/sanitation systems to mitigate future disaster, designed with input from local and international experts. We’ve also reopened and expanded a fellowship program, training 20 local youth, half of whom are women, across 20 villages to lead recovery efforts, run transparent planning processes, and coordinate shelter, WASH, and livelihood support.

To help restore livelihoods and lay the groundwork for longer-term social enterprise opportunties, we’re working with women street vendors in Mandalay and providing support in the forms of start-up capital, hygiene kits, and business training. In Inle Lake, we’re supporting traditional income generating activities like floating gardens, lotus silk weaving, and community tourism through cooperative models that help prevent exploitation and protect people. 

Our women-led protection program in Inle addresses safety and mental health risks that have worsened since the earthquake and remain of urgent concern. We have trained volunteer groups in Psychological First Aid (PFA), geneder-based violence (GBV) prevention, and safeguarding, and are holding regular sessions specifically designed for women’s groups. We’ve also set up Women Friendly Spaces stocked with essential supplies.

To date, our response has reached over 25,000 people and counting, providing not only food, shelter and clean water, but also vital capacity building support to bolster recovery and build resilience to disasters in the future.

Thank you for your partnership during this critical time. Please feel free to share this project with your network.