Yangon/Kuala Lumpur/Geneva, 4 April 2025 — One week after the catastrophic earthquake that struck Myanmar, humanitarian needs in the country remain critical. In response, the IFRC immediately released two million CHF from its Disaster Response Emergency Fund (DREF) to support its lifesaving activities and launched an Emergency Appeal for a further 100 million CHF, calling on donors and partners to meet the huge scale of the disaster.
With IFRC network support, the Myanmar Red Cross Society (MRCS) is there in the zone of impact, operating mobile health clinics, water purification units, ambulances, and providing emergency relief items, shelter and hygiene kits in Mandalay and Sagaing.
The IFRC is also mobilizing Emergency Response Units from across its global network to support with specialist technical expertise and life-saving assistance to the hardest hit areas.
The sheer enormity of the devastation left by the Myanmar earthquake is still only starting to emerge. It is one of the worst sudden onset disasters in the Asia Pacific region in recent decades impacting about 17 million people living in Myanmar’s 57 most affected townships.
Entire neighbourhoods have been flattened, and the buildings still standing remain unsafe. Telecommunications networks are still down in most of the affected areas. On top of this, the heat is extreme – over 40 degrees Celsius – and the cyclone and monsoon seasons are imminent.
Urgent recovery operations continue in all affected areas. Local teams from the Myanmar Red Cross Society (MRCS) responded immediately following the earthquake. They have been reinforced by rapid surge units and hundreds of volunteers who have worked hand in hand with local community organisations and other emergency workers.
“The needs are beyond words,” said Nadia Khoury, Head of IFRC Delegation in Myanmar. “Our response must match the sheer scale of the disaster – now and for the longer term.”
“Our response is complementary to that of other actors and communities, recognising the size of the task ahead of us. Our unique technical expertise in disaster response and recovery must leave a legacy for vulnerable communities who have already experienced so much devastation over the years. After the initial emergency response phase, our operations and programmes will be delivered in as sustainable manner as possible, building the capacity of local actors and communities to better prepare for the next disaster,” Nadia Khoury added.
The most critical needs are clean drinking water, sanitation, medical care (with most health infrastructure decimated), shelter and access to basic necessities. Patients are being treated outdoors. Most families continue to sleep outdoors, fearing cracked buildings will continue to collapse. Lack of clean water, sanitation and rubbish disposal is driving the risk of diarrhoea, cholera and other diseases in the worst-affected areas while roads remain cut off to many remote areas.
The scars of the earthquake are not all physical. MRCS has also provided first aid, trauma and psychological support – a critical element in ensuring that communities are able to recover mentally from such a disaster until they can slowly rebuild their lives. Myanmar has faced years of political instability, economic downturn, and humanitarian needs, with people living in the affected areas already facing the lasting impacts of last year’s floods. The coming days, weeks and months will be critical for the people of Myanmar.
A package of photo and video materials is available at: https://shared.ifrc.org/collections/_VPvO0r5q
For more information or to request an interview, please contact: [email protected]
In Kuala Lumpur
Afrhill Rances +60 19 271 3641
In Geneva
Tommaso Della Longa +41 79 708 43 67
Scott Craig +41 76 370 35 75
