"SITUATION ANALYSIS Description of the crisis Cyclone Mocha caused significant damage in Myanmar, particularly in areas that are already grappling with civil unrest, a high number of internally displaced people, armed clashes, and fragile economic conditions. The cyclone that brought about intense wind and heavy rainfall led to significant flooding and damages in Rakhine, Chin, Magway, Ayeyarwady, Mandalay, and Sagaing states and regions. The states of Rakhine, Chin, and Magway regions were particularly hard hit, prompting the Myanmar Red Cross Society (MRCS) to respond. The MRCS, operating as an independent humanitarian organization, mobilized resources and personnel in accordance with the Myanmar Red Cross Society Law of 2015 to provide emergency aid, including medical assistance, shelter, and essential supplies to the affected communities. This cyclone occurred in an already challenging humanitarian context in Myanmar. OCHA's 2023 Humanitarian Needs Overview projected that over 17.6 million people would require humanitarian assistance in Myanmar in 20231 . As per MRCS's branch analysis, the cyclone affected around 1.1 million individuals from more than 237,000 households across the country. A large number of semi-permanent and temporary shelters were damaged or destroyed, leaving over 200,000 houses in need of repair. Critical infrastructure, including water systems, sanitation facilities, hospitals, clinics, schools, and transportation networks, suffered severe damage or complete destruction. Livelihoods were disrupted, with the loss of livestock and floods impacting croplands. The aftermath of the cyclone has led to a rise in the prices of basic goods, affecting the physical and mental health of the affected population. Healthcare access is disrupted, compounded by shortages of medicine. Summary of response Overview of the host National Society and ongoing response The Myanmar Red Cross Society is an independent humanitarian organization that operates impartially and neutrally. Its role as an auxiliary to the state in the humanitarian field, operating in line with the Red Cross Red Crescent Fundamental Principles, is enshrined in the Myanmar Red Cross Society Law of 2015. The MRCS has a strong presence with over a thousand trained Emergency Response Team (ERT) volunteers and 44,000 members nationwide, including 7,994 core Red Cross Volunteers (RCV) active at the community level. The organization has 23 warehouses strategically located throughout the country to support preparedness and response efforts. It also has regional and state branches across the country and a substantial presence in various operational hubs in Rakhine State, under the management of the MRCS Rakhine Operations Management Unit established over the past decade. During this reporting period, 962 volunteers were deployed to aid the most affected communities since the cyclone made landfall. The MRCS has established communication channels with local authorities, communities and other stakeholders in the affected areas through its local staff, volunteers, and branches. This enables them to reach vulnerable communities and provide immediate humanitarian assistance. Through its community presence, MRCS has access to the ground and has collected data as well as assessed the impact of Cyclone Mocha in Rakhine State and Magway and Ayeyarwady regions in particular. In anticipation of the cyclone, the MRCS activated its Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) one week before landfall and initiated preparedness measures and early actions well in advance. The national MRCS EOC has also regularly communicated and received information from the State and Branches EOC. As a result, MRCS was on standby and ready to mobilize the volunteers and dispatch the NFI items. Prior to landfall, MRCS volunteers in the projected path and impact zone assisted with evacuations, conducted awareness campaigns and gathered preliminary data. After the cyclone made landfall, on 14 May 2023, MRCS branches mobilized their volunteers to engage in rescue operations, clear roads and debris, provide first aid and psychological first aid, and collect initial observations and data. MRCS also mobilized its existing operational resources to respond to the aftermath, deploying trained expert personnel to provide assistance and support services such as logistics and supply chain directly. The response in Rakhine state has focused on communities whose vulnerability was increased by Cyclone Mocha as part of the MRCS ongoing humanitarian activities in Rakhine. As of 17 November 2023, MRCS has reached 290,003 people from 58,000 households in relief assistance, including, shelter, livelihood, health and hygiene items, and multi-purpose cash assistance. A total of 19,586 individuals from 4,277 households received shelter assistance through the distribution of tarpaulins, family kits, and blankets. In the hardest-hit region of Rakhine State, MRCS distributed a total of 982,507 litres, of which 919,237 litres from water trucks and 63,270 litres in the form of 1L bottles, of clean drinking water, along with 19,000 litres of domestic water to affected communities, reaching 50,042 households (250,210 people). To uphold the dignity of the affected communities, hygiene parcels for families, specialized hygiene kits for men, and dignity kits for women were distributed in various affected regions, including Rakhine, Magway, Yangon, Ayeyarwady, Bago, and Mandalay. 12,586 individuals were reached with these items. Additionally, MRCS distributed 468 sets of children's clothing to support affected children. MRCS's mobile health clinics in Rakhine have provided assistance to 1,826 individuals since it started on 17 May 2023. In the initial response to Cyclone Mocha, 19 people received first aid and ambulance service from MRCS. Furthermore, 1,989 individuals attended health education organized by MRCS. Lastly, a total of 451 million MMK or CHF 193,930 in multi-purpose cash grants (MPCG) were distributed to 2,328 households benefitting 10,381 people. It is worth noting that some households received multiple support, thus a comprehensive approach was adopted when calculating the total people reached to avoid double counting. Operational coordination meetings are regularly organized to update the partners in collaboration with the IFRC, involving in-country partners and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), to provide technical and planning support to MRCS for the response. MRCS, IFRC, and ICRC meet in Movement tripartite meetings at a strategic level. The regular tripartite security cell meetings are being used for regular risk analysis and security planning. Moreover, MRCS and IFRC are observers in HCT meetings and Cluster coordination as part of their external coordination efforts. The development of the Federation-wide Operational Strategy involved a shared leadership approach, drawing upon the expertise of the IFRC network and past experiences from drafting the Unified Plan. To ensure efficient communication and reporting, the monitoring and reporting mechanisms are coordinated under one single reporting system, aiming to streamline reporting channels between the MRCS and the IFRC members. In addition, the IFRC mobilized five rapid response personnel (surge) for the operation, including for the combined Myanmar Shelter/ NFI/ CCCM Cluster to enhance and complement the existing coordination structure. The MRCS, supported by the IFRC network, has been actively engaged in long-term programming in Rakhine state since the large-scale violence in 2012. Despite some challenges in maintaining continual access to communities in need (as faced by most humanitarian actors), MRCS has been a well-recognized humanitarian actor, advocating with relevant stakeholders based on its humanitarian mission. In alignment with its established functions under national law, the MRCS, with IFRC support, is actively involved in humanitarian diplomacy. This involves securing access to reach populations in need during the response operation and ongoing programmatic actions. The IFRC continues to provide strategic and operational guidance, collaborating with other humanitarian actors as needed, to enhance the National Society's capacities, ensuring it remains and is perceived as an effective and efficient principled humanitarian actor. The 5 in-country Partner National Societies (Swedish Red Cross, Finnish Red Cross, German Red Cross, Norwegian Red Cross, and Danish Red Cross) together with 9 other Partner National Societies contributed to Cyclone Mocha Operation through this Federation-wide Emergency Appeal. The Myanmar Red Cross Society expresses its gratitude to all contributing partners for their support thus far. The ICRC is also providing support to the MRCS for its response, as reported separately2 ..."