Initial evaluations carried out in the west of the country by IOM in cooperation with local authorities and partner NGOs show that as of 22 August, there were some 15,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Batumi. However, numbers are said to have decreased over the past few days as many of the displaced are heading back towards the central town of Gori and surrounding villages.

An additional 3,500 IDPs from the remote Kodori Gorge are currently sheltering in Kutaisi, with some 1,500 living in collective centres.

In both towns, there is a pressing need for more hygiene kits, blankets, mattresses, pillows, bed sheets and water containers.

In Tbilisi, IOM staff with the assistance of local volunteers continue to provide humanitarian assistance to vulnerable displaced families who are currently sheltering in hundreds of small collective centres set up in public schools, nurseries and building sites, many with limited space, inadequate or no facilities.

On 25 August, IOM distributed additional family, child and baby kits containing mattresses, gas cookers, bed sheets, towels, soap, tooth paste, washing powder and basin, toilet paper, diapers and baby food to an additional 500 conflict-affected individuals who have fled Gori and rural areas around Tskhinvali in South Ossetia.

According to the Georgian authorities, some IDPs are leaving Tbilisi to return to the towns of Gori, Khashuri, Kareli and Kaspi, to the west of the capital.

“Whether returns to conflict-affected areas will pick up or not remains to be seen,” says IOM’s Marc Hulst. “For the time being, the immediate needs of the IDPs remain considerable as many say their homes have been damaged or destroyed. We therefore urgently need funding to continue assisting the most vulnerable displaced families.”

As part of last week’s UN Flash Appeal, IOM requires an initial US$ 1, 9 million to provide emergency logistical support, shelter and non-food assistance over the next six months to tens of thousands of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Tbilisi and in other parts of Georgia.

“Once we’re over the initial emergency phase, IOM will address the immediate rehabilitation needs, beginning with the provision of transitional shelter and see what can be done to bolster peace in shattered communities,” adds IOM’s Marc Hulst.

For more information, please contact Khatuna Didbaridze at IOM Georgia, Tel: + 995 32 25 22 16; Email: kdidbaridze@iom.ge