Taskforce Kiwi has deployed a three-person specialist
team to Nepal to support communities affected by last
month’s catastrophic flash floods.
The team left New
Zealand early this morning and will primarily work in Rasuwa
and Nuwakot Districts, some of the worst-hit areas on the
Nepal side of the border.
The team will work alongside
Taskforce Kiwi’s local NGO partner, Noble Compassionate
Volunteers (NCV), supporting its ongoing relief
operation.
The three volunteers bring experience in
operations management, needs assessment and Water,
Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH).
Taskforce Kiwi Director
Richard Adams says the decision to deploy followed
discussions with NCV over the past week about where the
organisation could provide useful support.
“Whenever
there is a significant disaster event Taskforce Kiwi will
always look to support relief efforts, either in person on
the ground or remotely from New Zealand,” Adams
says.
“We only deploy volunteers on the ground if we
identify a genuine opportunity to provide support to those
impacted, and we always look to do so as part of a wider
operation led by local partners.
“Through
conversations over the past week with NCV it has become
apparent that there is currently an opportunity to support
the response as part of their efforts, which is why we have
made the decision to deploy.”
Conditions remain
difficult in the affected areas, with damaged infrastructure
limiting the amount of material aid reaching thousands of
displaced people facing the ongoing monsoon
season.
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Rescue operations are continuing alongside
relief and recovery efforts, with thousands of people still
missing. Five New Zealanders are also among those
unaccounted for.
Assessments indicate more than 8,000
homes have been lost, leaving large numbers of people in
need of shelter, food and clean drinking water.
Adams
says the number of people displaced by the floods is
particularly concerning.
“The large number of
displaced people is massively concerning, with thousands now
vulnerable to the elements, malnutrition and water-borne
disease.
“This is going to be a long-term relief and
recovery effort, and with coverage of this event reducing
over time there will be the inevitable reduction in relief
funding and NGO support.”
The initial team is
expected to remain in Nepal for around three weeks, although
this will depend on the needs and conditions on the
ground.
Taskforce Kiwi is also providing remote
support from New Zealand, with a team working on grant
applications to help secure funding for relief and recovery
work in the affected areas.
The three-person team
includes volunteers with experience from Fire and Emergency
New Zealand, Urban Search and Rescue, and the New Zealand
Defence Force.
“TFK can provide skilled volunteers
who can bring a wealth of international experience to this
response, experience that can be utilised as part of a
local-led relief effort.
“As an independent NGO
we’re also able to respond quickly when required. We can
also leverage our other partnerships, such as with the
US-based NGO Airlink, to get skilled volunteers and valuable
supplies to Nepal.”
Adams says working alongside NCV
is an important part of the deployment.
“If our
volunteers were operating independently, they would have
reduced impact, but combining their skill and experience
with an organised and professional organisation like NCV
gives me a high level of confidence that they can have a
significant impact in a relatively short period of
time.”
Noble Compassionate Volunteers was formed in
Nepal in 2008 and has previously responded to disasters
including the 2015 Nepal earthquake and the 2025 Myanmar
earthquake.
While the immediate focus of the
deployment is on urgent needs, Taskforce Kiwi is also
looking at opportunities to support longer-term recovery in
the affected areas.
About Taskforce
Kiwi
Taskforce Kiwi is a veteran-led humanitarian
organisation made up of defence and emergency services
veterans and volunteers from the wider community. Its
volunteers use their skills and experience to support
communities before, during and after disasters.
Rather
than acting as first responders, Taskforce Kiwi works
alongside existing emergency management agencies, local
organisations and communities, providing skilled volunteer
support where it can help.
Since its formation in
2022, Taskforce Kiwi has grown to more than 1,000 registered
volunteers. To date, 581 volunteers have deployed across 29
operations, contributing more than 21,880 hours of volunteer
time to disaster relief and recovery.
Deployments have
included Cyclone Gabrielle, the 2023 Auckland Anniversary
Weekend floods, the 2024 Wairoa floods, the 2024 Port Hills
fires, the Mangawhai tornado, the 2025 Hurunui storm, the
2025 Kaikōura wildfires, and 2026 Banks Peninsula and
Kaikōura storm relief in New Zealand, as well as operations
in Australia, Vanuatu, Morocco, Canada, the US and Papua New
Guinea.
“Just because you take off a uniform,
doesn’t mean that you stop serving,” is a principle that
sits at the heart of Taskforce Kiwi’s
work.
