IOM Flash Appeal Myanmar Earthquake Response (29 March 2025 - 31 December 2025)

SITUATION OVERVIEW 

On 28 March 2025, a magnitude 7.7 earthquake occurred in Mandalay, Myanmar, at a depth of 10 km. Myanmar was hit by a strong aftershock of 6.4 magnitude around 12 minutes after the initial quake. It ruptured along the Sagaing Fault and was the largest to hit Myanmar in more than a century. 

While transitioning toward early recovery and resilience, humanitarian needs remain widespread and severe. Many affected individuals, particularly those in hard-to-reach areas, are yet to receive any assistance, as the initial response was disproportionately concentrated in cities, town centers, and more accessible areas due to physical and humanitarian access constraints to large parts of affected areas. 

In the response thus far, IOM has provided critical medical care to the injured and collaborated with local mental health and psychosocial support teams to offer psychosocial first aid and emotional support to individuals in acute distress. Through its expansive network of Population Mobility and Needs racking (PMNT) partners, IOM made significant contributions to multisectoral needs and mobility assessments, which have underpinned the entire response. 

IOM also imported over 70,000 relief items from its global stockpiles, supplemented by donations from EU Member States, bringing relief assistance to more than 50,000 people. IOM has also partnered with over 20 local partners, providing emergency assistance to an additional 109,100 earthquake-affected people. In parallel, IOM has also begun to scale up its response to the immense medium and longer-term recovery and reconstruction needs, leveraging existing programming, footprint and network of partners from its large humanitarian operation and years of experience in resilience programming in Myanmar—both in pre and post-2021 contexts. 

The earthquake caused extensive destruction, damaging or destroying more than 40,000 homes and leaving thousands of families without a safe place to return to. Needs have dramatically increased in the aftermath of the earthquake, with an estimated 5.2 million people need shelter & settlements, non-food items (NFIs), and camp coordination and camp management (CCCM) support while over 4.3 million people require water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) support. Physical damage caused by the earthquake has been estimated at USD 11 billion, equivalent to 14 per cent of the country’s 2024/2025 gross domestic product, according to the World Bank in May 2025.

Heavy rains of an early monsoon season are expected to exacerbate these needs and further deteriorate the WASH crisis, including increasing risks of the spread of waterborne and communicable diseases, particularly for communities still residing in makeshift collective shelters and displacement sites. 

In line with Objective 1: Saving Lives and Protecting People on the Move and Objective 2: Driving Solutions to Displacement of the IOM Strategic Plan 2024–2028, IOM has identified three strategic 

areas where its mandate, strong partnerships and on-the-ground presence position it well to lead recovery efforts. These draw from ongoing efforts promoting community-based approaches to various intervention areas, notably disaster risk management, infrastructure and essential service rehabilitation, and MHPSS; and driving solutions for displaced populations, focusing on supporting community-led planning and strengthening local capacity and resilience to future disasters and shocks. 

I) Addressing post-earthquake mobility and creating conditions for the progressive resolution of displacement situations. 

II) Leveraging mobility and emergency livelihood for socio-economic recovery and resilience. 

III) Increase preparedness for future disasters. 

As the initial three-month flash appeal concludes, IOM appeals for USD 31.7 million to meet humanitarian and early recovery needs of 691,450 earthquake-affected individuals in Myanmar until 31 December 2025. This represents a USD 14.2 million increase from the original appeal to meet the needs of an additional 397,890 people.