MYANMAR: UN SAYS AID REACHES ONE MILLION VICTIMS OF CYCLONE

MYANMAR: UN SAYS AID REACHES ONE MILLION VICTIMS OF CYCLONE New York, May 27 2008 12:00PM Relief efforts by aid agencies have reached around one million people in Myanmar, just over 40 per cent of those affected by Cyclone Nargis, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
Speaking to reporters today in Geneva, OCHA spokesperson Elizabeth Byrs <"http://www.unog.ch/80256EDD006B9C2E/(httpNewsByYear_en)/1BAAF184DFC587F8C1257456004D6C5F?OpenDocument">said that the 40 per cent figure does not include aid distributed by the Government. Some 153 international flights had arrived in Yangon, Myanmar's largest city, she said, and between 10 and 15 flights are coming in every day, with air-bridge flights from the logistics hub at Bangkok's Don Muang Airport to Yangon now fully operational.
Ms. Brys said that <"http://ochaonline.un.org/Default.aspx?tabid=1080">OCHA hoped that the UN World Food Programme (<"http://www.wfp.org">WFP) would be able to start operating 10 helicopters in Myanmar as soon as possible, after the Government gave the go-ahead to their deployment. So far, WFP and its partners have delivered over 3,000 tons of food aid reaching some 460,000 people.
Meanwhile, the UN World Health Organization (<"http://www.searo.who.int/en/Section1257/Section2263/Section2528.htm">WHO) said that the highest priority now for affected populations is access to water, sanitation and basic healthcare. The agency has mobilized a specialized team to focus on malaria prevention and control.
WHO and other health agencies have called for greater financial support to meet victims' health needs, following on from an international pledging conference held in Yangon on Sunday, which was chaired by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the UN. As of yesterday, WHO said that over 50 countries have pledged around $50 million to the UN to support relief, recovery and rehabilitation efforts.
The UN Children's Fund (<"http://www.unicef.org">UNICEF) is completing an assessment of the needs of children within the country and has been providing health, education and water and sanitation supplies as well as technical assistance.
2008-05-27 00:00:00.000

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