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UN, aid agencies stepping up response in wake of Myanmar floods

Xinhua, August 8, 2015 Adjust font size:

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that the UN and international aid organizations are stepping up their support to the flood-relief response which is being led by the Myanmar authorities, civil society groups and the Myanmar Red Cross, a UN spokesman told reporters here Friday.

Myanmar's authorities said more than 330,000 people have been affected and nearly 90 people killed by the floods and landslides, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing.

As of Thursday, nearly 400 metric tonnes of food for 103,000 people and 620,000 water treatment tablets were distributed, as well as food and other items.

Eamonn Murphy, who is the interim UN resident and humanitarian coordinator, said "now that humanitarian staff are able to reach the most critical areas, we are doing everything in our power to assist the authorities in bringing people the aid they desperately need."

UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O'Brien is releasing 9 million U.S. dollars from the Central Emergency Response Fund ( CERF) to allow aid organizations to quickly scale up rapid response operations and provide 160,000 people in Rakhine, Chin State, Sagaing Region and Magway Region life-saving assistance, Dujarric said.

"However, OCHA warns that these funds will not be enough to meet the urgent needs of all the communities touched by the floods, with nearly 50 million dollars estimated to be required," the spokesman added.

The flood disaster in Myanmar since June has brought the death toll nationwide to 88 and affected more than 330,000 people across the country, prompting a state of emergency for urgent relief efforts.

According to Myanmar's Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement, most of the deaths were reported in western Rakhine state with at least 55 died.

The deadly flood also killed 4,650 cattle, displaced 85,400 people and destroyed 10,956 homes and more than 88,120 hectares of farmland.

In its latest development, flooding has begun to move southwards and it is likely to expand and affect the southern part of the country. Endite