Today Clare Short, Secretary of State for International Development committed a further =A35 million to stem the growing humanitarian crisis in Guinea and Sierra Leone.
Ms Short said: "We are providing urgent humanitarian assistance to help the refugee and internally displaced populations affected by the conflict in Guinea. There are some 250,000 refugees from Sierra Leone and Liberia who have been caught up in the fighting in Guinea initiated by Charles Taylor and the RUF who are also destroying half the territory of Sierra Leone"
200,000 people have taken refuge from the fighting in the forests of the Guinea/Sierra Leone border region. They are suffering from water shortages and from serious outbreaks of disease.
The announcement comes as Britain hosts a day-long consultation on internally displaced peoples, in association with the UN, to look at how the international community might respond more effectively.
The assistance comprises of:
- a grant of =A31.5million towards the 2001 Appeal of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), primarily for their work with IDPs;
- a contribution of =A3500,000 to UNOCHA to assist with their regional co-ordination role and particularly to help put in place appropriate securit measures to create a sufficiently safe environment in which the humanitarian aid community can operate;
- and a further donation of up to =A33 million for further emergency work planned by other humanitarian agencies once we have established the highest priorities in terms of need.
This brings the UK assistance to refugees and Internally Displaced Peoples (IDPs) in West Africa to =A312million since December 2000.
Background
Last December, DFID provided a grant of =A37m to provide immediate humanitarian assistance to improve the basic welfare and protection of a growing refugee and IDP population in Guinea, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone and Liberia.
- =A33m was given to UNHCR who responded to the crisis by strengthening its local management and by developing alternative refugee camps away from the worst affected areas, further inside Guinea.
- =A32m to the World Food Programme to meet additional food needs for refugees; returnees and IDPs.
- =A31.5m to be divided between the ICRC and operational NGOs
- =A30.5m to UNOCHA for human
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