US President Joe Biden on Friday authorized the use of up to $100 million to address migration emergencies related to the situation in Afghanistan, the White House said. The statement said the money would come from the Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund “for the purpose of meeting unexpected urgent refugee and migration needs, victims […]
aid
Wealthy nations cancel $14 bn of Sudan debt
A group of rich countries said on Friday that it would cancel much of the debt owed by Sudan to help the country back into the international fold. Talks that ended late on Thursday “allowed us to reach an historic agreement… to manage Sudan’s debt”, said Emmanuel Moulin, head of the Paris Club of roughly […]
Ethiopian troops destroy UNICEF equipment in Tigray
Ethiopian soldiers destroyed UNICEF satellite equipment in war-torn Tigray on Monday, the UN agency said in a statement condemning the attack. “Members of the Ethiopian National Defense Forces entered our office in Mekele, Tigray, Ethiopia today and dismantled our VSAT equipment,” the United Nations Children’s Fund said in a statement, referring to satellite machinery. […]
Some in Madagascar ‘on verge of starvation’: UN
The famine ravaging Madagascar — the first country to experience such conditions due to climate change — is forcing people to eat locusts, cactus fruits, leaves and even mud, and some are on the verge of starvation, a UN official warned Friday. The current situation — brought on by years of persistent drought — prompted […]
Federal government releases Rs 3 bn in grant-in-aid for Gilgit-Baltistan
The federal government released Rs 3 billion in grant-in-aid for Gilgit-Baltistan. A letter issued by the Federal Ministry of Finance to the Deputy Accountant General of Pakistan said that Rs 3 billion has been released to the Government of Gilgit-Baltistan in the form of grant-in-aid for the financial year 2020-21. It may be recalled that […]
Over 30,000 children risk death in famine-hit Tigray: UN
Tens of thousands of malnourished children risk dying in hard-to-reach areas of Ethiopia’s troubled Tigray region, now hit by famine, the United Nations said Friday. “Without humanitarian access to scale up our response, an estimated 30,000-plus severely malnourished children in those highly inaccessible areas are at high risk of death,” UNICEF spokesman James Elder told […]
UN seeks $617 mn in Chad aid
The United Nations on Friday launched an appeal for $617.5 million dollars to help the central African state of Chad meet an escalating humanitarian emergency. Around 5.5 million people — a third of the population — need support for food, health, shelter, clean water and other essentials, it said, in an appeal jointly made with […]
Volcano experts helicopter in to DR Congo crater
A week after Africa’s most active volcano, Mount Nyiragongo, erupted in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and poured lava into the city of Goma, experts flew into a second smoking crater nearby to assess the risks. Piloted by South Africans, a Puma helicopter from the UN’s MONUSCO peacekeeping mission delivered leading volcanologists to the inside […]
Humanitarian aid trickles into Gaza as ceasefire sets in
Gaza City, Palestinian Territories: The ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian in Gaza was holding Saturday, as humanitarian aid began to enter the Israeli-blockaded enclave ravaged by 11 days of bloodshed. As thousands of displaced Palestinians returned to their homes, and Israelis began to resume normal life on Friday, international focus turned to the reconstruction of […]
Bangladesh tries new way to aid flood-hit families: cash up front
DHAKA: Parvin Begum, who saw her home on a secluded island in northern Bangladesh steadily devoured by floods this month, feels lucky. She received some money before the disaster hit under a new form of aid, used for the first time in Bangladesh by the government and humanitarian agencies. It gives funding to vulnerable people […]