UN appeals for $72.8m in humanitarian aid for RI

Debbie A. Lubis, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

An appeal for humanitarian aid for Indonesia was launched on Wednesday by United Nations agencies and international non- governmental organizations (NGOs) in a bid to support the country's efforts in addressing multiple humanitarian crises caused by man-made and natural disasters.

Steven Allen, the acting United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in Indonesia, said that they appealed for US$72.8 million in aid next year from international donors to finance 61 projects targeting those still suffering from the economic crisis or internal conflicts.

Michael Elmquist, deputy to Humanitarian Coordinator and chief at the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that some $37 million of the fund would be utilized for food and nutrition programs, $3.7 million for health programs and $3.5 million for education.

The projects will also address social conflicts and their consequences such as displacement and peace-building efforts which will need $16.4 million.

"Major challenges that the country are facing next year relate to the nutritional shortfall because some 40 million people get 70 percent of the minimum requirements of good nutrition today," Elmquist said.

The country, he said, is facing chronic health problems and increasing epidemic threats because of the low level of immunization and the increase in diarrhea, malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV cases.

"The programs will focus also on protecting civilians in conflict areas, to create security conditions that allow the displaced to return home," Elmquist said.

He added that the programs would focus on North Maluku and Maluku provinces, East Nusa Tenggara, and Central Sulawesi in a bid to tackle problems of displacement, destruction, refugees, and continuing violence.

The programs will also address displacement to urban areas and East Java from Central Kalimantan, and destruction and limited humanitarian access in Aceh.

The appeal for Indonesia is part of the annual UN appeal for humanitarian aid for 20 countries in need.

The appeal was also made in Australia on Wednesday, in which the Australian government pledged to disburse some $5.6 million for humanitarian projects in Indonesia.

Budi Atmadi Adiputro, deputy for IDPs and refugee affairs at the National Coordinating Board for the Management of Disaster and IDPs/Refugees (Bakornas PBP) said that the government had disbursed some Rp 1.9 trillion last year to assist refugees and predicted that the figure would be the same next year.

An estimated 1.4 million people have been driven from their homes as a result of communal violence. OCHA predicted that up to three million people were affected by conflict and 40 million others belonged to vulnerable groups.

Elmquist said that to avoid leakages in the fund, all donations would be reported to OCHA and listed in the website www.relief.int so that the public could monitor the use of funds.