Vol. 415 No. 1
128 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he has received a request for assistance for the UN Special Emergency Programme for the Horn of Africa (SEPHA); if so, if he will outline (1) the assistance he has provided and (2) the contribution that is being made through the EC; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
The Government are very concerned about the situation in the Horn of Africa where over twenty million people have been affected by drought and war. The Government have responded to the UN Consolidated Interim Appeal on behalf of the Special Emergency Programme in the Horn of Africa by allocating £90,000 from the Disaster Relief Fund in order to assist displaced persons and refugees in the region.
This allocation, which was made on 20 December 1991, brought Ireland's overall bilateral emergency assistance to the Horn of Africa since the beginning of 1991 to £1,100,000.
In addition, the EC has contributed to the UN Appeal. The EC gave US$12.3 million of which Ireland's share, through the EC Budget, is calculated to be around US$110,000.
Although there are indications of some improvement in the situation, conditions throughout the Horn of Africa remain very worrying and I therefore shall continue to monitor developments very closely.
