Vol. 498 No. 3
69 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the amount of relief aid his Department has sanctioned in reaction to hurricane Mitch; the amount each agency received; the materials and supplies supplied to date; the number of Irish personnel involved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27081/98]
Ireland has responded to the humanitarian crisis in Central America by approving a total of £500,000 from the emergency humanitarian assistance fund administered by the Department of Foreign Affairs. Ireland's assistance is being disbursed through Trócaire, APSO, the International Federation of the Red Cross, the World Health Organisation and the World Food Programme.
The amount of assistance received by each agency and its purpose is as follows: grants totalling £100,000 to Trócaire for immediate relief which includes meeting, the needs in nine severely affected municipalities in Honduras — approximately 30,000 people; grants totalling £80,000 to APSO for humanitarian assistance in Honduras and Nicaragua; a grant of £120,000 to the International Federation of the Red Cross — the federation, along with its national societies, is able to disburse these funds to where they are most needed including other countries such as Guatemala and El Salvador; a grant of £100,000 to the World Health Organisation for emergency medical supplies on behalf of all countries affected within the region; and a grant of £150,000 to the World Food Programme towards its emergency feeding operation for the most vulnerable victims of the hurricane in Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala and El Salvador.
APSO at present has 31 Irish staff based in Honduras and Nicaragua who, along with the locally hired staff, are organising the supply of food, medicine and clothing for the communities with which they work. APSO has reported the urgent need for fast growing rice and bean seed in the hope of producing some food within the next three months. Part of the moneys allocated to APSO will fund the supply of emergency medical kits in some of the most affected areas of Honduras. To avoid duplication, APSO is co-ordinating closely with other international agencies and particularly with Trócaire to whom it has provided a number of personnel.
Trócaire has two Irish personnel in the region, however, through a network of local counterpart organisations it is also using local people in the response effort. Seventeen of its development projects in nine municipalities of Honduras have been directly affected by the hurricane. Grants totalling £100,000 have been allocated to Trócaire's initial programmes aimed at providing emergency assistance. The main form of relief supplies consists of family food packages.
The Government has given a commitment that Ireland will work with these countries over a longer period and play our full part in the international effort for reconstruction and rehabilitation.
