Tanzania to get USD11m for Refugee aid Operations
Tanzania is set to benefit from the US$100m (220bn/-) released by the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) for aid operations in nine severely underfunded emergencies.
According to the UN, historically Tanzania has been hosting millions of refugees from neighbouring countries for many years.
It is from the grand sum that US$11m (24bn/-) has been allocated to Tanzania in response to the urgent needs of refugees fleeing from Burundi.
Since April 2015, more than 126,000 Burundians have sought refuge in Tanzania as a result of political unrest in the tiny central African country.
With 64,000 DR Congolese refugees already in the Tanzania, the country is now home to over 193,000 refugees.
At the weekly arrival rate of 1,500 individuals, it is anticipated that the refugee population may increase to 230,000 by the end of this year.
This situation poses significant challenges in providing adequate assistance and protection to refugees, the UN body observed.
“The CERF’s generous contribution will be crucial in the provision of humanitarian assistance to Burundian refugees residing in Nyarugusu, Nduta and Mtendeli refugee camps in Kigoma Region, as well as to host communities in urgent need of clean water, adequate sanitation, health care, food and shelter,” the agency said.
Part of the funding will also be used to address the on-going cholera outbreak that has severely affected 19 regions in the country, it said.
The CERF funds will thus help to ensure that some of the most critical elements of the emergency response are funded and refugees are provided with protection and essential services.
Echoeing the remarks made by the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, the UN Resident Coordinator in Tanzania, Alvaro Rodriguez, said:
“This CERF allocation will help sustain life-saving relief in emergencies where the needs of the most vulnerable communities are alarmingly high while the available resources for response remain critically low.”
“Importantly, despite the tremendous generosity of Tanzania in hosting many refugees, additional funding is still required,” the UN Resident Coordinator added.
“UNHCR welcomes the generous contribution from the CERF which has come at the most opportune moment. The operation faced significant funding shortfalls in 2015 which affected our collective response capacity. We hope that this is the first sign of a more robust funding response in 2016. This contribution will definitely help to fill some of the large gaps in the response to our on-going appeal and respond to the urgent needs of refugees and their host community,” said Joyce Mends-Cole, UNHCR Representative in Tanzania.
As humanitarian needs increase, the contribution by UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), has provided a lifeline to the on-going Burundian refugee emergency. Since 2006, 125 UN Member States and observers, private-sector donors and regional governments have supported the Fund.
To date, CERF has allocated almost US$4.2bn for humanitarian operations in 94 countries and territories. It receives voluntary contributions year-round to provide immediate funding for life-saving humanitarian action.
CERF is funded through many partners with the biggest contributions coming from the UK, Sweden, Norway, The Netherlands and Canada.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN
