UN official: Typhoon-hit Filipinos still dependent on humanitarian aid

UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- The UN humanitarian chief on Thursday called for continued assistance to the long-term recovery and rehabilitation efforts in a great swath of the country devastated by Supertyphoon Yolanda last November.

"Two months after Typhoon Haiyan struck the Philippines, good progress has been made in many areas but people are still dependent on humanitarian support, particularly to rebuild their homes," said Valerie Amos, UN under secretary-general for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, in a statement issued by the Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), which she heads.

However, the scale of humanitarian needs remains daunting. "I am particularly concerned that just 20 percent of funding has been secured to provide tools and materials so that people can rebuild their homes," she said.

The fast-approaching rain season also added to the urgency of financing, and farmers are also in dire need of funds to buy tools and seeds for the next planting season, Amos said.

Two months ago, Typhoon Haiyan swept across the Philippines, killing over 6,100 people, damaging or destroying more than one million houses, and displacing 4.1 million people.

In support of the Philippine government's strategic plan, which aims to guide the recovery and reconstruction in the affected areas over four years, OCHA and its partners launched a one-year Strategic Response Plan for nearly 800 million U.S. dollars in December.

"Donors, humanitarian agencies, and most of all, the people of the Philippines, have achieved a huge amount in the past two months, but the delivery and reach of aid remains uneven," Amos said in the statement.

Electricity supplies are unreliable in vast parts of the affected areas, hampering recovery efforts and business activities in urban areas. Many schools reopened on Jan. 6 but there are shortages of learning spaces and school materials.

"During the next few months, the humanitarian community will focus on ensuring a smooth transition from urgent assistance to long term recovery and rehabilitation efforts," Amos said. "We count on the continued support of donors for this work."