MANILA, Philippines — Multilateral lender Asian Development Bank (ADB) just approved a $2 million grant to support the Philippine government's emergency response to Typhoon Odette (international name Rai), which brought destruction to central and southern provinces in December last year.
The grant, which will come from the ADB's Asia Pacific Disaster Response Fund, seeks to provide humanitarian assistance in 15,000 households, or roughly 75,000 people affected by the typhoon — in the form of food vouchers, and logistics support for food delivery and assistance.
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ADB will be teaming up with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to deliver the food assistance to the communities.
"This assistance will help finance the humanitarian needs of those residents, especially people living in remote areas," ADB Director General for Southeast Asia Ramesh Subramaniam said in a statement posted on the bank's website.
Typhoon Odette pummelled portions of the country in December, making landfalls in Surigao del Norte, Dinagat Islands, Southern Leyte, Bohol, Cebu, Negros Oriental and Palawan before exiting in the West Philippine Sea.
It displaced hundreds of thousands of locals in Visayas, and brought destruction of over 1.7 million houses across eight provinces.
Estimates from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council show the typhoon has caused P24.6 billion or nearly $500 million in damage to crops, public infrastructure and private property.
ADB, whose headquarters are in Mandaluyong, Manila, has vowed to help its member countries become prosperous, inclusive, resilient and sustainable.