New Zealand, UNICEF ink partnership to support pandemic aid in Odette-hit areas
MANILA, Philippines — New Zealand and the United Nations Children’s Fund inked a partnership to help and support communities affected by Typhoon Odette (international name: Rai) through pandemic aid.
New Zealand, through its Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, donated US$1.6 million to UNICEF, which will be used to rebuild affected communities through programs in health and nutrition; water, sanitation and hygiene; as well as social protection.
“New Zealand is proud to partner with UNICEF. This partnership will serve as our flagship project in the fight against COVID-19,” New Zealand’s ambassador to the Philippines Peter Kell said in a statement on Tuesday.
He added that their country’s contribution will “maintain essential health services” in areas that were affected.
“Through this partnership, we can ensure that children and families continue to receive assistance and that essential services remain available to them,” UNICEF Representative in the Philippines Oyunsaikhan Dendevnorov said.
The UN agency noted that the Philippines is already one of the most affected by the pandemic as it worsened the situation of those in poverty, natural disasters such as the typhoon “make recovery more difficult for many children and their families.”
The typhoon, which hit the southern and central regions of the Philippines late last year, affected the flow of essential services in local communities.
UNICEF noted that at least US$39.8 million is needed to help almost half a million people, including some 300,000 children, in the areas affected by the typhoon rebuild their lives.
Months even after the onslaught of the storm, help continues to pour in.
Just last week, the United States through its United States Agency for International Development provided another P400 million or around US$8 million to help typhoon-hit communities with rebuilding and repairing healthcare centers and support livelihood programs, among others.
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