“Through the Italian Cooperation Service, I have arranged to finance the High Commissioner for Refugees with a million euros in response to the worsening crisis in the Rakhine State in Myanmar, where repeated episodes of violence, difficult socio-economic conditions and ethnic and religious tensions make the humanitarian situation particularly complex,” said the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Angelino Alfano.
The Italian contribution envisages protection, assistance and advocacy activities to the benefit of approximately 40,000 people, including the stateless persons residing in the area and non-Muslim communities.
More specifically, projects will be implemented that are instrumental to promoting the coexistence of communities: building small-scale transport and communication infrastructure, rehabilitating common facilities (schools, health care centres, small dams, markets and recreation centres), as well as activities to improve the sustenance opportunities of the most vulnerable segments of the population.
“We want to contribute to avoid triggering a spiral of violence,” added Minister Alfano. He went on: “Adopting integration policies in the prospect of long-term development is of fundamental importance in supporting the reconciliation process.”