“In order to tackle two of the most severe humanitarian crises -the dramatic issue of the Rohingya refugees fleeing from Myanmar to Bangladesh, and the severe emergency on the Island of Mindanao in The Philippines – I am issuing, via the Italian Cooperation, two multilateral funding operations amounting to a total of 1 million euro”.
This was expressed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Angelino Alfano, underlining that the implementation of the actions will be entrusted to “the World Food Program in Bangladesh and to the International Red Cross Committee in The Philippines.”
The Italian Cooperation’s 500,000 euro intervention in Bangladesh will fund the distribution of food rations and protein rich foods to the over 400,000 Rohingya refugees who have fled in the past few weeks from the State of Rakhine in Myanmar, seeking protection in makeshift camps in Bangladesh.
In the Philippines, the Italian Cooperation will work together with the International Red Cross Committe to ensure the distribution of food aid, primary commodities, sanitation kits and drinkable water to the 360,000 civilians fleeing from the city of Marawi, on the Island of Mindanao. Violent clashes have been going on there for months between the Filipino security forces and the “Abu Sayyaf” terrorist group.
