UN supports South, Southeast Asian nations responding to flooding, landslides: spokesperson

United Nations, Dec 5 (IANS) The United Nations continues to support the governments of some South and Southeast Asian nations in responding to the catastrophic flooding and landslides that have reportedly killed over 1,500 people and impacted nearly 11 million people, a UN spokesperson said.

In Sri Lanka, the United Nations and its partners continue to support the government-led response and assessments, Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN secretary-general, told a daily briefing on Thursday.

He said that in close coordination with the authorities, the United Nations and its humanitarian partners have delivered emergency aid, including food, hygiene supplies, kitchen sets and water tanks, and early recovery efforts are underway, including deeper damage assessments.

For Vietnam, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher allocated $2.6 million from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund on Wednesday to bolster assistance in the most affected provinces, to support shelter, water, sanitation and hygiene, as well as food security interventions to complement the government-led efforts, said the spokesperson.

Dujarric noted that in Indonesia, the government-led response to the devastating floods in Aceh continues despite major logistical and access challenges, and the United Nations is working closely with the government there on logistics, health, water and sanitation, and is facilitating coordination with local partners.

The United Nations will continue to closely monitor the situation in the region and remain in close contact with national authorities, he said.

Parts of South and Southeast Asia have witnessed the most devastating flooding in years as a result of relentless downpours compounded by a tropical cyclone, with Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia among the hardest hit, facing record-breaking rainfall, storm surges and widespread inundation, Xinhua news agency reported.

Experts say the disasters were driven by an unusual convergence of powerful weather systems, including Cyclones Ditwah and Senyar, alongside a strengthened northeast monsoon.

Across the region, nearly 11 million people have been affected, including about 1.2 million forced from their homes into shelters, while roads, utilities and farmlands have been washed away.

–IANS

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