UK gives £3m to aid recovery effort following Indonesian earthquake

08 October 2009

Douglas Alexander today increased the UK Government’s support to survivors of last week’s devastating earthquake in Sumatra, Indonesia, to £3m.

The International Development Secretary confirmed that the extra funding will be given to agencies on the ground to provide first aid, shelter, drinking water and emergency latrines to families in the Padang area as well as to help protect Indonesia against future disasters.

Following requests from district governments in the Padang area, the Department for International Development (DFID) has also agreed that the World Bank can reallocate US$1.1m from an existing DFID project to help those districts rebuild damaged infrastructure in the earthquake-stricken areas. 

Today’s increase in funding adds to previous announcements of £500,000 support for the Red Cross in Sumatra and the deployment of a 63 strong UK Search and Rescue team to Padang as part of the search and rescue operation, delivery of emergency shelter and 2 million water purification tablets.
 
DFID is also giving £500,000 to the Philippines as part of the disaster recovery effort following Typhoon Ketsana which left at least 250 people dead and hundreds of thousands homeless.

International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander said:

“Natural disasters have a devastating impact wherever they strike but nowhere more so than in the developing world. It is right that we should play our part in the relief and recovery efforts in Indonesia and the Philippines.

“Britain stands ready to support those in need in times of crisis through Government funding but also through the generosity of our individual citizens.

“The current DEC appeal sends out a stark message of the challenges these countries are facing in the aftermath of these disasters and I would encourage the public to give what they can to the appeal.”

The UN currently estimates that 1,100 people have died as a result of the Indonesian earthquake, many hundreds have been left homeless and tens of thousands of people are staying with friends and family.
DFID has also sent two emergency expert teams to Indonesia to assess the scale of the disaster. Working with the Indonesian authorities and international relief organisations, they are helping with the combined relief effort and assessing what additional support the UK can provide.