ABU DHABI // The UAE is to provide another Dh3.7 million in humanitarian aid for the victims of the civil war in Syria.
The funds will go to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs as part of an overall commitment to Syria of Dh220m pledged by the UAE at an international conference in Kuwait this year, of which Dh66.6m has been disbursed.
Sultan Al Shamsi, an undersecretary at the Ministry of International Cooperation and Development, said there would be meetings with UN bodies in the next few months to agree on distributing the amount outstanding.
“We are coordinating with the United Nations to respond to their appeal inside Syria,” he said.
“Our focus is to enhance the UN’s operations inside Syria,” Mr Al Shamsi said. Outside Syria, refugee camps are also regularly supported by UAE aid in Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon, with the help of local governments, he said.
The ministry signed an agreement with the UN agency on Tuesday to coordinate humanitarian response activities inside Syria.
“Getting inside Syria is very difficult. That’s why we are working with the UN, which is the only way to get inside,” Mr Al Shamsi said.
“The UAE is keen to work with international organisations to ensure the deliver of humanitarian aid to those most in need,” said Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, the Minister for International Cooperation and Development.
“We are pleased to provide support to UNOCHA, in its active role of coordination and guiding relief operation.
“Together we can ensure the delivery of urgently-needed humanitarian aid to communities inside Syria.”
The UAE has provided a total of Dh570 million as humanitarian assistance to Syrian refugees since 2012.
“Out of its deep understanding of the importance and increasing need for humanitarian coordination, the Government of the UAE has made another generous gesture by allocating one million US dollars to support the humanitarian coordination and advocacy activities for the Syria Humanitarian Response Plan,” said Rashid Khalikov, director of the UN aid agency in Geneva.
About 10,000 Syrian refugees are sheltered in three camps set up by the UAE near the Syrian border in Jordan, Mr Al Shamsi said.
anwar@thenational.ae
