(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) WASHINGTON, Sept 21 (KUNA) -- The US announced on Thursday over USD 575 million additional humanitarian assistance to millions of people affected by food insecurity and violence in Yemen, South Sudan, Nigeria, and Somalia.
This brings the total US humanitarian assistance for these four crises to nearly USD 2.5 billion since the beginning of Fiscal Year 2017.
The US Agency for International Development (USAID) said in a statement that with this new funding, the US is providing "emergency food and nutrition assistance, life-saving medical care, improved sanitation, emergency shelter, and protection for vulnerable groups who have been affected by conflict." It added that the US "is also providing safe drinking water and supporting health and hygiene programs to treat and prevent disease outbreaks, including cholera, which has taken hold in all four countries." "Tens of millions of people are in need of humanitarian assistance as a result of the man-made crises in South Sudan, Nigeria, and Yemen, all of which are driven by conflict and Somalia, where ongoing conflict is exacerbating the effects of a severe drought," the USAID stressed.
It noted that "while a swift influx of aid helped roll back famine in some areas of South Sudan, and has so far prevented famine in Yemen and Somalia, life-threatening hunger is spreading in both scope and scale." "We commend the humanitarian contributions made by international donors, and encourage additional contributions to meet growing needs. We also call on all parties involved in these conflicts to allow aid workers full and unhindered access to help communities in need," the statement remarked. (end) si.msa
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